SECTION I 4
RESOLUTION NO. 7-87
RESOLUTION ADOPTING A POSITION PAPER AS THE OFFICIAL RESPONSE
OF THE CITY OF SHOREWOOD TO THE RECOMMENDATIONS INCLUDED IN THE
TRUNK HIGHWAY 7 CORRIDOR STUDY FINAL REPORT DATED NOVEMBER, 1986
WHEREAS, Highway 7 between Highway 101 in Minnetonka and the
Western border of Chanhassen has a mix of different
access points, design problems, high traffic volumes
and accident rates; and
WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Council, MnDOT and six communities
adjacent to Highway 7 (Minnetonka, Shorewood, Excelsior,
Deephaven, Greenwood, and Chanhassen) recognize the
need to improve the operation of Highway 7 as a regional
road while accommodating the growth planned by the
communities within the corridor; and
WHEREAS, on November 25 , 1985, the City of Shorewood
agreed to participate in a joint study of the Highway
with the communities listed above known as the Trunk
Highway 7 Corridor Study; and
WHEREAS, each participating jurisdiction agreed to provide a
portion of the total $50 , 000 in funding required to
undertake the Study, of which Shorewood' s share was
determined to be $5, 000 ; and
WHEREAS, each participating jurisdiction was represented on a
Project Management Team which met regularly during the
course of the project to select a consultant, to
provide direction for the study and to relay local con-
cerns to the professional consultants; and
WHEREAS, the firm of BRW, Incorporated (Consultant) was selected
to undertake the study and to regularly meet with the
Project Management Team throughout the course of the
project; and
WHEREAS, public meetings to discuss the study were advertised and
conducted by the Consultant and members of the Project
Management Team in April, July and November of 1986 ; and
WHEREAS, City Staff and members of the Shorewood City Council
were in attendance at each of the public meetings; and
WHEREAS, the City Council has met to solicit comments with
regards to the Corridor Study from interested members
of the community; and
WHEREAS, the City has been asked by the Metropolitan Council
to provide an official response to the Consultant' s
recommendations by January 31 , 1987 .
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NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, by the City Council of the
City of Shorewood as follows:
1 . That the official response of the City to the
Trunk Highway 7 Corridor Study dated November,
1986 , shall be specifically contained in the
position paper dated January 26 , 1987, attached
hereto and made a part hereof.
2 . That said position paper was duly adopted by the
Shorewood City Council as the official response
to the Corridor Study on January 26, 1987 .
Adopted by the City Council of the City of Shorewood this
26th day of January, 1987 .
ATTEST:
Mayor
City Clerk
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POSITION OF THE CITY OF SHOREWOOD RELATING TO THE T.H. 7 CORRIDOR STUDY
The response of the City of Shorewood will be centered around the recommended
alternatives as presented by BRW, Inc. (The Consultant) in the final draft of
the Trunk Highway 7 Corridor Study dated November, 1986. However, in some
cases we may suggest another alternative to the study for the specific area be-
ing considered. Should any of the recommended alternatives be altered or aban-
doned in favor of another design alternative as a result of the comments made
by the cities, the City of Shorewood would like the opportunity to respond at
that time.
T.H. 101/MINNETONKA HIGH SCHOOL
Although this area of the Corridor Study is not located in Shorewood, changes
in traffic patterns will undoubtedly have an effect on the Vine Hill Road in-
tersection which is located in Shorewood. The Shorewood City Council recommends
that Alternative 2 be favored over the recommended Alternative 1 and that im-
provements in this area should not be tied to improvements in the Vine Hill Road
area. Also, prior to making final decisions as to the ultimate design of this
area, a closer look should be taken at moving T.H. 7 to the north.
VINE HILL ROAD/OLD MARKET ROAD
The City of Shorewood strongly objects to Alternative 4 as the recommended design
for this segment of T.H. 7. The high cost of this Alternative with the City of
Shorewood shouldering a good deal of the financial burden is a major factor in
this objection. Alternative 1 continues to be preferred by Shorewood due to the
fact that it accomplishes a number of items indentified as important to the func-
tion of T.H. 7 at the least amount of cost not only to the taxpayers within
Shorewood but also the State and Federal Agencies contributing to the construc-
tion costs.
EXCELSIOR AREA EAST
The City of Shorewood agrees that Alternative 3 is preferred for the segment
of this study area which is located in Shorewood. It is Shorewood's determin-
ation that the portion of this study area which is located in the City of
Excelsior should receive comment from that City. However, as part of Alterna-
tive 3, the City does not agree that a frontage road along the south side of
T.H. 7 from Christmas Lake Road to Old Market Road is necessary. Slip ramp
closure at Radisson Inn Road and Radisson Entrance is acceptable.
EXCELSIOR AREA WEST
The City of Shorewood finds that none of the alternatives offered by the con-
sultant ' for that segment of this study area located in Shorewood is acceptable.
It is Shorewood's determination that the portion of this study area which is lo-
cated within the City of Excelsior should receive comment from that City. The
Council suggests that this study area be looked at again in an effort to find
more acceptable alternatives with regards to the portions located in Shorewood.
T.H. 41 AREA
The recommended alternative for this area (Alternative 2) is acceptable to the
City of Shorewood. More specifically, the access to Lake Linden Drive could be
closed, the north half of the T.H. 41 intersection should concentrate on good
geometric design and any frontage road on the north side of T.H. 7 should be
placed as far north as possible at the intersection for maximum detachment. The
five lane design with center left-turn lane is acceptable.
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LAKE MINNEWASRTA AREA
The City of Shorewood agrees with the consultant that Alternative 2 is preferred
in this area of the study. Specifically, the City agrees that Seamans Drive
should be realigned to allow detachment of Yellowstone Trail at the intersection,
to realign the entrance to Freeman Park to align with Dogwood Avenue in Chanhassen
and to widen T.H. 7 to five lane design with center left-turn lane.
The City of Shorewood agrees that comments on specific design plans should be
solicited from surrounding communities that are affected by improvements being
proposed along T.H. 7 at the time of submittal to the Community.
Adopted by the Shorewood City Council at their Regular Meeting of January 26, 1987,
and is hereby made a part of Resolution No. 7-87
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T.H. 7
CORRIDOR
it STUDY
Y
Prepared b :
p
BRW, Inc.
Thresher Square
700 Third Street South
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55415
Study Participants:
Metropolitan Council
Minnesota Department of Transportation
City of Chanhassen
City of Deephaven
City of Excelsior
City of Greenwood
11 City of Minnetonka
City of Shorewood
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November 24, 1986
111
� FILE COPY
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� tMINNESOTA
� T. H . 7
CORRIDOR
STUDY
� FINAL REPORT
� ± IIRV
NOVEMBER, 1986
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PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM
NAME REFERENCE
Mr. Stephen Alderson Metropolitan Council
Ms. Ann Braden Metropolitan Council I
Mr. Evan Green Mn/DOT District 5
Mr. Carl Hoffstedt Mn/DOT District 5
Ms. Barbara Dacy City of Chanhassen
Mr. Bill Englehardt City of Deephaven
Mr. Chris Gears City of Excelsior '
Mr. Frank F. Kelly City of Greenwood
Mr. Paul Krauss City of Minnetonka
Mr. Daniel Vogt City of Shorewood
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11 TABLE OF CONTENTS
II Page
SUMMARY i
III . INTRODUCTION 1
I Background 1
Study Participants 2
II. TH 7 STUDY CORRIDOR 3
IILand Use 3
Existing Roadway System 4
IIssue and Problem Areas 21
III. DEFINITION OF ALTERNATIVES 27
II Universe of Alternatives 27
Initial Screening of Alternatives 30
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IV. OVERVIEW OF EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES 49
Evaluation Process 49
I Goals/Objectives and Evaluation Measures 50
Selection of Alternatives for Detailed
Evaluation 54
IIV. EVALUATION OF TH 7 ALTERNATIVES 61
TH 101/Minnetonka High School Area 61
II Vine Hill Road/Old Market Road Area 70
Excelsior Area East 85
Excelsior Area West 95
II TH 41 and Lake Minnewashta Area 104
VI. IMPLEMENTATION PLAN 113
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Recommended Access Plan For TH 7 113
Funding Plan 123
Staging Plan 126
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LIST OF FIGURES
I Page
1 Study Area 5
I2 Expected and Planned Development 7
11 3 Potential Development 9
4 Forecast Socio-Economic Changes by TAZ 11
II 5 Existing Functional Classification of
Roadways 13
I6 Traffic Volume Flow Map 17
7 Accident Analysis 19
II8 Issue and Problem Areas 23
9 Access By Roadway Type 31
II10 Minnetonka High School Area - Existing
Conditions 32
II11 Vinehill Road/Old Market Road Area -
Existing Conditions 33
II 12 Excelsior Area East - Existing
Conditions 34
II 13 Excelsior Area West - Existing
Contitions 35
I14 TH 41 Area - Existing Conditions 36
15 Lake Minnewashta Area - Existing
Conditions 37
II16 Expressway Characteristics 39
II 17 Minnetonka High School Area -
Alternative 1 62
18 Minnetonka High School Area -
' Alternative 2 64
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LIST OF FIGURES (Continued) II
19 Vinehill Road/Old Market Road Area - II
Alternative 1 71
20 Vinehill Road/Old Market Road Area - I
Alternative 2 72
21 Vinehill Road/Old Market Road Area - IIAlternative 3 73
22 Vinehill Road/Old Market Road Area - '
Alternative 4 75
23 Vinehill Road/Old Market Road Area -
' Alternative 5 76II
24 Excelsior Area East - Alternative 1 87
25 Excelsior Area East - Alternative 2 88 II
26 Excelsior Area East - Alternative 3 89 II27 Excelsior Area West - Alternative 1 96
28 Excelsior Area West - Alternative 2 97 I
29 Excelsior Area West - Alternative 3 99
30 TH 41 Area - Alternative 1 106 II
31 TH 41 Area - Alternative 2 107
32 Lake Minnewashta Area - Alternative 1 108 II
33 Lake Minnewashta Area - Alternative 2 109 I
34 Lake Minnewashta Area - Alternative 3 110
35 Recommended Long Range Access Plan 115 I
36 Recommended Plan - Vinehill Road/TH 7
Intersection 117 1
37 Recommended Functional Classification of 119
Roadways II
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IILIST OF TABLES
IIPage
1 1 TH 7 Corridor Study Goals and Objectives 51
2 Weighting of Goals and Objectives 55
11 3 Evaluation of Alternatives for TH 101/
Minnetonka High School Area 66
II 4 Scoring of Alternatives for TH 101/
Minnetonka High School Area 69
II 5 Evaluation of Alternatives for Vine Hill
Road/Old Market Road Area 78
I 6 Scoring of Alternatives for Vine Hill
Road/Old Market Road Area 84
7 Evaluation of Alternatives for Excelsior
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Area East 91
8 Scoring of Alternatives for Excelsior Area
11 East 94
9 Evaluation of Alternatives for Excelsior
Area West 100
II10 Scoring of Alternatives for Ecelsior Area
West 103
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SUMMARY
BACKGROUND
11 TH 7 is a major arterial in the Twin Cities metropolitan
regional highway system and an important travel corridor
between Minneapolis and its western suburbs. TH 7 is
characterized as having many problems including: high traf-
fic' volumes, inadequate design, tight and discontinuous
frontage roads, a mix of different access points, and high
accident rates.
A proposal by the City of Shorewood to close access from
TH 7 to the south service road at Vine Hill Road and
construct a new collector with access to TH 7 farther west
raised concerns among several communities. In addition,
these communities (Minnetonka, Chanhassen, Shorewood,
Excelsior, Deephaven and Greenwood) raised concerns about
other access points to TH 7 between TH 101 and Minnewashta
Parkway.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation, the Metropolitan
Council and the above communities recognized the need to
improve the operation of TH 7 as a regional highway while
accommodating planned growth in the area. Therefore they
requested a study of the TH 7 corridor between TH 101 and
Chanhassen' s western boundary. Lake Minnetonka forms the
northern boundary of the study area and TH 5 forms the
southern boundary.
' STUDY PROCESS
Staff members including planners, engineers and administra-
tors from the affected communities, the Metropolitan Council
and Minnesota Department of Transportation formed a Project
Management Team which met frequently throughout the course
of the study. The purpose of the Project Management Team
was to provide overall direction for the study and to assure
that everyones concerns were addressed at the beginning and
throughout the study. In addition three public meetings
' were held to:
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1) identify problems and issues,
2) to present and discuss alternatives, and
3) to present the evaluation and recommendations for the
TH 7 corridor.
BACKGROUND DATA
An analysis of expected and planned development in the
corridor indicated some potential for development adjacent
to TH 7 in the study area including the potential redevelop-
ment of the 7-HI shopping center and the proposed Trivesco
Development west of Vine Hill Road. Most of the future
development in the corridor is expected to occur in the City
of Chanhassen to the south of TH 7.
TH 7 is classified as a major arterial in the current func-
tional classification of roadways. TH 5 and Town Line Road
are minor arterials which parallel TH 7 and provide alter-
native routes for travel to the east. Minor arterials
intersecting with TH 7 include TH 101, TH 41 and CR 19.
Collector roads carrying traffic to TH 7 include Vine Hill
Road, Mill Street, Minnetonka Boulevard, Galpin Boulevard,
Eureka Road, and Minnewashta Parkway. The only parallel
collector road is Smithtown Road.
The 1984 Average Daily Traffic on TH 7 ranges from approxi-
mately 9500 on the west end of the corridor by Minnewashta
Parkway to approximately 32,200 by TH 101 at the east end of
the Project area. These volumes are forecast to increase by
as much as 40 percent on some segments of TH 7. This
segment of TH 7 also has very high accident rates with the
highest accident rates occurring at the TH 7/TH 101 inter-
section. The Excelsior area from Christmas Lake Road to
CR 19 also has a very high accident rate.
The major issue or problem areas include the design of the I
Vine Hill Road intersection with TH 7, access to Minnetonka
High School , the design of the Christmas Lake Road intersec-
tion, and the number of access points to TH 7 especially in
the Excelsior Area.
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ALTERNATIVES
Alternatives were developed to address the major issue or '
problem areas in the corridor. The alternatives were
grouped into the following three categories:
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o Corridor Alternatives
o Facility Type Alternatives
' o Study Segment Alternatives
The corridor alternatives were developed to evaluate the
need for transportation facilities in the corridor to sup-
port TH 7. They included alternative collector road
designations and the need to extend Town Line Road west of
TH 101 to Carver County Road 17 or possibly to TH 41. The
extension of Town Line Road west of TH 101 was eliminated as
an alternative early in the study because of physical
constraints and the planned upgrading of TH 5 which would
serve some of the forecast demand.
The following three alternative facility types were con-
' sidered as candidates for TH 7:
o Controlled Access Freeway
o Partial Controlled Access Expressway
o Four Lane Divided Arterial
After evaluation of the three alternative facility types the
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partial controlled access expressway was selected as the
appropriate facility type for TH 7.
The corridor was divided into six study segments and alter-
natives were defined in each study segment which addressed
the issues and problems identified in that segment of the
corridor and which were consistent with the expressway
11 design concept. The six study segments are listed below.
o TH 101/Minnetonka High School Area
o Vine Hill Road/Old Market Road Area
o Excelsior Area East
o Excelsior Area West
o TH 41 Area
o Lake Minnewashta Area
The alternatives for each area included different cm-
"' binations and locations for access to TH 7 and development
of a more complete frontage road system to provide access to
properties which currently have direct access to TH 7. The
alternatives were presented at a public meeting and then
refined based on comments received at the meeting. An ini-
tial screening of the alternatives was conducted to reduce
the number of alternatives in each study segment to two or
three which would be evaluated in detail . Five alternatives
were retained for detailed evaluation in the Vine Hill Road/
Old Market Road area.
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RECOMMENDATIONS '
The remaining study segment alternatives were evaluated
relative to evaluation criteria developed by and agreed to
by the TH 7 Project Management Team. The evaluation cri-
teria are statements defining the goals and objectives for
the corridor. The alternatives were evaluated based on how
well they met each goal or objective. Because some of the
goal and objective statements are conflicting the criteria
were assigned weights by the Project Management Team to
reflect the relative importance of each criterion. The
individual weights were averaged for the purpose of scoring
alternatives. Safety and mobility received the highest
average weight of the 14 criteria which were defined.
The Recommended Long Range Access Plan which resulted from
this detailed evaluation of study segment alternatives is
presented on Figure 35 at the end of this report. The
recommended plan has five signalized intersections within
the study area spaced at approximately one mile intervals.
The signalized at-grade intersections with TH 7 recommended
in the plan include TH 101, Vine Hill Road, Christmas Lake
Road, CR 19, and TH 41. I
An interchange is recommended at St. Alban' s Bay Road/
Covington Road which would provide full access to TH 7 for
the areas both north and south of TH 7. An interchange is
also recommended at Mill Street which would provide access
to and from the east on TH 7. The off-ramp into downtown
Excelsior would remain in its current location but it is
recommended that an on-ramp to eastbound TH 7 from Mill
Street on the south side of TH 7 be considered.
The other major access point to TH 7 would be at Galpin Road
which would be realigned to intersect TH 7 at a common
intersection with Water Street. It is anticipated that this
intersection would not be signalized. If traffic volumes
increase to where a signal is warranted it is recommended
that coordination of this signal with the signal at CR 19
be evaluated as well as alternatives to relocate CR 19 traf-
fic to the Galpin Lake Road intersection. ,
Between TH 41 and Minnewashta Parkway a five lane divided
roadway is recommended with a continuous center left-turn
lane and consolidation of existing access points to TH 7.
The plan retains the functional classification on all of the
existing roadways and recommends designation of Covington
Road and St. Alban' s Bay Road as a collector roadway.
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FUNDING
The total construction cost excluding right-of-way of all
the projects required to implement the plan is approximately
$10.1 million. Four major candidate funding sources have
' been identified to fund the recommended improvements to TH 7
and include the following:
o Federal Aid Primary
o Hazard Elimination Safety
o Bridge Replacement
o Cooperative Agreement
These funding sources were matched with the various projects
to which they could be applied. The implementation of the
plan will require the support and participation of the
affected communities for portions of the construction costs
and acquisition of right-of-way.
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IMPLEMENTATION
, The plan is intended to provide a framework for the
upgrading of TH 7 and as a basis for evaluating development
proposals or improvements that affect access to TH 7. As
the corridor continues to develop or redevelop it will be
possible to implement various projects in the plan with
minimal disruption to existing businesses and residents
while improving the mobility and safety of TH 7.
The plan contains certain projects which should be imple-
' mented as soon as possible such as the upgrading of the
Vine Hill Road intersection with TH 7 and other projects
which are dependent on the timing of other activities and
may not be implemented for some time such as the extension
of the north frontage road along TH 7 to TH 101.
In the last chapter of this report the projects that made up
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the plan are divided into high priority and low priority
categories.
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' I. INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND
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TH 7 is a major arterial in the Twin Cities metropolitan
regional highway system and an important travel corridor
between Minneapolis and its western suburbs. TH 7 is
characterized as having many problems including: high traf-
fic volumes, inadequate design, tight and discontinuous
frontage roads, a mix of different access points, and high
accident rates.
' A proposal by the City of Shorewood to close access from TH
7 to the south service road at Vine Hill Road and construct
a new collector with access to TH 7 farther west raised con-
cerns among several communities. In addition, these com-
munities (Minnetonka, Chanhassen, Shorewood, Excelsior,
Deephaven and Greenwood) also have concerns about other
' access points along TH 7 in this area. Some of these areas
include:
' o Minnetonka High School Access
o Christmas Lake Road/TH 7 Intersection
o CR 19/TH 7 Intersection
' o Galpin Boulevard/TH 7 Intersection
o TH 41/TH 7 Intersection
The Minnesota Department of Transportation, the Metropolitan
' Council as well as these communities recognized the need to
improve the operation of TH 7 as a regional roadway while
accommodating planned growth in the area. Therefore, they
' requested a corridor study for TH 7 between TH 101 in
Minnetonka and the western border of Chanhassen in order to
accomplish the following:
' o Identify the need for local street access to TH 7 as well
as the need for access from various land uses along TH 7
-- such as existing commercial properties, residences,
' and public institutions (Minnetonka High School ) .
o Identify the development potential in the travel shed
(from Lake Minnetonka south to 62nd Street and from TH
' 101 to Chanhasen's western boundary) and regional traffic
needs on TH 7.
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o Develop and evaluate alternative solutions to the iden-
tified problems and identify preferred alternatives and
logical staging for the project. I
o Estimate costs of implementing preferred solutions/stra-
tegies and identify possible sources of funding.
o Develop a consensus among the affected communities as to
the preferred solutions and strategies.
o Prepare a sketch plan incorporating recommendations based 1
on the preferred alternates.
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STUDY PARTICIPANTS
The issues addressed by this study affect a number of com-
munities as well as the Metropolitan Council and Mn/DOT.
Therefore, staff members including planners, engineers and
administrators from the affected communities, Metro Council
and Mn/DOT formed a project management team to assure that
everyones concerns were addressed at the beginning and
throughout the study. This project management team met fre-
quently throughout the course of the study.
In addition, three public meetings were held to involve the
City Councils and Planning Commissions from each of the par-
ticipating communities in order to develop a consensus on a
plan that ultimately requires their support prior to imple-
mentation. The public meetings also included businesses and
landowners potentially affected by changes in access to
TH 7.
The purpose of the first meeting was to identify problems
and issues in the corridor. It was held after the data
collection and review was completed in order to provide a
sound basis for discussion of issues. The purpose of the
second meeting was to present alternatives for TH 7. A
third meeting with the Councils and Planning Commissions
presented the recommended plan and draft report. Their com-
ments on the plan were incorporated in the final report.
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