2014 Summer Source - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

3 Summer 2014 Downtown Makeover is Underway Along with planning for an extension of sanitary sewer service into the Village Area, the City is working to im- prove other aspects of downtown Lake Elmo. Thanks to steadfast support from Washington County, the City is participating in a project to reconstruct Lake Elmo Ave from Trunk Highway 5 (Stillwater Boulevard) to 30th Street North beginning in 2015. The aptly named Lake Elmo Avenue Corridor Management and Safety Im- provement Project will be a catalyst to provide improved streetscape and pedestrian facilities for the downtown area. In order to proceed with a successful downtown project, the City and County are working diligently to address many different aspects of downtown improvements as part of the overall scope of work. Included in the project scope is the extension of sanitary sewer, replacement of old watermain, road reconstruction, and storm water management and drainage improvements. The project is proposed to be phased over two construction sea- sons in 2015 and 2016. The 2015 phase will include reconstruction of the fol- lowing segments: 1. The portion of Lake Elmo Avenue from 30th Street to Upper 33rd Avenue. 2. Upper 33rd Street from Lake Elmo Avenue to La- verne Avenue 3. Laverne Avenue from Upper 33rd Street to Trunk Highway 5. The 2016 Phase of the project will include the down- town stretch of Lake Elmo Ave. from Upper 33rd St. to Trunk Highway 5. Over the course of construction, the City and County will work to maintain access to adjacent properties and businesses to the best extent possible. The City has worked to obtain feedback from the broader community by hosting two open houses at Christ Lutheran Church. The preliminary design process will be wrapped up with county and municipal consent in late August or early September. In addition to this large capital improvement investment, the City has also begun work on a downtown market analysis with the University of Minnesota Extension Ser- vice. The intent of this study is to determine the poten- tial for new businesses to locate in the downtown area, and specifically to identify gaps in the Lake Elmo market that may provide opportunities for new businesses to lo- cate in the community. While being led by the University of Minnesota Extension Service, the downtown mar- ket analysis is being completed with input from the lo- cal business community. At its first meeting, the project team identified the market area to include in the study and verified the list of the existing businesses operating in Lake Elmo. The Extension Service will now be us- ing this information to generate detailed reports for the City that identify the shopping preferences of customers within the trade area and to discover where there may be demand for certain types of businesses in the com- munity. Both of these efforts are being completed on a parallel track to best position the City from an economic devel- opment standpoint and represent important first steps towards the revitalization of the Village Area. Utility and roadway improvement locations and construction schedule for the Lake Elmo Avenue Corridor Management and Safety Improvement Project are indicated on the map above. 2 0 1 5 2016 36th Street - Future Lake Elmo Ave N (CSAH 17)30th Street N