06-24-2024 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Submitted by Bolton & Menk, Inc. Little Canada Road Improvements | City of Little Canada 2 Project Understanding Little Canada Road from Lakeshore Avenue to Interstate 35E is an important corridor within the Community. It serves as the gateway between the west and east sides of the City that are separated by the interstate. The interstate and Country Drive/Little Canada Road intersection were constructed several decades ago and over time the interchange area has become overwhelmed by the growing traffic in the area. Bolton & Menk partnered with the City to review the corridor, identify deficiencies, and work on concept- level improvements. It became apparent that the existing corridor does not operate well and poses congestion and safety concerns. Notably, there are failing intersection operations in certain directions, as well as several documented accidents in the corridor including two pedestrian-involved accidents. As the City continues to grow, evolve, and become denser, traffic volumes will continue to increase and further perpetuate existing problems in the corridor. The solutions to the current problems are very complicated and require buy-in and consent from several agency partners. Little Canada Road is under Ramsey County’s jurisdiction but through ongoing coordination, the County has allowed the City to lead the improvement efforts. Additionally, I-35E is managed by both MnDOT and the FHWA. Improvements up to and within I-35E right-of-way will require extensive coordination and buy-in from their teams. The intersection of Little Canada Road and Country Drive processes nearly 20,000 vehicles per day. This traffic includes residents and the local business community. Many of those drivers attended a fall open house and expressed their concern with the current congestion and safety issues. It will be vitally important to engage with the users of this area to ensure that the proposed project meets their needs. This project may be one of the largest infrastructure projects that the City has pursued in a ‘lead agency’ role. As such, it will be important to engage all City staff members to ensure that all components of the project meet expectations and can be managed effectively. Coordination with the City’s management team will occur frequently so that the needs of the team are met or exceeded. The current concept layout that shows a realignment of Country Drive will require extensive right-of-way acquisition. It will be important to work through this process with affected property owners in a highly respectful manner. For those affected, it can be a stressful and intimidating process. The team understands this and will use our experience to manage the process and protect relationships within the community. The funding for this project requires that the improvements be constructed in 2026. That leaves approximately 18 months to complete all tasks outlined in this proposal. Notably, right-of-way acquisition for the project is anticipated to take 12+ months to complete. It is essential that this project move through the preliminary design phase efficiently to ensure that sufficient time exists in 2025 to work with affected properties. The enclosed work plan includes an accelerated schedule during the back half of 2024 to ensure the project can be constructed in 2026 in accordance with the allocated funding requirements.