City Council Packet 06-02-2025 - Laserfiche WebLink

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The Elk River Vision A welcoming community with revolutionary and spirited resourcefulness, exceptional service, and community engagement that encourages and inspires prosperity Request for Action To City Council Item Number 8.2 Meeting Date June 2, 2025 Prepared By Zack Carlton, Community Development Director Item Description Downtown Master Plan Reviewed by Cal Portner Tina Allard Action Requested Adopt, by motion, the 2024 Downtown Master Plan. Background/Discussion A steering committee representing the council, multiple commissions, and the downtown business community has been working with Bolton and Menk to prepare a long-range vision for Elk River's downtown area. The plan identifies redevelopment opportunities on both public and privately owned parcels and recommends a series of action steps to guide the city towards this shared vision. Plan highlights include development recommendations for key sites within the core downtown area - the King Avenue parking lot, the Elk River Lutheran Church site, and the block that includes Dare's Funeral Home. Redevelopment of these sites would largely be driven by property owners, and the plan is the tool the city has to guide the vision for the future of those properties. Additionally, substantial changes to Main Street and Jackson Ave within the core downtown area, including transitioning to parallel parking on both sides of the street and widening the sidewalks to improve the pedestrian areas in downtown. Changes include wider sidewalks, larger planters with trees and vegetation, and benches. This will result in the loss of 19 on-street parking stalls, which has been a concern of the steering committee. However, the plan also recommends partnering with downtown businesses to enter into shared parking agreements for the use of those lots during off-peak hours and considering time limits for the street parking to facilitate increased turnover. Looking beyond the core downtown, the plan identified the area along Railroad Drive between Jackson and Gates Avenue as a larger redevelopment site referred to as Uptown. Much of this area is envisioned as a higher-density residential area with commercial uses to complement the additional growth. Public Feedback A video summarizing and outlining the goals and recommendations of the Downtown Master Plan was posted to the city's Facebook page in advance of a public open house on April 22, 2025. The Facebook comments are included as an attachment. Concerns about tax increases and parking considerations dominate the comments, with many residents expressing concerns about affordability, specific to property taxes. Page 91 of 247