6.9. SR 08-16-2004 - Laserfiche WebLink

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GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS This section provides general recommendations on what Elk River should do in order to successfully implement the roadway improvement actions identified. The general recommendations are as follows: Complete the corridor studies identified as part of the improvement actions. In order to determine more precisely what types of roadway improvement actions should be implemented, corridor studies on many of the major roadways in the city should be completed. In general, these studies would look at environmental, land use, engineering, and financial constraints/opportunities as well as consider public input to determine how many lanes can be added to existing roadways and where new roadway alignments should be located. Work with Mn/DOT, Sherburne County, and neighboring jurisdictions. The nature of future improvements to TH 10 and TH 169 in Elk River will likely have enormous impacts on how. the city functions and grows. Mn/DOT, having identified these roadways in Elk River as high and medium priority interregional corridors, has already developed future highway improvement concepts as part of the TH 10 and TH 169 Corridor Management Plans. Also, improvement actions implemented on TH 10 and TH 169 in adjacent communities will likely affect future highway improvements in Elk River. For example, TH 101 in Otsego will be converted to a freeway by 2006. Mn/DOT has recently completed an environmental scoping document defining a potential corridor for a future TH 10 bypass of Big Lake. The city of Ramsey is pursuing a future alignment change and freeway conversion for TH 10. As these actions are implemented, they begin to narrow the improvement acdons that can be taken by Elk River. The city should be proactive and work with Mn/DOT and neighboring communities on deciding what future improvements might take place on these two highways. Working with Sherburne County on future roadway improvement actions is equally important to working with Mn/DOT. Several of the major roadways identified for improvement in the city are under county jurisdiction. It is crucial for the city to work with the county to determine the timing, funding, and nature of these improvements. Also, Elk River should work with Sherburne County to determine if some existing and future city roadways should become county roadways and vice versa. Roadway jurisdiction affects how roadways function and how they are maintained and financed. Make the public and developers aware of the transportation plan. As developers approach Elk River with development proposals, city staff and officials should examine the transportation plan to see if the proposals are consistent with the plan. They should make the plan's improvement actions visible and readily available to developers and interested members of the general public so they can make decisions in accord with the plan. If stakeholders know what is in the plan in advance of making key decisions, opposition to the plan should be minimized. Elk River Draft Transportation Plan Update xiii August 200.Y Howard R. Green Company