7.5. SR 07-20-2009 - Laserfiche WebLink

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~ J/ uii~ ~~ River MEMORANDUM TO: Mayor and City Council FROM: Terry Maurer, Public Works Director DATE: July 20, 2009 Item: 7.5. SUBJECT: 193rd Avenue Improvement Project Speed Limits and Stop Signs at Xavier & 193rd Avenue As requested, I have prepared this memo in response to an Open Mike appearance by Mr. Aaron Rasmus who lives at the corner of Xavier Street and 193`d Avenue in the Woods at Hillside Addition. It is my understanding that Mr. Rasmus raised two issues; the first, being speed limits along the entire 193`d Avenue corridor and the second, the need for an all-way stop sign installation at the corner of Xavier Street and 193`d Avenue. My comments on these two issues are as follows: A. 193`d Avenue Speed Limits The total length of 193`d Avenue from TH 169 to CSAH 13 (Twin Lakes Road) will be approximately 1.5 miles. About half of the road currently exists through the Hillside Estates and Woods at Hillside developments. This segment of 193`d Avenue has a 30 mph speed limit and will remain unchanged after construction is complete. The half of the corridor which is being newly constructed will need to have a speed study done by MnDOT. As the Council is aware, the speed limits in the State of Minnesota are determined by the state, either through a MnDOT speed study or through State Statute. The State Legislature in the most recent session made some minor changes to traffic statutes regarding speed limits in rural residential districts; however, from a summary of that law change, produced by the League of Minnesota Cities, it does not appear that 193`d Avenue falls within that jurisdiction. If it did, the new law change would allow a 35 mph speed limit. Since it does not appear to fall within this new statutory definition of rural residential district, MnDOT will be asked to perform a speed study, once the road is complete. As I have informed Mr. Rasmus and his wife in separate conversations, if MnDOT comes back with a speed limit of higher than 30 mph, city staff will make a recommendation to the City Council relative to a transition zone to make drivers aware of the decreasing speed limit when traveling from east to west.