03-14-2001 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Last year, a coalition of agencies including the Cities of Little Canada, Shoreview and Vadnais Heights, Ramsey County, Metro Transit and the Minnesota Department of Transportation sought funding through the Metropolitan Council's Smart Growth Twin Cities grant program to conduct a planning study of the I694/Rice Street interchange quadrant Although funding was not received through this program, the agencies involved recognize the importance of pro - actively planning for this area due to the changes that are scheduled to occur within the next six to seven years These changes include: • Improvements to the State, County and local roadway system. • Relocation of the Ramsey County Public Works facility. • Release of vacant County -owned land adjacent to Rice Street. • Potential construction of a new transit hub and park- and -ride facility owned and operated by Metro Transit. • Possible reuse of an existing rail lines in the vicinity for commuter rail. At this time, Council support is being sought for the community's participation in a planning study that would address these changes. Attached you will find a draft copy of the project scope and a request for qualifications. The process includes the formation of two groups; a technical advisory committee and a planning task force. The technical advisory committee will include staff from the agencies involved and will be responsible for providing the background materials and technical assistance to the selected consultant. Essentially, the technical advisory committee has already been formed with the staff from these agencies who have met over the past three months to develop the RFQ and project scope. The planning task force will consist of representatives of each of the agencies involved as well as property owners and /or business owners in the study area. The anticipated make -up of this group is as follows: • Cities of Little Canada, Shoreview and Vadnais Heights o City Council members -2 o Planning Commission member - 1 • Property Owners and /or Business Owners — 3 (one from each community) • Ramsey County, Metro Transit and the MN/DOT — 2 In addition, participation in this study requires a financial committement from all the agencies involved. This commitment differs for each agency due to the required involvement and perceived benefit each agency will receive. Although the cost of this project has not been identified, it is anticipated that the study will not exceed S100,000. Based on this estimate, the following identifies the financial commitments expected from the participating agencies. Please note that this is preliminary and subject to change Page 44