10-26-2009 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, October 26, 2009 7:00 o'clock p.m. (4. DAKOTA RAIL TRAIL PARKING — THREE RIVERS PARK DISTRICT, Continued) because cars were parking all along Bayview, with the pedestrians then walking to the trail. Bayview is 24 feet wide and Kelly Avenue is 28 feet wide. There currently is no gravel along the shoulders, and with the people walking on the shoulders, it has caused some erosion. Meyer expressed a concern that the problem will continue to escalate. During the wintertime it is not a problem but it will be an issue again in the spring. The City had discussed previously parking behind the fire barn, which would be a nice option, or perhaps behind Snyder's. Meyers stated if the parking were located in that area, it would also help to promote the Navarre business area. Meyer stated in his opinion there should not be any parking near the Bayview neighborhood given the narrowness of the streets and the number of cars that would utilize it. Meyer requested no parking signs be posted along the street on both sides of the street. Cars were parking on both sides of the street, which left very little room for a car to pass through on Bayview. The pedestrians have also destroyed portions of his yard, which has led to him placing some orange cones along the shoulder in front of his property. Meyers requested that Three Rivers address the parking situation. Mayor White stated the two issues before the Council tonight are the lack of parking near the trail and where an optional parking area could be found. It • Murphy recommended another issue be discussed as well, which is that at several of the busier intersections there is a tremendous amount of confusion given the number of signs. Murphy requested • Carlson address that issue as well. Boe Carlson, Three Rivers Park District, stated as it relates to the issue of where to park, during the design phase of this project, Three Rivers worked with representatives from each of the communities to identify parking locations. There is very little opportunity for public space that can be dedicated solely for parking, which was often the case prior to the trail being built, and that the trail has added more pressure for parking. The second issue is that Three Rivers is limited in the amount of right -of -way that they have. The Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority owns the entire right -of -way and they are allowed to operate a 16 -foot right of way for the operation of the trail. The Railroad Authority understands the challenges for parking and would like to do what is appropriate for the management of the trail but they have to be careful to manage the trail to ensure future access is preserved. Carlson stated Three Rivers was involved in a parking study with the City of Spring Park, which was a potential project that Three Rivers was looking at to accommodate trail use, lake use, and business usehesidential parking in the area. Spring Park was looking at a 50 to 100 car parking lot, which was not realistic and not able to be done. Since that time there has been a change on the council and it no longer is being discussed by them. They are currently looking at a parking area located at their city hall, but that would probably be more for people who are familiar with the area. Carlson indicated that Three Rivers wants to work with the cities to provide parking. The design task force recommended that they work with each of the communities to develop up to six public parking spots and that Three Rivers would cover the cost of those. Carlson indicated they are willing to work with Orono Staff to identify a location. The numbers utilizing the trail far exceeds six parking stalls. Three Rivers has done some survey work to • identify where people are going on the trail. One possible location for parking includes the park- and -ride Page 4 of 11