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Home My WebLink About9D - Colorado Street Municipal Lot as a Park and Ride LotPRlp\ U ~ ~~INNES~~/ 4646 Dakota Street SE Prior Lake, MN 55372 CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT MEETING DATE: NOVEMBER 15, 2010 AGENDA #: 9D PREPARED BY: JANE KANSIER, BUILDING AND TRANSPORTATION SERVICES DIRECTOR PRESENTER: JANE KANSIER AGENDA ITEM: CONSIDER APPROVAL OF A REPORT ON THE SURVEY OF DOWNTOWN BUSINESSES ON THE USE OF THE COLORADO STREET MUNICIPAL LOT AS A PARK AND RIDE LOT DISCUSSION: Introduction On October 4, 2010, the City Council directed staff to solicit feedback from downtown business owners about the use of the Colorado Street municipal lot as a park and ride site for the BlueXpress bus service (see attached minutes). The purpose of this agenda report is to report on the feedback. Staff is also requesting Council direction on whether or not to proceed with a downtown park and ride. History In January 2001, the City Council chose to opt-out of the Minnesota Valley Transit Authority (MVTA) in order to provide improved local transit services to Prior Lake residents. At that time, the City began operating Laker Lines, consisting of an express bus to downtown Minneapolis from the municipal parking lot on Colorado Street in downtown Prior Lake. There are approximately 60 parking spaces in this lot. In 2006, the City made the decision to lease 110 parking spaces from Shepherd's Path church on McKenna Road for use as a park and ride lot. This move was intended to preserve the spaces in the municipal lot for downtown businesses. Additional parking stalls at the church site also enabled the City to begin operation of a second express bus. On October 4, 2010, the City Council considered a Transit Operations Plan for the bus services operated by the City of Prior Lake, the City of Shakopee and Scott County. The plan outlined three different scenarios for providing express service, or access to express service, from downtown Prior Lake. These included: 1. Establish a park and ride lot in downtown Prior Lake. The original park and ride lot was located at the city-owned lot on Colorado Street. The City could once again sign this lot for transit and establish a bus stop at the site. The coach buses are able to access this area. 2. Establish a park and ride lot at Lakefront Park and utilize a shuttle bus to transport passengers to Southbridge Crossings Transit Station. 3. Establish a modified dial-a-ride service to shuttle passengers to the Southbridge Crossing Transit Station. After considerable discussion, the Council decided the best option would be to reestablish the park and ride on the Colorado Street lot. Before implementing the plan, the Council directed staff to solicit feedback from downtown businesses. Current Circumstances The staff mailed 76 surveys out to downtown businesses on October 22, 2010. The survey itself consisted of 3 questions, and the mailing included a self-addressed stamped return envelope. The survey was also available on-line. Recipients were asked to respond by Friday, November 5'h We received 26 responses to our survey from downtown business owners. These results are shown in the graphics attached to this report. In addition to the survey, we received a-mails from 3 of the downtown property businesses. These are also attached. In addition to the survey responses, staff received a-mails from 25 different people (see attached). Most of these a-mails are from patrons or employees of Premier Dance Academy. All of these a-mails express opposition to locating the park and ride lot on the Colorado Street lot. Conclusion The responses from the downtown business owners are split on the use of the Colorado Street lot as a park and ride. Three of the 5 property owners most impacted by the use are opposed to the park and ride. The patrons of Premier Dance Academy are opposed to the park and ride. ISSUES: The City Council has expressed concern about whether or not Prior Lake residents will be adequately served by the Shakopee sites. The Council has indicated an interest in experimenting with a site in downtown Prior Lake. Considering the type and volume of feedback to the survey offered by businesses and patrons in this area the council could decide to direct additional research before taking any action. A lot usage survey could be undertaken at various times per day to see when the lot is most heavily used. It would be ideal if there were heavy usage around the clock but there is no way of knowing without some form of research. While the research could show spaces available at the times bus service is offered, the number of unencumbered spaces may preclude this lot from being an effective park and ride lot. Of the 3 options listed above, the staff believes utilizing the Colorado Street lot for transit purposes is the least expensive and most workable solution. This site is the most visible and most easily accessible site for riders. The original park and ride downtown was moved to make the municipal lot available for parking for local businesses. We can reestablish this lot, but there are factors to be considered. First of all, the lot is small and can only accommodate 60 cars. Research has shown that small facilities often have less than 30% utilization, as opposed to larger facilities, which have up 70% utilization. Second, downtown is difficult for the buses to navigate. An additional stop at the municipal lot will add at least 15 minutes to each run in the morning and in the evening. The cost of this extra half hour per day for the three Prior Lake buses will exceed $27,000 per year. We can offset some of the additional cost of serving this site by eliminating the Safe Haven Park and Ride. FINANCIAL There are some financial implications to the City if the Colorado Street lot is IMPACT: placed into service as a park and ride. The first is the additional cost to serve this site; however, this can be offset by eliminating the Safe Haven Park and Ride. The second is the need for some resurfacing and striping improvements to the lot. ALTERNATIVES: 1. Direct the staff to conduct additional research to determine the level of availability of the lot for the various purposes it is serving. 2. Proceed to utilize this lot for park and ride purposes. 3. Take no action at this time. RECOMMENDED MOTION: I As determined by the Council. Manager 3 amounts. There is a wide range of value and types of homes in the neighborhood and it is possible the project will not prove benefit to the full amount in all situations. Believes it is possible the City will be as- s sing at less than the 40% that is the standard. Urged pursuing grants aggressively for fie storm water rete 'on pond under the park, but if grant monies do not become available that should~~reconsidered. There as not been good storm water management in this area for decades and mucJ~ improvement is needed. •Would like to see rain gardens installed to maximize the capture of runoff-~` Myser: A' ,ed if the planned 24-foot wide streets are less than standard. % Poppler: R~plied the current width is 25-feet in those areas of the project. Added that residents can peti- tion to have no~parking signs on one side of the street if they desire, but there would be no issue with emergency vehicle clearance in neighborhoods where there isnot clot of oh-street parking, Albrecht: Commented that using minimum street widths is part of reducing impervious surface. Noted that narrower streets also`<have lower maintenance costs over the long terrh; Myser: Clarified that 24~eet is wide enough for emergency vehicles to pass if there are two vehicles parked on the street Albrecht: The 24-foot street. has multiple access points from around it as well as a density of residences and long driveways with little on-street parking. Noted it would be very similar to what already exists. Myser: Asked if it is appropriate fpr the City to recomment(they ask for parking on just one side. Poppler: Replied it can be addressed at the informational meeting; talking about where the parking pres- suresare and coach them through the'process if they,~re interested. Myser: Asked if a couple of streets will end up being wider than they are currently. Poppler: Replied so-ne of them are being standardized with the other streets. Albrecht: Responded that the street widths al;e`also planned to be consistent with the County's vision for the CR 42 corridor. Myser: Asked if any of this project's recommendations are "nice-to-haves° rather than replacements. Poppler: Sidewalk improvements are ari example. Some of the storm water improvements could be se- lectivesuch asthe rain gardens and pitch basins. Th~,recommendations are an attempt to bring the storm water management closer to,~urrent standards. Albrecht: Noted that pedestriar~~improvements are gener~ly paid for through general levy. This feasibility study considered for what would be ideal for the neighborhood;~nd the process will include options that Council can consider if the~Gdget is under pressure. ~ Myser: Queried if the prpp- ject would be bonded over two years even if it is handled as a single project. Albrecht: Responde~~fhat the transportation budget has always identified this as a two-year bonding project as the City 6es not have the capacity to do it in one year. There is not significant savings in get- ting asingle bid nth one contractor for a hvo-year project as the contract`bC would have to project prices for the next years~ d would want to protect against losses. The project needs }o be done and there are projects in rfture CIPs that could potentially be bumped if bonding needed tote spread out over a third year to k ep the tax levy where the Council wants to see it.. ti\ MO ON BY HEDBERG, SECONDED BY MILLAR TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 10~09~1 ACCEPT THE F ASIBILITY REPORT AND CALL FOR A PUBLIC HEARING ON THE 2010 IMPROVER+~~NT PROJECT. OTE: Ayes by Myser, Erickson, Hedberg, Keeney and Millar. The motion carried. Consider Approval of a Resolution Approving a Transit Operations Plan for the City of Prior Lake, i~~ the City of Shakopee, and Scott County; and Consider Approval of a Resolution supporting the Purchase of the Marshall Road Site for Transit Purposes Building and Transit Services Director Kansier introduced Scott County Commissioner Barb Mar- schall, Scott County Public Works Director Lezlie Vermillion, Scott County Transportation Manager 10 0410 City Council meelirr0 minutes Lisa Freese, and Transit Manager Troy Beam. Marschall provided background information on the Mar- shall Road Transit Station noting that the Transit Review Board gave approval to move forward with acqui- sition ofthe site. Application was made for Chapter 152 funds and it was ranked the highest scoring appli- cationfor receiving these funds. Shakopee has approved the operations plan and the County has agreed to fund the purchase of the property. Freese spoke of the regional partnership for the Marschall Road Transit Station stating that the construction cost per stall is anticipated to be less than the regional average. Funding sources and the operational plan were outlined. Stated that the Minnesota Vehicle Sales Taxis major funding source for transit and other revenue sources are from the Metropolitan Council, fares, Jabs Grant, cities, etc. Kansier spoke of ridership growth and the expectation that the community will be devel- opingover the next 25 years and using this transit system. Kansier also addressed Prior Lake-specific ser- vicesand sought Council direction on use of a downtown site to complement the park and ride services. Comments: Erickson: Commented that SMSC is also a paramount partner for providing an inexpensive lease for the Eagle Creek site. Commented that transit reduces congestion and provides services to those who do not have other transit options. Agreed this would be a good project to help relieve congestion on Hwy 169; but asked what operating expenses can be anticipated on an annual basis. Kansier: Replied the City's primary cost is operating the bus system with Shakopee on a 60-40 basis, generally based ona150,000 to operate one bus for one year. Other expenses are maintenance costs of the park and ride sites. In the case of the Marschall Road site, the building will be owned by Scott County and the City will not have expenses associated with the facility. Vermillion: Added that the County will pay for the facility, snow plowing, etc, as part of its in-kind contribu- tion. Stated the City could use the Southbridge site expenses as a reasonable estimate for the Marschall Road site expenses. Erickson: Asked to have the dial-a-ride services explained. Beam: Replied that Smart Link supplies ADA services, dial-a-ride services for Carver and Scott seniors and people who have no transportation. Added that the indoor parking at the Marschall Road site will al- lowbuses tolast longer and require less driver time as it reduces the warm-up tune for the vehicles. De- scribed iheservice as being open 6 a.rn. - 6 p.m., Monday through Friday; cost is based on mileage; and riders can call customer services to book a ride. Erickson: Stated he would prefer to have both the Safe Haven and Colorado sites for the use of local rid- ers. Keeney: Asked how many buses Prior Lake would operate from the Marschall Road site. Kansier: Replied that Prior Lake will have the equivalency of 3.5 buses with the netiv JARC bus and Sha- kopeehas five. The CMAC grant that will come online in 2013 will provide another three shared buses. A final decision has not been made about how to utilize buses with this new site. Keeney: Referred to a chart on page 12 of the report showing all three buses going to the Marschall Road site and dedicated to commuter service to downtown. Kansier: Responded that assumes that if a CMAC grant is awarded to come online in 2016, those three buses would be dedicated to Marschall Road, but they could also stop at other sites or other buses could be moved to other sites. Keeney: Believes that park and rides become viable when people feel comfortable that if they miss a bus they don't have to wait for an hour for the next one. Stated it bothers him to think Eagle Creek will only have four trips. Kansier: Replied that Eagle Creek will probably have at least eight buses, and ~vith more buses there can be mare options of frequency and times of day. 10 0410 City Council meeting minutes Keeney: Asked if the City would be expected to fund operation of buses in 2015 and if the report reflects that. Kansier: Affirmed and added that it assumes award of a grant in 2015. Keeney: Commented that there has been conversation about the circulator service and that it is an expen- siveper rider service. Asked if there has been any discussion of vrhat to cio with it in future. Kansier: Replied consideration is being given to trying a modified dial a ride program in the summer to get kids to summer school as well as to recreational areas. Expects to roll otrt a modified plan this winter for summer programming. Beam: Added that if the service is opened to the entire City population it should be able to be expanded. Keeney: Stated he would like it to provide service for the aging population or those vrho have no transpor- tation. Beam: Noted that BlueXpress is negotiating with Southwest Metro to have two of their buses stop at our sites in return for stopping at the Anderson Lakes park and ride. Keeney: Commented on a downtown park and ride site noting that a viable park and ride needs enough trips to justify a site. Believes parking spots are valuable in downtown. Would favor some other location to serve other portions of the City, but not the downtown. Hedberg: Asked how many parking spots there are at Colorado. Kansier: Approximately 30 spaces. Hedberg: Favors closing the Safe Haven park and ride due to the safety of moving buses through there and also its redundancy with Eagle Creek. Favors a downtown drop off point and anticipates that over time the downtown will have a greater density of people living there and it would be a viable site. Supports the acquisition and operations plan for the Unified Transit Operations Plan. Believes the plan benefits Shako- peeresidents more (than Prior Lake); but locations must be created for people to drive to or there will be no infrastructure for the future TH 131 CR 282 I CR 17 intersection site. Commented that his understanding of the financial analysis over the next few years is that transit will still have reserves by just using MVEST money; and after that, reduction in service or some other way to keep funds in balance would have to be considered. Given the current funding for transit, would not support the costs of the service coming back to the Prior Lake taxpayers. Millar: Clarified that the reason for the acquisition of the Marshall Road site is because there is an existing facility on that site. Concurred with Hedberg that it is important to be forward looking and CR 17 is going to bean important area for moving traffic. Commented that the report refers to the downtown Colorado site as being the least expensive option. Asked about the cost of the service that is being proposed. Kansier: Replied she estimates an approximate additional two hours per day which can be extrapolated to about X25,000 annually. Stated that time and cost could be offset by eliminating the Safe Haven site. Millar; Clarified that the current plan is to eliminate the Safe Haven site. Stated the Colorado site makes sense. Expressed concern about losing MVEST monies in the future. Kansier: Replied those funds can be monitored as BlueXpress is responsible for operating its own service and can make adjustments to stay within its means. There is no plan to ultimately tax Prior Lake residents. Myser: Will support both resolutions as they demonstrate rational and cost-effective planning. Asked how much money is sent to the State by Scott County far MVEST and how much comes back to County. Vermillion: Replied that the County contributes ~4 million to transit, mosquito control, etc., but she is not sure what is contributed to MVEST. Kansier: Added that she has requested that information from the Metropolitan Council and the State De- partment of Revenue but has received no answer. Vermillion: Believes they do not track the information in that way. Myser: Questioned the projections from MVEST and providing services that might have to be reduced if funding is lost in the future. 10 0410 City Council meeting minuses Vermillion: Commented that the TRB now has an operations plan put together so there is a tool with which to evaluate and monitor. Believes that it is the frequency of buses, not who owns the buses, that mat- ters tothe rider. Myser: Asked about the bus ramp that enters Hwy 169 just before the bridge and its potential impact on congestion. Vermillion: Replied the bus ramp is part of the CR 21 application for federal funding. The ramp is antic- ipated togive a 5-7 minute advantage and is designed for buses to achieve 20 mph before accessing the lane. Myser: Commented on a downtown park and ride site noting that the Economic Development Advisory Committee recently conducted a survey that cites the top problem in downtown is parking. Stated he would wank feedback from those businesses before locating a park and ride downtown. Erickson: Asked about the definitions of "transit way" and "transit corridor" and hoNr it affects funding, Vermillion: Replied thak transit ways are the corridors that will be invested in over the next 20 years in- cluding Hwy 35, Northstar, etc. Hwy 169 is not in that category but rather is seen as an express service for transit. Erickson: Asked how it affects whether tax monies will come our way. Vermillion: Replied that in that scenario, Hwy 169 would be a small player in big transit game with very lit- tleinput. Erickson: Asked about the flood status of CR 41 and H~vy 101. Vermillion: Replied that water is receding at approximately two feet per day. When the water goes down, roadway saturation and damage will be assessed. Anticipates those roadways will be closed into the fol- lowingweek. MOTION BY MILLAR, SECONDED BY HEDBERG TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 10.092 APPROVING A TRANSIT OPERATIONS PLAN FOR THE CITY OF PRIOR LAKE, THE CITY OF SHAKOPEE, AND SCOTT COUNTY. VOTE: Ayes by Myser, Erickson, Hedberg, Keeney and Millar. The motion carried. MOTION BY MILLAR, SECONDED BY ERICKSON TO APPROVE RESOLTUION 10.093 SUPPORTING THE PURCHASE OF THE MARSHALL ROAD SITE FOR TRANSIT PURPOSES. VOTE: Ayes by Myser, Erickson, Hedberg, Keeney and Millar. The motion carried. Vermillion provided a status report on the CR 21 reconstruction. Consider Approval of a Resolution Approving Plans and Specifications and Authorizing Advertise• ment for Bids for'th¢ 2011 Water Quality and Retrofit Projec~,(t~ Project #11.102) Water Resources Engineer Bintner stated this proposed pp~raject will maintain and retrofit twelve ponds that treat 220 acres. It targets phosphonrs and sedimegtR~emoval from stormwater flow. Explained the bid structure. Stated that application has been made for~~rants including a 319h grant that adds scope to the project. Described the project sites and provided,ain anticipated timeline for completion. Comments: Hedberg: Asked for comment on-the initial success of sand iron filters. Bintner: Replied that two sand iron filter protokypes were developed with the University of Minnesota and the Prior Lake Spring. Lake Watershed District. They were monitored and tested over the summer and are showing to be more efficient at removing phosphorus than the poid system by itself. :.~ 8 100410 City Ceoncil meeting minutes Downtown Business owners Survey Response DOWNTOWN PARK AND RIDE SURVEY DOWNTOWN BUSINESS RESPONSE Do your customers/employees use this lot? Answer Options Yes No Response Percent Response Count 30.4% 7 69.6 % 16 answered question 23 skipped question f3 If yes, how many spaces? 0-10 25-50 Response Percent Response Count 66.67% 4 33.33 % 2 answered question 6 skipped question 1 Question 1: po your customers/employees use this lot? ( ~ Yes 1 ` ~NO2 k h DOWNTOWN PARK AND RIDE SURVEY DOWNTOWN BUSINESS RESPONSE Do your customersJemplayees use this lot? Answer Options Yes No Response Percent Response Count 30.4% 7 69.6% 16 answered question 73 skipped question 0 If yes, how many spaces? 0-10 25-50 Response Percent Response Count 66.67% 4 33.33% 2 answered question 6 skipped question 1 Question 1: Do your customers%employees use this:lot? DOWNTOWN PARK AND RIDE SURVEY DOWNTOWN BUSINESS RESPONSE Should this lot be used as a park and ride Answer Options Yes No Please explain Response Percent Response Count 68.2% 15 31.8% 7 answered question skipped question 22 1 Please explain Response Percent Response Count Yes, with limitation on days and hours. Concern about overflow into VFW parking lot 1 Yes, should stay to far side of lot 1 Yes, get folks to use downtown and to shop downtown 1 Yes, if they park there and not on other lots 1 Yes, promote car pooling 1 Yes, there is a need for a park and ride in the SE area; we do not feel one single busines 1 I don't know that it would affect me as my business is on the other end of downtown 1 No, need for local businesses 1 No, parking in PL is short as it is; park and ride should be further from Downtown 1 No, the traffic in this area is already congested and dangerous 1 No, aren't we short enough on parking spaces the way it is 1 No, not enough room for customers now 1 Jane Kansier From: Premiere Dance <dancepremiere@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2010 8:30 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Park & Ride Attachments: #161 Parking lot full. Parents lined up for pick up or drop off.JPG; #167 Parking lot full.Semi delivering product congests area.JPG; #171 typical Premiere Lobby.JPG; #172 Parking lot full. . Congested area.JPG; #174 Parking lot full. Cars line up for pick up or drop off. Cars in Crosswalk.JPG; #175 Parking lot full. Pedestrians and car in crosswalk.JPG; #179 Parking lot fuII.JPG; #182 Parking lot full. Parents lined up. Charter bus. Car in crosswalk..JPG; Park & Ride Survey November 2 2010.doc Thank you for including me in the Park & Ride survey. Please see the attached pictures that include the date and the time that they were taken. They are good samples of what is happening here. My response to the survey is the last attachment. I am sorry it is lengthy, but it is an important issue and I want to be sure all points are considered. I appreciate your time and consideration Dawn Schulberg Schulberg I/nterprises Premiere Dance Academy November 2, 2010 To: Jane Kansier, Transportation Services Director City of Prior Lake 4646 Dakota St Prior Lake MN 55372 cc: Frank Boyles, City Manager Danette Moore, Community Development Mayor & City Council Members Re: Prior Lake Park & Ride Survey Thank you for the opportunity to participate in the survey regarding the potential Park & Ride site on Colorado Street in Priar Lake. As a downtown business and property owner I have several concerns and thoughts regarding this proposal and hope that you will take the time to consider them. I am a strong supporter of public transportation and hope to work together with the city to find the best solution for all concerned. Premiere Dance Academy: Our business has grown immensely and is still growing. We have 570 families, and 809 students. We are one of the top 5 largest dance Academies in Minnesota. We employ 12 people and have recently increased our studio space and waiting room areas to accommodate a(I of our families and dancers. Our 809 dancers come multiple times per week for over 1500 dance visits, not including parents and siblings. Our patrons come downtown, park and solicit other businesses besides our own. Our dance parents regularly walk to the library, go to the VFW, Fongs, Giggle Gals and Copperfields to name a few. Besides the Library & Little Lakers, Premiere is the only other business that brings children and young adults into our downtown area. Our studio hours are Monday, Tuesday & Thursday 2:30p.m.-10p.m., Wednesday & Friday 2:30p.m.-7:30p.m. Open Saturday & Sunday. Other Businesses: The VFW, Integra, Ace Hardware, Fongs, Giggle Gals, Home Accents, Coppertields, Library....this is a small sample of businesses that will be impacted by reduced or removed parking. The VFW has weekly specials and uses this lot for overtlow parking. Integra is open until 6pm Monday through Friday with 500- 600 customers monthly and dozens of employees. When Cty Rd 21 expands, Integra will have no parking for their service vehicles, employees or customers. Chamber of Commerce events (Ladies Night Out) and City events (Downtown Dazzle) will be affected as well as other functions that close down Main Ave. Currently the City Hall employees struggle with the lack of downtown parking and must utilize the Methodist Church to park. Future Arcadia stop light proposal will have a large impact on the area causing further congestion. Concerns: If the city makes the decision to turn the Colorado St parking lot into a Park & Ride, the following issues will have a huge impact on our business and surrounding businesses. We will no longer have parking available for the 570 families that attend Premiere Dance Academy. We will only have four to five available parking spaces in the front drop off area and no handicap parking. We will have no accessibility to our business, no ability to maintain our current business, to grow as a business and no ability to sell or lease our business without available parking. The survey states that the Park & Ride lot will use 30-40 parking spaces. Currently, by 9a.m., Monday through Friday, the parking lot is being utilized by approximately 20+ customers from other businesses. If you add 40 vehicles for commuters to the 20 already being used, this adds up to 60. This leaves the remaining parking space available at ZERO. There will be no public parking left for Integra, VFW, AA, T- Shirts & More, Capra Building, Premiere Dance and our community to park and shop. Daily commuters arrive to park at 6a.m. and return at 6p.m. the likelihood of them staying in town is minimal compared to the amount of families that are arriving now. Our clients bring commerce to our town. They arrive, park, bring their dancers in to the Academy and then frequent area businesses. It is unclear why filling up this parking lot from Gam-6pm outweighs the needs of a neighborhood of homes, multiple businesses bordering and using the parking lot on an ongoing basis, and 570 families who frequent just one of those businesses in the area. Displacing the needs of the neighborhood and 2 blocks of businesses affects the economy for all. Currently Colorado St. is congested between the hours of 4-10p.m. If there is no parking available in the lot, our customers must park on both sides of Colorado St down to Duluth and up to Main Ave, causing a significant decrease in the roadway size, further congestion, maneuverability with buses, children, commuters and vehicles and a disruption to the neighborhood. • Partner agencies in Transit - e.g. Met Council, Scott County -try to focus on more regionally-oriented solutions placing Park & Ride locations at points of congestion at major roadways, thereby serving multiple communities. There is currently such a point at the Park & Ride at Southbridge. Additionally there is a Park & Ride at Safe Haven which will be replaced by a larger Park & Ride at 16 and Eagle Creek at some point in 2011. All locations allow for alternatives to the downtown PL site within an 8 mile radius. What is driving the desire to accommodate 30-40 vehicles for commuting in a small downtown area when there are these options? Why are we spending these dollars when we have easily accessible options in place now and coming in the near future? • Economic development will be jeopardized. New business prospects will not be inclined to build due to decreased parking downtown. The 2030 vision plan's goal is to "develop and implement.a strategy to expand and diversify the city's business tax base through current business retention and new business development one objective is to assist entrepreneurs with expansion, another is to assure adequate land inventory for economic development. The Park & Ride doesn't coincide with these city goals. It prevents businesses from developing and existing businesses from expanding. • Snow and snow plowing will have an enormous impact. Snow decreases parking spaces & street size. It affects the crosswalk area and street parking. During the winter, with snow and ice issues, the pedestrian crosswalk sign must be removed for the plows, snowstorms, and ice problems. This increases safety issues for everyone with the sign down, blocked crosswalk area and decreased street size. • Premiere has a wide range of dancers coming from all over the metro. This brings further commerce to our downtown area. They are traveling from St Louis Park, Farmington, Lakeville, Jordan, Bloomington, Veseli, Eagan, Belle Plain and Maple Plain to dance here. Approximately 15% of our dancers are from other cities. Our instructors travel from as far as Mahtomedi, Eagan, Edina. Bloomington and St Paul. They need to shop, eat, get groceries, and fill up their gas tanks. Our Chamber of Commerce slogan is "Shop Local, Shop Often". We can't shop local or shop often in our downtown if there is no parking. • There could potentially be a "bus stop no parking" sign on the south side of the street which will take approximately 3-5 additional street parking spaces. • Were the neighboring residents surveyed? It will affect them greatly. Our neighbors will be significantly inconvenienced by the increase in street parkins, noise and disruption. We are very cognizant of our neighbors and work hard to keep our relationships friendly. • What is the current need for transit in a downtown area as opposed to other cities who use outlying areas near the major connecting arteries? What are the long and short term goals? Is this temporary or permanent? Is the city required to provide transit service? If so, at what cost? Daes the amount of commuters justify this amount? Is the demand high enough that our tax dollars should be spent on this? Could our limited tax dollars be utilized better elsewhere? • How does it change our downtown atmosphere? Safety Hazard: Because the parking lot will not be accessible, our parents will have no choice but to drop their child off in the crosswalk area or anywhere they can on the street. This will cause double and triple vehicles stopped in the crosswalk and a safety hazard for everyone. To have a child get out of a car in the middle of the road with no supervision is alarming to everyone. We have a large amount of young dancers (3yrs and up) that cannot manage this task on their own. They need supervision from a parent to bring them in and out of the Academy. With the inability to park, a parent can't accomplish this safely. We also have a significant amount of teen drivers 16 & up that drive here on their own. They would have to park on the south side of Colorado St in front of a residence and walk on the sidewalk to get to Premiere. They could potentially be walking approximately 1 to 2 blocks. This brings up many safety issues including the fact that the north side of Colorado does not have a sidewalk. The Colorado St crosswalk in front of Premiere is vital to the safety of everyone regardless if they are coming to our business, other businesses, riding their bike or walking the dog. There is currently a pedestrian crosswalk sign in the center to alert drivers that the law states that pedestrians have the "right-of-way". There is no question that the sign has played a huge part in the safety of everyone. It slows down traffic and allows people to safely walk across the street. Due to this important sign, the roadway size is further decreased. Many drivers don't stop for pedestrians despite this signage. We also witness speeding traffic after school is dismissed by young adults who are going home. It is alarming to imagine a bus maneuvering through a congested, decreased roadway that is filled with children and parked cars. Other Locations to study or consider: Napa/Snyders Area Churches Lakefront Park 30 spaces available on Pleasant (Old Farmers Market) 15 spaces available on Pleasant (Old MN Nails) Tractor Supply Basement Hwy 13 across from Shell Gas (Old Park & Ride) Old Gas Station property by Velishek Auto Study: I believe that we should be studying this area further so that the correct decision can be made with the least impact on businesses and neighbors. It would be beneficial to the city, businesses and neighborhood if the council and city staff could spend some time in this area to view the affects it will have and to observe how busy this area already is..... 570 families, 809 students, 1500 times per week. I personally invite you to visit us on the days that the below attached pictures were taken. Wednesdays or Fridays at 5:30p.m. The photos were intentionally taken on our slower business days. It is our goal to work together with the city to help make this successful for all businesses and the community. We are apro-active business who is willing to volunteer their time to help study the area, take photographs, count cars, count the number of people in cars, study the impact on vertical parking on Main Ave, watch trends, speak to businesses, and provide ideas to help make this the best result possible. We also have 24 hours of continuous live video surveillance of the site for anyone who wishes to view this area. Thank you for considering the above concerns. 1 urge our Council and the City of Prior Lake to vote against this proposal to create a Park & Ride on Colorado St. It will affect all of us in so many ways. Dawn Schulberg, on behalf of Schulberg Enterprises, Premiere Dance Academy employees and concerned patrons. Attachments: Picture: #161 10127 5:33pm parking lot full, cars lined up the street to pick up student. Picture: #167 10128 4:44pm parking lot full, semi in drop off area for delivery. Picture: #171 10/29 5:33pm Premiere lobby. Picture: #172 10/29 5:33pm parking lot full, cars lined up the street to pick up student. Picture: #174 10/29 5:34pm Crosswalk. Picture: #175 10/29 5:36pm Crosswalk. Cars and students arriving by foot. Picture: #179 11101 9:36am Lot full on a Monday morning. This is common daily usage. Picture: #182 11/01 5:37pm Charter bus arrives. Good visual! Lot is full, cars lined up for pick up. ~ ~~ ,t .~,`> r ,~~ ~~ '~~ ~, . jK ~~~, ~>> l' i ~ _ ~ ~~ ,, ,~ .;~ ~~ 1t -~ ' '~~ ' 11 ~!~' `~_~ ~ ~ t~ _~* i 1,, i ~~ a ~` '~~ , -,.~ ~~~ - :~,: ~___ " ~. ,1 iii II ~ ~ ~ y,, ~,?p.. ~ ~: ~:~ ~ ~r .~ , .~ ~ 'lr ~~ ~;~yS i +y ~ ~ . i I `a '.1~~~.' . S ~~ /' I WI , ~~ S &: . ~. r I t ~ Y ;. ,~-r~ ~ • ,~ ,,~ _ . 5., ..:: ~, ~ . . .. ~r ~F~ /~. ~: 6 _ ` 1 { i Jane Kansier Frorn: Frank Boyles Sent: Monday, October 25, 2010 4:43 PM To: Ken Hedberg; Mike Myser; Rick Keeney; Steve Millar; Warren Erickson Cc: Jane Kansier Subject: FW: Downtown Park and Ride lot As directed by the council we are surveying businesses in the downtown area before initiating the park and ride lot. We have received negative responses from two businesses Integra and Premiere Dance Academy. Both depend heavily upon the city lot for employee parking and are very concerned about "losing parking spaces". Once we have received responses from the majoriky of the 74 businesses we have contacted we will place this item on a future city council agenda for discussion. Frank Boyles City Manager City of Prior Lake 4646 Dakota St. SE (~J62) 447-9801 Email Updates. Sign up now. From: Korthour, Mary J. [mailto:mjkorthour@integratelecom.com] Sent: Monday, October 25, 2010 9:13 PM To: Frank Boyles Subject: FW: Downtown Park and Ride lot Frank, Attached is the email that I referenced earlier today. Okay to forward this on as you deem appropriate. From: Korthour, Mary J. Sent: Monday, October 25, 2010 10:54 AM To: 'jkansier@cityofpriorlake.com' Subject: Downtown Park and Ride lot Ms. Kansier/Jane, Good morning. I am the General Manager for Integra Telecom in downtown Prior Lake. I received the survey today regarding the possible move of the park and ride to the public lot on Colorado Street. Moving the park and ride to this lot would have an immediate and negative impact on both our customers and our employees. Currently, we have a small lot on tl~e east side of our building that has ten spots. Often times, 2-3 of those spaces are used by residents in the community that either work downtown or are using the metro transit system. We have between 500-600 walk-in customers that come into our lobby each month. Many of these customers use our private lot (referenced above) or street parking on Colorado Street. On occasion, customers utilize the Colorado Street municipal lot as well. Our employees rely on the Colorado Street parking and we utilize it Monday-Friday between 7:30 a.rn. and 6:00 p.m. Currently, we have 31 employees that report to our 4690 Colorado Street SE location. We have another 26 employees report to our 5786 Credit River Road SE location. Many times, employees from our Credit River Road location need to come to our Colorado Street office and need to use the municipal parking lot. Integra Telecom uses between 25 - 30 parking spots in the Colorado Street municipal lot eaci~ dory. In addition, other businesses in the area utilize the lot as well. The traffic on Colorado Street between 4:00 and 6:00 is currently extremely congested. This move would compound the issue. I strongly urge the City to look far an alternate location for the park and ride. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss this in more detail. Regards, Mary Korthour ~ Vice President & General Manager direct 952-226-70:ifi I cell 957_-7.17.-6951 ~ fax 952-~t47-29~t9 Integra Telecom 14690 Colorado Street SE I Prior take, MN 55372 httn://w4vw.cLetinte~_ra.com Jane Kansisr From: Frank Boyles Sent: Tuesday, October 26, 2010 4:59 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: FW: Proposed Park & Ride Here is another letter expressing concerns regarding the proposed park and ride lot Frank Boyles City Manager City of Prior Lake 4646 Dakota St. SE (952) 447-9801 Email Updates. Sign up now. -----Original Message----- From: Warren Erickson Sent: Tuesday, October 26, 2010 8:30 AM To: Lyaman McPherson; Frank Boyles Subject: RE: Proposed Park & Ride Thank you for your feedback. I will forward your comments to staff since the recommendation to use this site is part of the staffs transit report. Warren Erickson City Councilman City of Prior Lake, Mn. -----Original Message----- From: Lyaman McPherson [mailta:lyaman@tomacltd.com] Sent: Mon 10/25/2010 4:36 PM To: Warren Erickson Subject: Proposed Park & Ride I have some concerns regarding this proposal. I understand the desire to have a park and ride downtown again, but there are several factors that need to be considered. First of all, we lost part of the community parking at the Rock creek building when that went up. The expansion of 21 is going to take the parking away from the back side of the phone company, as well as the old library building. From the VFW perspective, inadequate parking downtown already results in people parking in the lot that are patronizing other business, not the VFW. This is especially true on Monday and ~Nednesday afternoons starting around 4pm due to the burger night and bingo operations. The club is open at 2prn every day and as the weather gets colder, the crowd comes earlier. I would also like to point out a couple of past council and planning department decisions based on inadequate parking downtown. First of all, as you are well aware, I met with resistance for a proposed diner car that would have impacted no more than 8 parking spots. Additionally, Fongs was denied the opportunity to use their own property as a banquet hall because there isn't enough parking in the area -even with all the parking spots that were created for the old farmers market area. To now turn around and remove this lot from the mix is ridiculous. The proposal says there will only be about 30 - 40 spaces of the 60, but the loss of parking for the phone company and such will result in the loss of the remaining spots. I would strongly urge due consideration of the overall negative impact this action would have. If you really want to draw business traffic downtown, let the business conduct/establish businesses that will draw the traffic. You might also consider the fact the 21 expansion is going to hamper accessibility to this; lot when main street is closed. Just a thought. Lyaman McPherson 16282 West Ave SE VFW Asst. QM, Past Commander Premier Dance Academy Patron E-Mails / ~ PRXO~ !-~ ~ ~, , u 4646 Dakota Street SE Prior Lake, MN 55372 dr~~Sp~A Downtown Business Survey Downtown Park and Ride Lot The City is considering utilizing the municipal parking lot on Caloratlo Street as a park and ride site for the Laker Lines commuter bus service. There are about 60 spaces in this lot. We anticipate bus riders would use 30-40 spaces on Monday through Friday, from 6;00 AM to 6:00 PM, leaving 20-30 spaces for other users, We would like your input. Please complete the following survey. 1. Do your customers/employees use this lot? Yes (^ ~ No l~ yes, how many spaces? 2, What irrtpact would the use of this lot as a park and ride have on your business? /'~j~ Eliminates spaces we use for employeeslcustomers ^ Brings customers downtown ^ Other (please explain) 3. Should this lot be used as a park and ride? ^. Yes No / Please explain ~ ~ L1~c3~Q~~ -~ ~,v~.k__~='t~,r>.~_~~.~,_cr~~C-~~~ We want to share the results of this survey with you. If you would like to receive the results, please provide: Name ', ~ .~,._r ~~ ~ -~ ~: Business Name - ;,~,,,~ ,, ,~ ~,~ Email Address ~ < ~, ~ . ~ L ,.,, , ~ ~~, . ~:-~ ,~ ~ ..,., ~- ~ ,~.~,~-._ Please return this survey in the enclosed stamped envelope by Friday, November 5, 2010. You may also take this survey online by following this link: http:l/www.surveymonkey.comis/F5X9QRM Thank you for your time. If you have any questions, please confact Jane Kansier, Building and ~rransportation Services Director at 952-447-9812, or at jkansier@cityofpriorlake.com. Phone 952.447.9800 /Pas 952Ad7.h245 / ~ti~w~e.cityofpriorlake.com /[~' V .~~.~ • ~ltvx~so'~ 4646 Dakota Street SE Prins T .ake MN 55372 Downtown Business Survey Downtown Park and Ride Lot The City is considering utilizing the municipal parking lot on Colorado Street as a park and ride site for the Laker Lines commuter bus service. There are about 60 spaces in this lot. We anticipate bus riders would use 30-40 spaces on Monday through Friday, from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM, leaving 20-30 spaces for other users. We would like your input. Please complete the following survey. Do your u`stomerslemployeesuse this lot? Yes ~ ^ ~ No I If yes, haw many spaces? r,.U ~ NO ~ . - ~ ~ ,/ Please explain r~~U.c~~ ~ ;c~,,~__ ~ t~.~~r~= .~>~%_~~ ~ `~-'' ,~~:~- ~, Cox G/X~cFxf'~ -tif 1_)~~fl I^u° ...,~i~ ~~?~?i~ ~v k?T(_ ~~t~~t`-~ We want to share the results of this survey with you. If you would like to receive tf~results, please providew-~ 1 `~~~ _ - - ---_ .. tl V~ - - ~ ~~~, _-c~J~=/ Name ~ cam', ' `~.> ~ .~,U-~ ~~ ~~ ~~~ Business Name ~,..~,~Lu Email Address I > ~ ~ ~~ • r ~~> rt " ~ ~ ct ~ ~ r tti Please return this survey in the enclosed stamped envelope by Friday, November 5, 2010, You may also take this survey online by following this link: http:flwww.surveymonkey.comislFfiX9QRM Thank you for your time. If you have any questions, please contact Jane Kansier, Building and Transportation Services Director at 952-447-9812, or at jkansier@cityofpriarlake.com. Phone 952.447.9800 / L•'as 952.47.4245 / a~~1+.cityofprioriake.com P~p~' ~ ~.~ v 4646 Dakota Street SE l Prior Lake, MN SS372 ~~NNGS~~A Downtown Business Survey ~~"~.Z ,~ j )t~ t1 i` ~t~I,~ !~, Downtown Park and Ride Lot J / The City is considering utilizing the municipal parking lot on Colorado Street as a park and ride site'ior the Laker ! fines commuter bus service. There are about 60 spaces in this lot. We anticipate bus rirlorc ,.-~••'-' ,._ ' - spaces on Monday through Friday, from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM, leaving 20-30 spaces for other usE~rs. We would uKe your input. Please complete the following survey. 1. Do your customers/employees use this lot? ,~ ~ Yes (^ ~ No If yes, how many spaces? .- J Please eXpllln ~~~~~C~~L"~1~~ U~)~t,1~~ )~`~f-~ <',~~i~'l( Ci ~ ~l `?,'~ir,f l'LU~!' ~_ l C~:i.~ ~~-{ t~l'2!.}i'7 fC;l.t'~1 ~ /I~ (~/r l"f'`~`~'~~ C.~?J 1~:~( r''~,~ lj%'i"Z1)1/ `~~r' `~~~~r' f.~~ We want to share the results of this survey with you. (f you would like to receive the results, please provide: t~ f 1 r f ~V ~>j~ 1t rl ~~'._1f Name I'~ rG~ ~l /~~' ~ , / % t'.~rcCr ~ l-fry Business Name Email Address f~/ rA1 r" f CUi'~r,~ (t,t ~~' ~t it"~fr 1 . /% ~r~'Y~ Please return this survey in the enclosed stamped envelope by Friday, November 5, 2010. You may also take this survey online by following fhis link: http:l/www.surveymonkey.com/s/F5Y9QRM Thank you for your time. If you i}ave any questions, please contact Jane Kansier, Building a~~,: ~:.~,._,_ Services Director at 952-447-9812, or at jkansier@cityofpriorlake.com. Phone 952.447.9800 / Fas 952:447.4215 I awe+.eityofprioriake.coui p~ PRtp~' .. U ~ ~ ~~'~`~ ~~vrvbso'~~ 4646 Dakota Street SE Prior Lake, MN SS372 Downtown Business Survey Downtown Park and Ride Lot The City is considering utilizing the municipal parking lot on Colorado Street as a park and ride site for the Laker Lines commuter bus service. There are about 60 spaces in this lot. We anticipate bus riders would use 30-40 spaces on Monday through Friday, from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM, leaving 20-30 spaces for other users. We would like your input. Piease complete the following survey. 1. Do your customers/empioyees use this lot? Yes ~ ^ ~ NO / / If yes, how many spaces? ~,~1 l' `' ~,(f~~~ ~~ ~'`~~ ~~? ~ 1 2. What i _ act would the use of this lot as a park and ride have on your business'' Eliminates spaces we use for employeeslcustomers ^ Brings customers downtown /, Other lease ex lain 7 3. %1Ct~ ~~Et~~ Should this lot be used as a park and ride? ^ Yes Please explain - ~~ S (, ~~ ~ ~ ~,~'~ C_. We want to share the results of this survey with you, if you would like to receive the results, please provide:_ • , ~ ~ - _ -- - - - - _ . _ --- - --- G_ _C!`. ~.-~- Please return this survey in the enclosed stamped envelope by Friday, November 5, 2010. You may also take this survey online by following this link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/F5X9QRM Thank you for your time. If you have any questions, please contact Jane Kansier, Building and Transportation Services Director at 952-447-9812, or at jkansier@cityofpriorlake.com. _s ~-m~..-~ Phone 952.447.9800 /tax 952.417.4245 / ++~n+.cityofpriorlake.com ~~ . ~. ) ~ ,yam..-- PIu I~ ~ a o~ °~ .f U '~ __ ~ 4646 Dakota Street SE Prior Lake, MN 55372 Downtown Business Survey Downtown Park and Ride Lot The Gify is considering utilizing the municipal parking lot on Colorado Street as a park and ride site for the Laker Lines commuter bus service. There are about 60 spaces in this lot. We anticipate bus riders would use 30-40 spaces on Monday through Friday, from 6;00 AM to 6:00 PM, leaving 20-30 spaces for other users, We vrould like your input. Please complete the following survey. 1, Do your ustomers/employees use this lot? ` `~ Yes ~ ^ (No I yes, how many spaces? 2, Whamsimpact would the use of this lot as a park and ride have on your business? ~~-~_. Eliminates spaces we use for employeeslcustomers j^ Brings customers downtown ^ Other please explain) We want to share the results of this survey with you. If you would like to receive the results, please provide: Please return this survey in the enclosed stamped envelope by Friday, November 5, 2010. You may also take this survey online by following this link; http:/Iwww.surveymonkey,com/s/F5X~IQRM Thank you for your time, If you have any questions, please contact Jane Kansier, Building and Transportation Services Director at 952-447-9812, or at jkansier@cityofpriorlake.com, c' -, y ~~-~~ Phone 952.447.9300 / Pax 952.447.4245 / ~ti~~~a.cityofpriorrake.com ~~ ; I~~~~ ~ ~ , ~ ~ ~~ c ~~ ~ ` r ~~ r~ ~Ih~ ~-i~~F U~IOU,~~ ~0~~ ~ ~~i ~ ~D OI~i1 ~I Yl ~~ ~ ~~ ,~ ~ L I wi-Iv~~ -1-F~~; canc ~~1ir~r~ in ~`'r7~~1 a('- ~(P~~ ~h,~lir u~~ iVl -I~1~r ~Xl~~~i~ 1~~~ I-IUUi'n, U lacy o(' r,;'-r~{-;~ c~U r;~ wog ld ~~y iv~~~c~u ~c~ . z~h~ pro%f~n `- .- ~~FW ~jP C~~~`~~~~r, v~ho I~av~ 1~ ~r~ J~l~, -t~i~i~ wU~` '~~iv -I~~ ~f~d~~ mc, vvaili~ roow~ r~-~r,~ ~~hb~ ire ~I~~ ~sl~dio aY~; c~r~S~~/6y -~,~II with p~~inl~ -Ih~l pUr{_% Ur~~/ rr~r~~ ~n/v Wa~z~r~h~/~ -FhUr ~51~~c~~~~ w~~f;~~ w~~Icl ~hc~ r>~r~~ i~ ;I h~ lol was ~ill~~ WIId~ c~h~m~i1~~ ~>Ur~j~,~; -~c~ l~f~I~ ~ I U~~ r y~~~- ~l~s rho v~e~l 1a ~IUu'r~ i~! by _I-h~i~ ~~r'~~~1?, ~~r~1 j~~~ drop~~!c~ oPf'. ~1~ ~ It~t~,l~~; I rrr~~ ~~r~~s 1~ camp i~ Uhr.~ 1~~1 ihe~r C~iil~V~yl UN~ ~n~iJ~!. ir>> my ~USSN~~ ~vaUl~ lax cdr~a~c! Jane Kansier From: Tammy Murr <tammym@integra.net> Sent: Friday, November 05, 2010 4:31 PM To: Mike Myser; Ken Hedberg; Rick Keeney; Steve Millar; Frank Boyles; Warren Erickson; Jane Kansier Subject: Downtown Park and Ride Lot Dear Ms.Kansier and Council Members, It has been brought to my attention that you are considering making a park and ride lot out of the municipal lot on Colorado Street. I would like to express my sincere concern regarding this proposal. As you know there are several businesses located in the area who customers also use the lot. Limiting the number of spaces available to clients could be a detriment to the local business establishments. My main concern is for the children that are students at Premiere Dance. Hundreds of children attend classes at the studio and if parking is reduced, more parents will need to drop kids off down the street and have them walk to the studio. This will be very dangerous during the winter months when it gets dark early and the streets are icy. This is a tragic accident waiting to happen. Such a move will also increase the congestion in the area. I believe we are trying to bring more businesses to the downtown area. Limiting access to them is not encouraging support for current or future busines:~es. Having used the bus to communte from Prior Lake to downtown Mpls., I would like to say it is a rr~uch needed service. However, I believe there are locations that would better serve as a park and ride. These: include the lot across from Shell and the parking lot that exists with the former Snyders and NAPA building . Please examine other options carefully and do not allow a park and ride on Colorado Street. Thank You, Tammy Murr Jane Kansier From: Theisen, Joel <Joel.Theisen@adc.com> Sent: Friday, October 29, 2010 5:40 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Proposed Park and Ride Lot To whom it may concern- I am writing to express my concern with the current proposal to turn the existing city parking lot (located on Colorado Avenue) to a Park and Ride facility. I have two daughters that attend Premiere Dance Academy across the street from the city lot. We and many other families use the city lot on a daily basis when we bring our kids rto dance classes. If the site was transformed in to a park and ride it would not only be very difficult to secure parking for the dance studio but more importantly it would introduce additional traffic and risk to kids as they enter and leave the studio. Thanks in advance for your consideration. C3est Regards, Joel Theisen Tel 952-217-5758 Jane Kansier From: labsrule@mchsi.com Sent: Sunday, October 31, 2010 11:19 AM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Downtown Park and Ride Lot Jane - I am writing to tell you some reasons why I think the park and ride by the VFW is a bad idea. First of all, the city approved Mrs. Dawn Schulberg to build and operate a dance studio on the location next to T-Shirts and More on Colorado Ave. quite a few years ago. Do you know how many parents drop and pick up AND stay and watch their children EVERY DAY of the week there? She has 700-800 students. You do the math. She provides a good business to Prior Lake and to take away these spots for her parents is insane. She does a lot for the community and is a good business leader. Some concerns would be: Where is the bus going to park? In front of T-Shirts and More`? If so, you are now taking up 6-8 on streets parking spots as well. Is the bus going to sit idle in the winter time? I sure would hate to be a home owner or a business owner and have to listen to that at 6AM. How is the bus going to navigate down Colorado Ave.? If people park on both sides of tt~e street, it's very difficult to get down it. Plus you will have children crossing the street to waiting parents. That makes a dangerous situation. If it goes towards the VFW....that is hard enough to make a left turn there when people are parked in the street, let along have a bus make a turn there. The VFW does big business with their charity events (which are usually on a weekend, but sometimes during the week). They also have a big night with Burger Night and the parking is very limited. They have been good business people in Prior Lake also.......why do this to them as well? What about your Downtown Dazzle that is on a Friday night? People rely on that parkinct lot to park, What about your Ladies Night OUt? Same thing.......people rely on that parking lot. YOu are potentially taking away people from downtown instead of your thought to bring them downtown. Have you ever tried to get out of downtown at the 4 way stop on Main Ave. to get to 13 and 21? That is horrible between 5-6:30 every night. And now you want to add more people to the mix? I hope that you realize this is a bad idea for the people of the community of Prior Lake. 'there are a lot more safer and worthwile options out there than #his particular parking lot. Thank you for your time. Bonnie & Doug Gauquie Jane Kansier From: Renee Somerville <Renee.Somerville@MCHSI.com> Sent: Monday, November 01, 2010 7:16 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Park & Ride Dear Ms. Kansier; I am emailing you today to voice my two cents, in 'Vetoing' a movement forward in putting in a Downtown Park and Ride Lot on Colorado Street. Putting in a Park 'N Ride on Dakota would definitely be a bad idea for many reasons. First, of all.., the location would only cause additional traffic congestion problems for people anci customers that frequent the downtown establishments. Several establishments around the area there, have customers that park at this location and frequent T-Shirts and More, VFW, Integra, Premiere Dance Academy and more (Gig,gle Gals, Flowers Naturally, Ace Hardware, Fongs, etc. also have people that park here)... It would encourage traffic congestion for these potential patron supporting customers. But also add additional walking concerns and safety issues for customers and children that utilize the various establishments in downtown Prior Lake. Because kids attend school classes during the day time, dance classes are offered primarily during week nights for the most part. Curb side parking is very, very limited on Dakota. So, we must ALWAYS park in the parking lot, across the road from Premiere Dance Academy. Some nights, even the parking lot can already be full too. The majority of dance classes are offered in the evening, after school. About the same time Park n Riders coming home from work would be coming through (aka, Rush Hour)! But what is most important here to note, is that this time of day, during the school year, the time of day is twilight tune or night time...fairly dark outside. Children must cross an already pretty heavily trafficked road from the parking lot to enter Premiere Dance Academy establishment. Vision is fairly limited here already unfortunately. There is 'some' curbside parking in the area also...and cars parked curbside do tend to block clear vision of on-coming traffic for children that are about to cross the street to attend dance class. Small (not tall) children's vision in crossing this road is somewhat blocked at times because of curbside parking. Our own young children have to cross the road there from this parking lot to attend class at Premiere Dance Academy. And we have already noticed that it can be a somewhat scary experience for them to cross the road already...with current traffic conditions on this road. During the winter months, this road can also be quite icy and slippery too!! I cannot even imagine the thought of also incorporating additional rush hour workers into the mix...with a Park n Ride being incorporated at this parking lot. It will definitely add to this congestion and danger. Also, the Park n Ride rush hour people...will be in a completely different mind-set than the typical downtown vendor customers. Their minds will not be expecting a youth to unexpectedly cross in front of them (most dancers are short and very young). Park n Ride users will have a different rnindset...theirthoughu will still be on all the sordid events that took place earlier that day with their boss or other adult co-workers at work, or perhaps trying to make it home in tune for dinner... This scenario, is as they say, 'an accident waiting to happen'. And I haven't even begun to mention the fact that the large buses being utilized for Park n Riders will alone take u[r, in and of themselves, a tremendous amount of room on that already not too big surface area... Dakota, as a street, also is quite narrow to begin with too! The large commuter busses will even more add to complications and overloading traffic congestion for people/children trying to enter the parking lot to park or to leave from any of the businesses they are frequenting downtown. Again, putting in a Park n Ride, at this particular location, will definitely increase safety concerns far our youth and the families in the area that will be crossing Dakota. I guess I really don't understand how putting a Park n Ride in downtown Prior Lake even came rap? By utilizing this surface area on Dakota for Park n Rider drivers -you are taking away parking space from City of Prior Lake anci City of Savage people that are frequenting downtown establishments. Park n Riders from different areas of MN could also he potentially be using the City of Prior Lake's valuable downtown parking space in order to travel to and from their work (traveling outside of downtown Prior Lake limits}... In essence you are taking away downtown growth potential taking away downtown vendor's customer's parking base...and this definitely makes absolutely NO SENSE. These people are not contributing to the vendors trying to make a living in downtown Prior Lake. If Prior Lake continues to grow (like the new Mayer hopes), putting in bigger money-making business, etc. General surface area parking availability to support these bigger business growths obviously will become more and more problematic! Also, tf~e Parl< n Rides that I have seen (and have even utilized myself in prior work experiences} are ALWAYS placed near major hil;hways. So, the parking area location is always in a place that's has easiest access for `easy in' and `easy out' parking...easy and fast access to major freeways. Also, Park n Rides are usually in large, easily observable surface area locations. Police can easily drive by...and make sure there is no tampering going on with the cars that park there. This parking surface location Dakota Street does not fit either of those descriptions....it is not very large and it is not in a clear and open sight location. In fact, this location can actually be pretty dark. It definitely also is not an'easy on' and `easy off' location for a big bus! As this location for a Park n Ride would also contribute to future additional theft and vandalism to all downtown customers utilizing that parking area. Opening up parking space to transient people, (especially near an establishment where young children frequent}, seems a bit scary too. Last, putting in a Park n Ride in downtown Prior Lake.... I can only imagine it would further increase problematic traffic on the already troubled Hwy 13 to boot. Highway 13 already has major issues with speed control and congestion. The City should first look into widening highway 13 FIRST (and the streets of downtown Prior Lake), before any work is done towards implementing a Park n Ride downtown. Much Thanks for listening... Kind Regards, Renee Somerville 952.233.0111 Jane Kansier From: Angie Erickson <angelaerik@mchsi.com> Sent: Monday, November 01, 2010 7:17 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Park and Ride To whom it may concern: I use the parking lot in concern at least four times a week. Often it is at least 75% full. The street in front of it is pretty busy residential street. There is constant movement from dancers of all ages crossing the street. If you place a park and ride it would add to the congestion of that street and make it very unsafe to all those who cross that street. There would be no parking for the parents or dancers of Premiere or the other local businesses. I strongly disapprove of making this parking area a park and ride. I would hope that someone has watched the congestion of this street before making their decision. Angela Erickson Jane Kansier From: Chris Caskey <clcaskey@foodsys.com> Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2010 8:31 AM To: Jane Kansier Subject: prior lake downtown parking I do not think that we need the park & ride at this location. There is not enough parking downtown the way it is. There has to be a better location for a park & ride.(old NAPA auto parts location?) Chris Caskey Food Systems Design Inc, Office 952-884-4048 clcaskeyC~foodsys.corn Jane Kansier From: Laura Elletson <lewaterski@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, November 01, 2010 5:49 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Park and Ride Please do not couve-~t the parking lot across from the dance studio into a park -i. ride. It is~ heavily used afternoons, evenings and weekend mornings by dancers and their parents for short term p~,arking and has a lot of drop off and pick ups. We want to keep our kids safe and continue to support our local businesses ability to provide parking for customers. LaUI'a ~IIEtS01] Jane Kansier From: Jean Langdon <jeanmlangdon@cs.com> Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2010 1:21 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Parking lot You must be very busy and thank you for taking a moment to hear my concern. I have 3 daughters that dance several afternoon/evenings per week at Premiere Dance Academy. If anyone has an opportunity from City Council to observe the traffic flow from 4 to 7 pm, you will notice it is extremely busy and requires patience and cooperation from every driver. There is heavy pedestrian traffic and with the given concerns of the safety of other intersections in that area, to add a Park and Ride to the parking lot between Premiere and the VFW would be, reckless and dangerous. I completely support mass transportation ideas, please consider another location. Thank you, Jean Langdon Sent from my iPhone Jane Kansier From: Jackie Thelemann <jackiet@title-1.com> Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2010 4:57 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: PARK AND RIDE CONCERN just wanted to let you know I'm concerned about the "park & ride" right down town -isn't there any other places outside of town ^' we need more parking in town no doubt but not for the commuter's that will have their cars parked from 6-6! In addition, don't we want people to have a place to go in and out of our local establishments instead of not being able to find aspot -it's hard enough already Just wanted to give you my opinion - if you have more information you can pass on or I'll be at ttie meeting 11/15 THANKS FOR LISTENING! Jackie Thelemann ~~ccrrtivcC(oscr 'ft'1'LG ONC INC. 1895~~(nus 2~rtvc, Suitc 100 rEnQnrr, 71N55122 P[ toN E: GI2.935.859& PA a: 952.537.0707 Ii1,1AIL:jnr~kict@litle-Lcnnr www.title-1.ronr `I' I "I' L E Download my contact info as a v-card This e-mail may contain information that is privileged, confidential or otherwise protected from disclosure. If you are not the intended recipient or have received this email in error, please notify the sender immediately by e-mail, discard any paper copies and delete all electronic files of the message. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution of the e-mail or its attachment(s) is prohibited by law. Jane Kansier From: Ighuss@aol.com Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2010 8:57 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Park & Ride Dear Ms. Kansier, I am a resident of Prior Lake and am writing to voice my concern about turning downtown parking space into a Park & Ride. As a taxpayer and a person who frequents that part of town, I am disappointed to learn of this plan. The plan leaves limited to no parking for several businesses who currently use this lot, it will create more congestion on a street that is heavily travelled and continually crossed by children attending a dance academy, and it puts undue stress on an already ridculously designed 4 way stop. I would like to see the City Council consider other options for a Park & Ride. One option is to direct commuters to more regionally planned sites such as the one located at Southbridge. If historic figures are accurate, it seems the needs of 25-30 PL commuters should not outweigh the needs of a block of businesses, a neighborhood of residents, and hundreds of drivers who use the streets and downtown parking sK~aces on a daily basis. I ask that the City reconsider its options on this issue. Thank you for your time on this matter Regards, Lori Huss Prior Lake Resident 952-440-2140 Jane Kansier From: Lisa Cray <lisacray64@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2010 9:51 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Park and Ride This is a mote to city council not to tur^ the downtown parking area into a park and ride. Parking is bad enough without adding additional ~~~ouki be packers. Please do not go through ~~~ith the park and ride. Lisa Cray Jane Kansier From: Sue Schriever <ssohriev@hotmail.com> Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2010 9:00 AM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Park & Ride To Whom it May Concern, We have 2 daughters that dance at Premiere Dance Academy. We are very concerned about the idea of a Park & Ride being put in the parking lot by Premiere Dance Academy. We are there every day M - F dropping off or picking up our girls and it is a busy area. It is already hard to find a parking space and children are constantly being dropped off and picked up. There is no way that area can handle any more traffic. The safety of the children need to be considered. Thank you for your time, Terry and Sue Schriever Jane Kansier From: Tony Jirik [MinnTel Communications, Inc.J <tjirik@minntelcorn.com> Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2010 11:18 AM To: Jane Kansier Cc: Frank Boyles; Doug Hartman; Danette Parr; Steve Albrecht Subject: Park & Ride I am contacting you in reference to the proposed Park & Ride at the municipal parking lot on Colorado Street. As a parent of young children who have and are currently attending Premiere Dance Academy over the past four years; my concerns are as follows. 1. The entrance/exit on this lot is narrow and exits on a fairly narrow street (Colorado) which is almost directly in front of Premiere Dance. Our concern is the commuters using this lot are going to impact an already busy parking lot during the week. There are over 500 families who attend Premiere Dance. The overall majority are during the week after school hours. (4-7pm) 2. I first hand have experienced an almost full capacity parking area on this lot during dance. Adding another 30-40 users to this lot is going to create total frustration for both commuters and dance customers both entering and leaving. 3. I first hand have seen MANY 3-6 year old children being directed through this busy parking lot to the Premiere Dance entrance during the hours of 4-7pm 4. Impact on local businesses in my opinion are going to be overflow of many cars ukilizing parking on main street to attend dance if this is the only option. NOT patronizing businesses. 5. Colorado Street in front all residences on both sides will be a full of cars making it too narrow to navigate two cars meeting in different directions. This is a huge impact on navigating a Fire Truck or Ambulance in case of an emergency. These are a few of many safety issues I am concerned about. Premiere Dance is a CHILD related business. I hope you understand the safety of these kids and keep this project in a different geographical location. Thank you, Tony Jirik 612.875.0606 Jane Kansier Frorn: n.dicicco@mediacombb.net Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2010 9:59 AM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Parking My daughter is a dancer at Premire Dance and I have heard that you want to take the parking lot on Colorado Street for park and go and for the other business on that street ,well where is everybody going to park now ! ! It gets awfiil busy and sometimes you can't find a parking spot and I do not want to park on the street and 1 am not going to just drop my daughter off and go I go in with her. Can't you find another place how about the old place that use to be the grocery store across from Mcdonalcl. `I~hank You, Nancy UiCicco Jane Kansier From: Jean Nordgren <Jean@gomarketworks.com> Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2010 11:41 AM 70: Jane Kansier Subject: Park & Ride I'm emailing my concern about the potential plans for a Park and Ride spaces at the municipal parking lot. 1 have a daughter that takes class at Premiere Dance three nights a week. I drop her off between 4:15 and 4:30 these nights, with a typical pick up time between 5:15 and 5:30. If the municipal lat is converted to Park and Ride spaces, I will have no place to park during these drop off and pick up times. I do park the car and walk in to the daince studio as I don't want my daughter walking in the dark to the parking lot. Additionally, I'm concerned about the additional traffic these spaces would bring to this street -which my daughter crosses six times each week. Thanks, Jean Nordgren Phone 952,440.5528 jean C~~omarketworks.com Jane Kansier From: kari.curielli@keylandhomes.com Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2010 11:35 AM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Park and Ride In my opinion, a Park and Ride is not a good idea across the street from Premiere Dance Academy. This parking lot is utilized by hundred's of dancers parents coming and going. This would only cause a bigger problem as the streets would be over crowded and this would create danger to all that travel this road. Jane Kansier From: Vicki Pahl <cv.pahl@mchsi.com> Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2010 2:49 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Park and Ride I just wanted to express my concern over the city's plans to build a park and ride in downtown Prior Lake. My two daughter's attend dance classes at Premiere Dance Academy four days a week and that is really the only parking lot available to use for the dance studio. I would be greatly disappointed if we were not able to use it. There is no way that 700+ students can be dropped off and picked up over the course of a week when there is no parking available to the families of the students. If a park and ride is put in place of the existing parking lot, it will greatly effect many businesses in downtown Prior Lake, possibly contributing to the closing of many of them. Please take this into consideration and leave the parking lot as is for the current businesses' use. Thank you very much! I appreciate your time and thought! Vicki Pahl Jane Kansier From: Amber Serwat <amber@amsmediationplus.com> Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2010 3:40 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: PL Park and Ride To whom it may concern: I am the parent of a child taking dance lessons at Premiere Dance Academy and Savage resident in the 719 district who frequents businesses in the downtown PL area. It has come to my attention that the City of PL is~ considering converting the municipal parking lot closest to Premiere into a Park and Ride. I oppose this idea, first and fcrr most because it would have a significant negative impact on my child's safety while attending dance at Premiere; and sr~condly because it would greatly limit parking access for businesses in the downtown area. I rarely experience the parking lot as anything other than nearly full. The movement of children in and out of Premiere (crossing the street from the parking lot) is already congested and presents real safety issues which multiply in the winter months. The business owners around the academy have already made it clear that the traffic Premiere generates is problematic. They consistently anti aggressively fend off Premiere families from utilizing their spaces and after hours they chain off their lots so as to restrict unwanted use. I cannot imagine what it would be like w'Ithout the only easily accessible parking lot and the addition of large city busses traveling up and down a narrow street -dangerous is the word that comes to mind. Reducing the already limited parking would only serve to exacerbate an already challenging situation and put children at risk. I can only imagine that the local business owners are also opposed to this idea. Parking is already a challenge and reducing available spots will undoubtedly have a negative impact on the small business owners --adding more pressure in a suffering economy, Although I fully support the use of Park and Rides, I oppose ttte location which is currently under consideration. There must be a better alternative. Thank you for your consideration, ~hr6ei~ /~ ~'ei<<ont, /~/f~ Family Mediator ~ Parenting Consultant ~ Parenting Time Expeditor ~ Early Neutral Evaluator i i~t" f rAhil+I R ?,4. Sf Rti',1l ~~tt t~l+\I It~N Phone: 952.252.1492 Web: http://www.amsmediationplus.com Address: 1500 McAndrews Road West, Suite 224, Burnsville, MN 55337 The information contained in this email message is confdentiat information intended only for the use of the individual or eritily named above. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution, or copying of the communication is strictly prohibited. Please contact Amber Serwat at (952) 252-1492 if you received this communication in error. Jane Kansier From: Darcy Olson <darcy@letsdish.com> Sent: Thursday, November 04, 2010 2:25 PM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Proposed Park and Ride Relocation I am disappointed and perplexed as to the proposed relocation of the Park n Ride in Prior Lake. VVhile I am in complete support of the concept of public transportation, and the efficiencies which it provides our communities and residents, the proposed relocation of the Park n Ride in Prior Lake will have many repercussions across the community and its residents. The new proposed area for the Park n Ride is already flooded with an extreme amount of traffic and very few vacant parking spots. The increased traffic flaw resulting from a Park n Ride in that area will result in even more congestion which would on many occasions spill out into the highways through Prior Lake. Already, there is an extreme back up and congestion at tl~e 4 way stop sign, and congestion and confusion near the Lakefront Park intersection at Hwy 13. What would the plan be to alleviate the exponential back ups which would occur at these two intersecl:ions that would be certain to occur? In addition, the businesses around the proposed park and ride location would also be negatively affected, as their parking would virtually be eliminated. It seems that the city would want to better enable'shoppers' to more easily access the commerce in the area, vs weaving in and out of commuter traffic and searching for a parking spot. In today's economy, the last thing that the local business need are additional hurdles such as the restriction of parking and increase of congestion. Finally, of utmost concern is the safety of everyone in the area -commuters, pedestrians, and children. For example, the Dance Studio in the area attracts hundreds of families daily -ranging from very young children to young drivers in the area. The congestion which would occur often times in the darkness would create hazards and dangers which could be unthinkable. Just recently, there was a severe school bus accident which occurred during the dark hours in the morning....this was a risk that was identified with the change in school bus times...and unfortunately it has already happened. Please do not place the children at additional risk when there seems to be so many other alternatives for the Park n Ride. The pedestrians are at risk being dropped off or picked up. In addition, many people would be forced to park down side streets- potentially very far away. While we are in a local community, there are certainly `at risk' behaviors which happen. It seems to be a responsible approach of any governing body to look at multiple options when making a decision of this nature. Perhaps this has been done, but I am unaware of any additional options or studies that have been explored. For example, one of the hallmarks of a highly desired Park n Ride is the ability for eas5r entry and exit from the locations which certainly would not be achieved at the proposed Park n Ride. Please take another look at this to explore a more optimal decision without negatively impacting. so many of your constituents and most importantly the safety of all community members. Thank you, Darcy Olson Jane Kansier From: Stacey Forst <stacey.forst@hilmersonservices.com> Sent: Friday, November 05, 2010 9:21 AM To: Jane Kansier Subject: Proposed Park and Ride To whom it may concern, I am writing to you today to express my concerns over the potential of turning the parking lot across from Premiere Dance Academy into a Park and Ride. My 9 year old daughter is a dancer at Premiere and has been for 6 years. As long as I've know Dawn, Casie and Calie, they have always put the Dancers and their families first. This particularly comes to play when it comes to the safety of the dancers and their families. They fought the city to ban alcohol from being served on their property because they were concerned about the safety of their dancers and families. With a lot of hard work and a lot of tears they finally won that battle. Now another battle is in front of them, the proposal of turning the parking lot across the street into a Park and Ride. Being part owner of a Safety Consulting Business, I see a number of Safety Concerns if this were to happen. One of the conveniences at Premiere is the ability to drop of our dancers and pick them up without getting out of the car. There is a "marked" Cross walk but we all know people do not abide by the rules of a "Cross Walk". I have seen so many drivers ignore the cross walk and nearly hit our dancers. Additional or increased traffic c<3uses safety concerns. Right now pickup and drop off times are very hectic - at times the street in front of Premiere are lined with cars all the way back to Integra and into the parking lot not to mention the cars parked on both sides of the streets in front of Premiere. Parking for the families is a concern. Parking at Premiere right now is very difficult. Making it a Park and Ride would only add to the problem. Premiere customers would lose parking and would overflow into the WFW or where there may be space. If this were to happen, you tivill see more and more families dropping their dancers off instead of parking which causes congestion in front of Premiere and all of the surrounding businesses. From what I understand there are other options for a Park and Ride. I urge the city to take a look at the other options. Dawn, Casie and Calie have worked Lard to build a thriving business in Prior Lake. I would hate to see something like this hurt their business in anyway. Thank you for consideration and your time. 7fiank yot~, Stacey I'orst Safety Services, Inc. VP/Manager of Business Operations Hilmerson Safety Services, !nc 952.224.9390- Office 952.224.9392-Fax 952.239.0128 -Mobile stacev.forst hilmersonservices.com