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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, October 11, 2010 7:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 16 of 20 (11. CRYSTAL BAY ROAD CUL-DE-SAC PETITION, Continued) O’Reilly stated the residents have chosen specifically the option of doing a break-away barrier or an enclosure at either end. It appears the first step the City Council is looking at is doing a feasibility study, which would look at all the options. The residents are asking the City Council to consider this petition in order to address the safety concerns of the residents that have developed given the amount of traffic on the road, the speeds the vehicles travel, and the number of children in the neighborhood. The residents would like the City Council to approve the feasibility study to allow the City Engineer’s office to evaluate every aspect of the project. O’Reilly pointed out there is no assurance that land acquisition will be necessary. Bill Wolfe, 3255 Crystal Bay Road, noted not all the residents have signed the petition and that this matter has been discussed with other previous councils on at least two occasions and denied. Approximately five or six years ago in Minnetonka Beach they went through a big effort to close the road on their end. Wolfe indicated he attended that meeting as well and Orono’s Council sent a representative to the meeting. White noted the Orono Police Department thought it was a bad idea given the public safety issues it would create. Wolfe indicated he concurred with the police chief at the meeting and it was later decided not to close the road. Wolfe stated in his opinion this would be bad money spent. LeRoy Erger, 3265 Crystal Bay Road, indicated he has lived on this road for 40 years and has raised four children with none of them being hit. They have tried three or four times to close off one end of this road. Erger commented he is not sure how the City can spend $6000 on something that should be obvious will not be approved. The residents were aware of the road when they moved into the neighborhood. Four properties are for sale currently, including one not publicly listed for sale. Erger commented that dogs in the neighborhood are also a problem. Erger recommended the City consider speed bumps for this roadway and that the best speed bumps are out at Canterbury. Erger suggested the residents pay for a speed bump and that he also has a concern that emergency vehicles will not be able to promptly respond to calls if one end of the road is closed. Terry Hofer, 3339 Crystal Bay Road, stated the demographics have changed drastically in the neighborhood and that there are now approximately 10 children under the age of five. The road was never designed to carry 2000 cars per week and you would not design a house nowadays where that house was located 15 feet away from the street with no sidewalks. Hofer stated the more cars that travel the road, the greater the chances that cars will be traveling at a higher rate of speed. Hofer stated one more reason for the break-away barrier is that ambulances currently don’t want to go down that curve and normally come from Shadywood or County Road 19. When the residents are speaking about safety, it is not so they can live in a gated community but so they can protect the children. This is a dangerous situation and Crystal Bay Road is not your typical neighborhood where you have a nice yard. Some of the driveways are very small and unable to fit a large vehicle. Hofer stated traffic has increased substantially during the time she has lived in the area. Brad Bakke, 3235 Crystal Bay Road, stated he also has a concern regarding the safety of the children. When the road was originally constructed, it was intended for a different use. The use of the road has Item #02 - CC Agenda - 10/25/2010 Approval of Council Minutes 10/11/2010 [Page 16 of 20]