5. HRSR 10-02-2006 - Laserfiche WebLink

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DG3Qf~~ City of Elk • ~~~./ i F;nhancing 1Jo.~~ntoruu Flk Rii;er's Role ". P r~~ OCTOBER 2006 .~s a Vital Retail, f,~~mmcar~ial and Residential ,area. Q. What is the latest news an the Downtown Revitalization Project? A. Main Street Closure far Utility Wark - A portion of Main Street in front of The Bluffs of Elk River and the Bank of Elk River will be closed from October 2-23 for coordinated utility work by Jackson Place and The Bluffs of Elk River. A smaller section in the next block in front of the three buildings east of the Cinema Building will be closed far five consecutive days during that same period and for another three separate days to complete the utility work. The four parking stalls in front of the Cinema Building will remain permanently open. These are expected to be the last major closures of Main Street (see map below). Jackson Avenue Reconfiguration - In order for one-way traffic to continue, Jackson Avenue will be reconfigured from October 30- November 27 to allow for abump-out around a crane. (see map inset). The large crane will besetting planks for Jackson Place. This will temporarily remove seven parking stalls, leaving five stalls open outside Kemper Drug. Jackson will remain aone-way until construction is completed next summer. A. When did Jackson Place construction begin? Has the City ever told the public that Jackson Avenue would be a one-way street? Jackson Place construction began in June. Yes, from very early on the City has included in its communications that during construction Jackson Avenue would become aone-way street, southbound from Highway 10 to Main Street. The change of Jackson Avenue to a one-way street was included in City Council the approved construction staging plan one year ago. Jackson Avenue will remain one-way until construction is completed next summer. Q. Why did the City allow three projects -Jackson Place, the Bluffs of Elk River and The Bank of Elk River - to be constructed at the same time, making traffic difficult downtown? A. Anytime construction occurs in a city's downtown it disrupts traffic. The City realizes that traffic flow downtown during construction has been difficult for businesses, their employees and customers. However, because all three projects are being built simultaneously, the inconvenience of construction can occur over aone-year period of time rather than spread out over three years if projects were phased. Traffic slowdowns earlier this year were exacerbated by other road construction that was occurring outside downtown on non-City projects. These include construction between Rogers and Elk River on Highway 101 and repair of a railroad crossing on Proctor Avenue. Q. What is the City doing to coordinate between the three different projects and traffic issues that come up? A. The City has implemented a number of measures and the three contractors are working cooperatively to minimize disruption. For example, the contractors are sharing dirt for backfill, and timing street closures and utility work together. The City has created an organizational structure that identifies who is in charge in terms of project management and different levels of communication. A little over two months ago, the City and construction contractors for the three projects started meeting weekly to discuss issues including construction schedules and when additional trucks would be in the area. Weekly updates on construction status are provided to the Mayor, the City Council, and the Housing & Redevelopment Authority (HRA). p. Why were detour signs still up when Main Street was open? A. The City staff made the decision to take down the closure signs but leave up the detour signs to try and minimize cut-through traffic in downtown from Highway 10 and elsewhere. After October 23, the alternate route signs will be up again. As a downtown business ar property owner, will I be notified of changes in traffic flow and construction issues downtown? Yes. The City recognizes that public communication is critical y~gh~"ay ~o (continued on next page) ~ ~ ~ f `~~ DowKtou~w ~evitaLia~ctiaw (~&A Newsletter DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION MAP eflective Oct. 2, 2006. inset shows atl~!linnal ch2ny~^ (o Jac~san Aver ue Oc. 30 to Pink;, /7. `Ie nowr:.town Ae+raf,aicn rvlap rill e upd~te^ as evens occur ar d progress is made.