Meeting Agenda JUNE 2015 The purpose of these hearings is 5:00 – Open House to provide an opportunity for the public to comment on the content ■ Public review of presentation material of the Supplemental Draft EIS (poster boards and slideshow) document. ■ Opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback No action will be taken at the hearings. 6:00 – Public Hearing ■ Welcome and brief project overview ■ Opportunity for public comment on the Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement SUPPLEMENTAL DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT VOLUME 1 MAY 2015 Anticipated Project Timeline JUNE 2015 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Final EIS Preparation ENVIRONMENTAL Alternatives Analysis Scoping Draft EIS Preparation REVIEW Supplemental Draft EIS Preparation Draft EIS Supplemental Draft EIS Anticipated FTA Comment Period Comment Period Record of Decision PROJECT Construction/ Design and Engineering Revenue DEVELOPMENT Service Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA) Anticipated Full Funding Grant Route and Mode Selected Agreement (FFGA) PUBLIC Southwest LRT Corridor Management Committee Southwest LRT Community & Business Advisory Committees INVOLVEMENT Southwest LRT Community Works Steering Committee (Hennepin County) Project Sponsors What happens during Project Development? U.S. Department of Transportation ■ Refine project scope, schedule and budget Federal Transit Administration ■ Advance design of project elements, including location of track, stations & structures ■ Bring project to level sufficient for final federal & state environmental review, including identifying impacts & mitigation measures ■ Meet federal rating guidelines (project justification rating and financial rating) Supplemental Draft EIS Evaluation Areas JUNE 2015 The Supplemental Draft EIS SOUTHWEST LRT ROUTE Evaluation Areas evaluates potential impacts in three segments of the proposed Target Field Station Southwest LRT route. Royalston Station (existing) Van White Station 394 These potential impacts are the result of Penn Station changes in the design of the Southwest LRT 394 394 Project since the publication of the Draft EIS in 21st Street Station 94 35W 2012. Minneapolis ST. LOUIS PARK West Lake Station The three segments are: Beltline Station MINNEAPOLIS St Loui s Park Wooddale Station High School 169 Eden Prairie: Adjustments to the proposed Louisiana Station light rail alignment and LRT stations, generally HOPKINS Blake Station St. Louis Park/Minneapolis 7 from the intersection of Technology Drive and Downtown Hopkins Station Segment Mitchell Road to the intersection of Flying Cloud Drive and Valley View Road. Shady Oak Station OMF Area (Hopkins) EDINA Operations and Maintenance Facility: 494 Operations & Maintenance Facility (OMF) The location of a proposed Operations and MINNETONKA Opus Station 35W Maintenance Facility (OMF) in Hopkins. 100 62 62 St. Louis Park/Minneapolis: Adjustments to EDEN PRAIRIE City West Station 62 proposed light rail and freight rail alignments Golden Triangle Station 169 and LRT stations, generally between Louisiana Avenue and Penn Avenue. 494 212 Southwest Station Eden Prairie Segment The entire proposed route of the Southwest LRT Mitchell Station (METRO Green Line Extension) is approximately 494 212 Eden Prairie Town Center Station 16 miles long and includes 17 new LRT stations. 5 0 1 2 Miles Metropolitan Council Eden Prairie Segment JUNE 2015 The Eden Prairie Segment extends LEGEND Parklands, Recreation Areas, and Bryant Lake from near the intersection of Open Spaces Proposed Southwest LRT Technology Drive and Mitchell Road Abandoned RR Proposed Elevated to near the intersection of Flying Southwest LRT Location 212 Proposed LRT Station Round Lake Cloud Drive and Valley View Road. Proposed Roadway, Bicycle/ Pedestrian, and Parking Modifications East Limit Proposed At-Grade LRT Crossing In this segment, the LRT route was adjusted to Proposed Grade-Separated LRT Crossing Valley View Rd run south of the route that was studied in the Eden Prairie Segment Limits Draft EIS, and includes three proposed light rail (P&R) Park-and-Ride Lot 494 Valley View Rd stations. P u r g 5 The purpose of these adjustments is to provide a 212 to ry C Lake Smetana r better connections to local activity centers eek Eden Prairie including the Eden Prairie municipal offices and Lake Idlewild Southwest the Eden Prairie Town Center Mall. Station (P&R) Eden Prairie Town Center 5 Station (P&R) 494 West Limit Mitchell Station (P&R) NW Flying Cloud Dr Anderson Lake Purgatory Creek Reservoir I 0 750 1,500 Mile Operations and Maintenance Facility JUNE 2015 The proposed site of the Operations HOPKINS OMF SITE and Maintenance Facility (OMF) is LEGEND City Boundary Royalston Station É Existing Freight Rail near the midpoint of the Southwest Proposed Shady É Oak Station (P&R) Target Field Proposed Southwest LRT É Van White Station Station Proposed LRT Station 394 LRT line in Hopkins, just south of Approximate Construction Limits ¨¦§ É Penn Station Proposed OMF Facility Track Minnesota River Bluffs LRT Regional Trail 21st Street Station Proposed OMF Building É the proposed Shady Oak Station. ST. LOUIS PARK Proposed Roadway, 5th St S Bicycle/Pedestrian, and Parking Modifications Beltline Station É Existing Trail É St Lou is Par k High Sch oo l West Lake Station Proposed LRT At-Grade Crossing ¤£169 É Ninemile Creek The facility, adjacent to the light rail line, will (P&R) Park-and-Ride Lot HOPKINS Louisiana Station É Wooddale Station «¬7 É MINNEAPOLIS provide enclosed storage for up to 36 light rail K-Tel Dr 15th Ave 15th Ave S Blake Station Connection to Proposed Shady Oak Station É vehicles. LRT Alignment É Downtown Hopkins StationEDINA Minnetonka Hopkins MINNETONKA With approximately 183,000 square feet of É Opus Station 0 1 2 16th Ave S (Removed) Ave 16th Miles ¯ CityÉ West Station «¬62 EDEN PRAIRIE enclosed area, the OMF will provide room for Legend 494 Proposed OMF site 13th Ave 13th Ave S about 160 permanent staff to operate light ¨¦§ É Golden Triangle Station CP Bass Lake Spur RR É Proposed LRT Stations rail vehicles, clean the trains, carry out routine Bass Lake Spur (CP) Southwest Station Proposed LRT Route 14th Ave 14th Ave S «¬5 É maintenance and perform administrative duties. 7th St S É É Mitchell Station Eden Prairie Town Center Station Hopkins Landfill Southwest LRT Supplemental Draft EIS Exhibit 2.5-3 Project Overview 0 150 300 Operations and Maintenance Facility, City of Hopkins Feet PLN_AndersonEngineering_SWLRT_OMF_H_1__8x11_Rev01_00_20131011 PEC-W CAD Display Date: 10/10/2013 Above left: The 15-acre site is near Fifth Street SouthPEC-E CAD Display Date: 09/24/2013 and 16th Avenue South in Hopkins, just south of the proposed Shady Oak Station. Above right: The proposed OMF site is near the midpoint of the Southwest LRT route for operational efficiency. Right: Technicians at the METRO Blue Line OMF work on the electrical components in the roof of a light rail vehicle. St. Louis Park and Minneapolis Segment JUNE 2015 The St. Louis Park and Minneapolis LEGEND East Limit Dunwoody Blvd City Boundary segment is generally between Existing Freight Rail Penn Station Parklands, Recreation Wayzata Subdivision (BNSF) TRAIL Louisiana Avenue in St. Louis Park KE REGIONAL A Areas, Open Spaces AR L CED ORTH Proposed Southwest LRT N and Penn Avenue in Minneapolis. W Franklin Ave Proposed LRT Tunnel t W 21st S Proposed LRT Station 21st21st Street Street Proposed Roadway, Cedar StationStation Since publication of the Draft EIS in 2012, Lake Bicycle/Pedestrian, and Lake Burnha Parking Modifications m RL d Forest I A Hennepin Ave design plans have changed and now call R T Proposed LRT H T At-Grade Crossing R W 26th St LRT Tunnel O for freight rail service to continue in the W Lake IL N Proposed LRT Grade- E of the K Separated Crossing Cedar Lake Pkwy Isles Kenilworth Corridor through St. Louis Park and Victoria Lake Proposed Freight Rail OttawaAve S W 28th St Connection ) Minneapolis. (CP) Spur MN&S A R Existing Trail R Minnetonka Blvd C (H r Bass Lake Spur W Lake St o id Minneapolis (CP)/Kenilworth Corridor rr o West Lake HennepinAve S Several adjustments would be made in the C ChowenAve S (HCRRA) Boundary AbbottAve S rth Station Kenilwo existing freight rail alignment to accommodate St. Louis Park/Minneapolis Segment Limits light rail. Light rail trains would run in a tunnel Cross Section Location Beltline Wooddale Ave S Station (P&R) (P&R) Park-and-Ride LotLousiana Ave S Lake through a portion of this segment to allow Calhoun FranceAve S enough space for freight rail and trails on the CEDAR LAKE LRT REGIONAL TRAIL W 36th St Beltline Blvd W 36th St Wooddale Monterey Dr Kings Hwy surface. Station d Excelsior Blvd v l B Park Ctr West Limit W 38th St Louisiana Proposed Freight Rail The Supplemental Draft EIS analyzes three Station (P&R) (Southerly Connection) I 0 1,325 2,640 major design adjustments in this segment: Excelsior Blvd Feet Bass LakeM Spur (CP) inneh Blake aha Cree k ■ Keeping existing freight rail service in the Station Kenilworth Corridor KENILWORTH LRT TUNNEL ■ Constructing a light rail tunnel south of the Kenilworth Channel to just north of the West Lake Street Bridge in Minneapolis ■ Changing the location and size of proposed park-and-ride lots in St. Louis Park Design Adjustments Made Since the Draft EIS JUNE 2015 The process of developing the Comments on Draft EIS design adjustments evaluated in the Supplemental Draft EIS began with public comments on the Southwest Develop potential design adjustments to the LPA to: Transitway Draft EIS in 2012. • Address comments on Draft EIS • Reduce costs The Southwest Transitway Draft EIS evaluated • Avoid or minimize impacts • Increase effectiveness (i.e. ridership) several options for improving transit service in the Southwest Corridor and identified “LRT Alignment 3A” as the Locally Preferred • Evaluation criteria/measures • Public and agency comment Alternative (LPA) route and mode. • Committee recommendations Publication of the Draft EIS was followed by a public review and comment period.