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MEMORANDUM To: City of Saint Anthony Village City Council From: Ashley Morello, Assistant City Manager Minette Saulog, Sustainability Coordinator Date: April 8, 2025 City Council Work Session Request: Active Transportation Plan BACKGROUND In November 2024, staff applied for the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) Active Transportation Planning Assistance grant application. In January, staff received notification that our grant was successful. As part of the grant award, MnDOT pairs the City with a consultant, who provides up to $100,000 worth of consultant work to develop the plan. MnDOT and the consultant provide the outline and guidance of what a successful active transportation plan will entail. The City does not provide any matching funds, nor is there any exchange of funds between the City and MnDOT or the consultant. PURPOSE OF PLAN The consultant will guide the City to develop an Active Transportation Plan. Active transportation plans promote walking, biking and rolling. MnDOT’s goal for the program is to help people walk, bike and roll to where the live, work and play. The plan will include an analysis of existing conditions, opportunities for community engagement, propose ways to modify infrastructure, and encourage active transportation. As part of the development of the plan, the consultant will help the City with one of the following implementation tools: a demonstration project, conduct a cost scoping estimate, or receive an engineering sketch or data evaluation. The local planning team will help identify which implementation tool would be applicable based on the Active Transportation planning process. The final plan will be for planning purposes only, and does not commit to future projects or funding for roadway modifications. No design alternatives would be finalized as part of this planning process. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER PLANS The development of the Active Transportation Plan will further the city’s goals, support the implementation of the City’s Climate Plan and help prepare the City for the upcoming Comprehensive Plan update. As part of this year’s goal setting, the Council defined the City’s Thriving Village goal as an inclusive Village for all residents where the City is responsive to needs, enables successful things to happen, and residents have opportunity to thrive because of services tailored to their needs. One of the Thriving Village action items identified for 2025 included drafting an Active Transportation Plan as a means to develop pedestrian and bike friendly routes throughout the City. The City’s Climate Plan, adopted in 2023, also highlighted initiatives which align with Active Transportation. These initiatives included reducing vehicle emissions and to improve accessibility and safety of non-motorized transportation infrastructure. In addition, the Active Transportation Plan will help the city prepare for its Comprehensive Plan update. Comprehensive Plans plan for the next twenty years for a community and each city within the metro area is 7