8B - Review CSAH 11 Memo - Laserfiche WebLink

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`.. It is only with this type of design that downtown Pequot Lakes can attract and retain the level of private sector investment necessary to sustain prior investments.There needs to be natural, market demand for filling in the gaps between existing structures and,over time, making incremental improvements to increase the intensity of use of existing structures.This will only happen if(1) people can get to Pequot Lakes quickly and easily and (2)once in town, can be accommodated in a comfortable,town setting. Concept#1:The concept put forward by the County labeled"Concept 1" is the closest representation of what a future CSAH 11 corridor within downtown Pequot Lakes needs to look like.To that concept, as presented,we suggest the following modifications: 1. In general,the median should be removed and the automobile travel lanes reduced to 10 feet. Correspondingly,the sidewalks should be widened by 5 to 6 feet on each side of the street.The cost difference of moving the concrete from the center of the street—where it has little value— to the edge of the street where it creates immense value for the adjacent property owners, should be negligible. Narrowing the lanes will further slow traffic through this section and allow for a more complex environment to emerge. 2. The space available at County Road 112 provides an opportunity to offset reduced design speeds by providing for a continuous flow intersection.A properly-designed round-a-bout (meaning designed to a neighborhood context, not a highway context)would improve flow and reduce stacking in this area. 3. The intersections at Government Drive and N.Washington Ave.should be designed to emphasize shared space.The intersections should be designed to provide for automobile and pedestrian traffic in a free flow(not priority)design.Traffic will be going slow enough through this section where such a design should be attainable. 4. Ultimately,the intersection with TH 371 needs to be reconfigured to provide for continuous flow with a complex town environment. For the time being,the design as presented is adequate. 5. It is highly questionable what the value of a"future collector roadway"would be as presented. If said roadway is to be a frontage road along the highway,the improvement would need to be development driven. If the desire is to provide for industrial traffic,the design for TH 371 provides for such traffic at the southern junction with the current TH 371 alignment. Extending E.Woodman St.would be quite costly and it is not clear what benefit it would provide in terms of adding to the value captured within the downtown, particularly since it would require the condemnation and removal of at least one home. As such, it is premature and likely unwarranted to plan CSAH 11 to accommodate such an improvement.What is planned for areas to the west would also give mixed signals to drivers leaving the highway, confusing them that they are passing through a high-speed environment, WWW.COMMUNiTYGROWTH.COM WWW.STRONGTOWNS.ORG