ADMINISTRATION- Jon Haukaas, Director of Public Works
Title
APPROVE RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF A PROJECT TO CONSTRUCT A WEST FRONTAGE ROAD ALONG TRUNK
HIGHWAY 65 BETWEEN 99TH AVENUE AND 105TH AVENUE
Background
The City of Blaine is submitting an application for funding under the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) Metro State Aid Local Partnership Program (LPP).
The LPP program exists to help fund projects that deliver a benefit to both the local community and the trunk highway system. The purpose of the program is to address problems on the trunk highway system that are of concern to local agencies but are typically not large-scale or critical enough that they are directly selected as projects in the regular MnDOT road program. The proposed funding currently available for FY 2022 is $3 million. The maximum award available for any individual project is $710,000 which can include up to 8% for construction engineering.
Trunk Highway 65 (TH 65) in the city of Blaine is a 4-lane divided principal arterial with 40,000 to 60,000 vehicles per day in an area that is primarily residential/retail. Previous studies in the area have identified safety and operational deficiencies along TH 65 and proposals have been made to convert TH 65 to a controlled-access freeway system. The February 2017 Principal Arterial Intersection Conversion Study (PAICS) showed all of the at-grade intersections in the city as “high needs” within the proposed study area. With the realization that funding for a full freeway conversion would be prohibitively expensive, it became necessary to revise the corridor vision by exploring safety and mobility improvements that consider low-cost, high-impact improvements. Improvements will need to work well both independently and together as a whole.
To that end, and as a follow-up to the PAICS study, MnDOT, in partnership with Anoka County and the cities of Ham Lake, Blaine and Spring Lake Park, began a far-reaching study of the Hwy 65 Corridor in August 2018. This was a first of its kind “Planning and Environmental Linkages Study” or PELS. The goals of this study were to identify alternatives to address the problems and needs along TH 65 from approximately County State Aide Highway (CSAH) 116 (Bunker Lake Boulevard) in Ham Lake to CSAH 10 in Spring Lake Park. The study used public involvement to help determine purpose and need, develop objective evaluation criteria, and broadly define and vet alternatives. The results of the study indicated the need for grade separated interchanges along the corridor.
Because funding for improvements for grade separations have not yet been identified, the City of Blaine would like to move forward with a west frontage road that can be implemented independently, but consistent, with the overall goals of the TH 65 corridor. In the short term, this will provide immediate improvements to safety and congestion to the TH 65 corridor by immediately removing up to six direct access points off of TH 65 and keep local trips on the local system. In the long term, this frontage road will reduce the overall cost of improvements to the proposed grade separation projects.
The project being proposed is a 2-way frontage road 32-feet in width to meet State Aid standards as this will be a candidate to be added to the City’s Municipal State Aid Street (MSAS) system. The south terminus would connect to the existing stub street at Ulysses Street, bend towards and into the trunk highway right-of-way and terminate with a proposed reconfiguration of the west leg of the 105th Avenue/TH 65 intersection.
Recommendation
By motion, approve the resolution.
Body
WHEREAS, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) is accepting applications for project funding for the Metro State Aid Local Partnership Program (formerly known as the Municipal Agreements Program) for Fiscal Year 2022; and
WHEREAS, the City of Blaine wishes to construct a west frontage road along Trunk Highway (TH) 65 between 99th Avenue and 105th Avenue; and
WHEREAS, the City of Blaine has participated along with Anoka County and MnDOT in a Planning and Environmental Linkages Study (PELS) to identify projects for improvement to safety and capacity on TH 65; and
WHEREAS, the study has identified that the frontage road is needed and consistent with the outcomes of the PELS, and would greatly improve safety and capacity of corridor; and
WHEREAS, the project will be of mutual benefit to both the Department of Transportation and the City of Blaine; and
WHEREAS, the City of Blaine is submitting an application for funding of the project through the Metro Local Partnership Program (LPP); and
WHEREAS, the City of Blaine agrees to complete the project if selected and funding is provided, and will provide the city share of the costs as part of the LPP program; and
WHEREAS, these funds are available in the internal State Aid fund;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of Blaine requests funding from the Minnesota Department of Transportation through the Metro State Aid Local Partnership Program for Fiscal Year 2022.
PASSED by the City Council of the City of Blaine this 1st day of June 2020.