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8.2. SR 03-15-2021 Request for Action To Item Number Mayor and City Council 8.2 Agenda Section Meeting Date Prepared by General Business March 15, 2021 Zack Carlton, Planning Manager Item Description Reviewed by Downtown Small Area Study Cal Portner, City Administrator Reviewed by Action Requested Receive information and provide staff with direction regarding the addition of a downtown study to the Comprehensive Plan. Background/Discussion On February 22, 2021, the City Council, EDA, and HRA held a joint meeting to discuss the future of downtown Elk River. The discussion included long-terms plans for the area and solicited resident feedback. In response to that meeting and recognizing the city is in the middle of our Comprehensive Plan update, staff requested a proposal for an additional small area plan for downtown to include as a chapter in the final Comprehensive Plan. Staff discussed the first draft of the proposal with the City Council on March 1, 2021, and took that feedback to the consultant to refine their proposal. The attached proposal from Houseal Lavigne includes additional public engagement specific to downtown, a traffic study, and subarea framework to shape the future of the area. Staff will review the proposal, outline funding options, and seek direction on whether to proceed with the additional chapter for the Comprehensive Plan. Financial Impact The proposed additional cost to the Comprehensive Plan is $76,500. Funding may come from multiple sources. Mission/Policy/Goal  Responsible Grow  Meet Changing Needs  Review Commercial Development Opportunities in Downtown Attachments  Downtown Subarea Proposal The Elk River Vision A welcoming community with revolutionary and spirited resourcefulness, exceptional service, and community engagement that encourages and inspires prosperity. Updated: August 2020 Page 1 of 4 MEMORANDUM Date: March 8, 2021 SENT VIA EMAIL To: Zack Carlton Planning Manager Elk River, MN From: Houseal Lavigne Associates Nik Davis, AICP Brandon Nolin, AICP Re: Elk River Downtown Subarea Plan The purpose of this memo is to submit a proposed scope of work and anticipated costs associated with preparing a Downtown Subarea Plan for the City of Elk River. DOWNTOWN STUDY AREA The Study Area (outlined in red) will be the primary focus of the Downtown Subarea Plan including detailed recommendations regarding future land use and development, urban design, and transportation. Broader recommendations will be provided for the Downtown Context Area (outlined in green), addressing the downtown core’s relationship and connections to surrounding areas and envisioned development within those areas. Houseal Lavigne | Elk River Downtown Subarea Plan Page 2 of 4 SCOPE OF WORK Our scope of work ensures that City staff, citizens, business owners, key stakeholders and community leaders, and elected officials are engaged at key phases of the planning process to produce a meaningful and responsive Downtown Subarea Plan for the City of Elk River. Task 1: Kick-Off & Engagement Meetings will be conducted with City staff, elected and appointed officials, and an Advisory Committee prior to undertaking public outreach activities with key stakeholders and the public. • 1a: City Staff Kick-off Meeting • 1b: Downtown Subarea Plan Advisory Committee Kick-off Meeting (Mtg #1) • 1c: Elected & Appointed Officials Roundtable Discussion • 1d: Key Stakeholder Interviews • 1e: Downtown Visioning Workshop • 1f: Data Collection, Research & Downtown Reconnaissance Task 2: Downtown Traffic Study Recognizing ongoing input from community residents and stakeholders, the City of Elk River seeks to understand the impacts of conversion of Main Street from two-way to one- way traffic operations from Parish Avenue to Lowell Avenue. Conversion of Jackson Avenue from Main Street to US Highway 10 has also been considered. The traffic study will identify existing traffic patterns in the downtown area, forecast revised traffic patterns with one-way operations, and compare the operational results of both scenarios. The study outcomes will provide information for the City to use in responding to community questions and could help evaluate future development scenarios as part of the Downtown Subarea Frameworks and the ongoing Comprehensive Plan Update project. Key objectives of the traffic study, in order of priority, are: 1) To evaluate operations of the existing downtown street network and assess opportunities to “optimize” the network for operations improvements. 2) Assess the feasibility of one-way operations and evaluate impacts of potential conversion from two-way to one-way operations. 3) Qualitatively evaluate pedestrian/multi-modal needs and opportunities in the downtown environment as part of the context for traffic operations goals. The study will be based upon existing traffic volumes and eight intersections of interest. A review of historical crash data and projecting traffic volumes are not included in this scope of services. • 2a: Data Collection o Obtain Turning Movement Count Data o Obtain Origin/Destination Data o Data Reduction • 2b: Traffic Engineering Analysis o Build Traffic Model o Analyze Existing Traffic o Build Concept Traffic Model o Analyze Build Concept Houseal Lavigne | Elk River Downtown Subarea Plan Page 3 of 4 • 2c: Study Documentation o Draft Report o Final Report Task 3: Downtown Subarea Frameworks We will prepare preliminary Downtown Subarea Frameworks based on field reconnaissance, research, and feedback provided during outreach. Using a series of Frameworks, the Downtown Subarea Plan will address land use and development, priority development opportunity sites, urban design, river connections, transportation and circulation, parking, and streetscape. Each Framework will address surrounding neighborhoods to indicate how the Downtown Subarea Plan should interact with those areas moving forward. • 3a: Land Use & Development Framework • 3b: Transportation & Circulation Framework • 3c: Urban Design & Streetscape Framework • 3d: Staff Review • 3e: Downtown Subarea Plan Advisory Committee Presentation (Mtg #2) Note: This proposal includes three optional tasks including Origin-Destination Data and Interpretation (to address one-way streets in greater detail), Downtown Parking Study and Downtown Pedestrian Bridge Location Study. Task 4: Final Downtown Subarea Plan Based on the previous tasks in the planning process, the draft version of the Downtown Subarea Plan will be prepared and presented for review. • 4a: Draft Downtown Subarea Plan • 4b: Downtown Regulatory Strategies • 4c: Staff Review of Downtown Subarea Plan • 4d: Final Downtown Subarea Plan • 4e: Comprehensive Plan Integration Houseal Lavigne | Elk River Downtown Subarea Plan Page 4 of 4 ANTICIPATED TIMELINE We propose extending the overall Comprehensive Plan process by two months to accommodate the additional work needed for the Downtown Subarea Plan with adoption targeted for September 2021. ANTICIPATED COST Our proposed budget for the Downtown Subarea Plan, including the Traffic Study, is $76,500. Below is a breakdown of project costs by tasks for Downtown Subarea Plan and optional tasks. Task Cost Task 1: Kick-Off & Engagement $14,820 Task 2: Downtown Traffic Study $17,000 Task 3: Downtown Subarea Frameworks $21,580 Task 4: Final Downtown Subarea Plan $20,600 Professional Fees $74,000 Direct Expenses $2,500 Grand Total $76,500 Optional Task: Origin-destination data and interpretation for a more complete analysis of one-way streets $5,000 Optional Task: Parking Study $10,000 Optional Task: Ped Bridge Location Study $15,000 We appreciate the opportunity to submit this scope of work and budget for the Downtown Subarea Plan. If you have any questions regarding our proposed budget or approach, please feel free to contact me via email (bnolin@hlplanning.com) or phone (773) 633- 0685.