01-31-2011 Council Minutes Special Meeting

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MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. • Printup responded he is definitely not approving the whole plan as recommended. He reiterated that he could agree with the 10' median with a blank slate. In time, things can be added through volunteerism which has worked well in Wayzata. As far as dropping students off and the finished look, he noted he sees things differently and that we owe it to our citizens to watch how we spend money. When students are dropped off, parents aren't looking at the nice scenery. He stated we should create the road, and vegetation and beautification can come with time. McMillan stated she has always had issues with maintenance, especially long -term maintenance depending on who takes on responsibility. She noted that 70% of Orono taxpayers are not in the Orono school district and the city should be cognizant of who wants a beautiful road for their school. It is a long median, over a quarter of a mile, which is necessary for functional safety to stop left -hand terms. Both the initial costs and long -term ongoing costs of a median have been discussed. If the school is comfortable with irrigating and maintaining the landscaped median, she could approve it, but doesn't want the city to take on maintenance costs. She wanted a commitment from the school for future maintenance. The 4' median gives an opportunity for a simpler maintenance plan that serves the functionality and safety of the road, which is the city's obligation. The project also solves some problems with bussing and drop - off/pick -up locations. She cautioned against diminishing the large area for landscaping and the required ongoing maintenance, and did not want a complicated maintenance agreement. She would like the school to take care of landscape maintenance because they have their own grounds crew while the city contracts out for mowing services. The school could also swap out shrubs or use school colors to have school ownership of the median. If the school decides they don't want the expense of landscaping maintenance, the city has the 4' median option. • Because of the time constraint, McMillan stated the Council needs to make a decision as soon as possible. Superintendent Orcutt stated she was comfortable with what has been said, but requested 5 minutes for discussion with the school board members who were present at the meeting. Ralph Kempf, 3675 Togo Road, commented that this has been a wonderful process. He suggested a 10' median, sloped up with black soil, renamed Otten Parkway and then just stand back. While this adds a bit of humor, he stated it started him thinking in terms of Navarre and if you get key people involved, amazing things can happen. John Thiesse, Planning Commission representative, asked if landscaping is part of beautification or a traffic calming plan and stopping people from crossing the road. He stated he believed the landscaping is part of the plan and the design should be left to the professionals. The plan was developed for what is necessary and the city is removing landscaping as beautification. Slack stated the intent of the landscaping is to be traffic calming and safety. Landscaping provides less of a physical barrier for crossing. Franchot asked if the 4' median would require an additional 400+ feet of fencing to meet the safety needs. Slack responded that it may not be necessary to add that much fencing but it allows crossing anywhere there isn't a fencing barrier. A member of the public asked if the school took on the responsibility of the maintenance, including the • first 3 years, if the costs for maintenance wouldn't be reduced by up to $22,000 for each of the first 3 years since the maintenance costs for the first 3 years would be included in the contract to be let. Page 8 of 12