Agenda Item No. STAFF REPORT TO CISM COMMITTEE – December 6, 2017 10 AGENDA ITEM Discussion on the public comment received at the Thomas Street Phase II PIM held Wednesday, November 29, 2017 BACKGROUND A PIM was held on November 29, 2017 related to the 30% design plans for Thomas Street from South 4th Ave to the Bridge. Comments and responses/recommendations from the design engineer and city staff is or will be included and attached to this staff report. Comments from the PIM are being compiled and reviewed/discussed for the CISM meeting. Once these items are prepared they will be included in the CISM packet prior to the meeting. FISCAL IMPACT None. STAFF RECOMMENDATION N/A Staff contact: Eric Lindman 715-261-6745 Memorandum Date: December 6, 2017 To: File From: Ryan Barz, AECOM Subject: Public Involvement Meeting Minutes Thomas Street: Phase II 4th Avenue – Wisconsin River Bridge City of Wausau, Wisconsin Distribution: Eric Lindman – Director of Public Works and Utilities On Wednesday, November 29, 2017, a public involvement meeting was held at the Wausau City Hall, 407 Grant Street, Wausau, Wisconsin. The meeting was held from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. with a short presentation and an open house format. The purpose of the meeting was to update the public on the project, present information about the conceptual design options, and to receive public comments. Phase I construction of the Thomas Street project from 17th Avenue to 4th Avenue was completed this fall. This project included constructing a two-lane roadway with a raised median and the addition of dedicated turn lanes at the designated intersections. Bicycle accommodations were added along with sidewalk on both sides of the street. Underground sanitary sewer, storm sewer, and water main were also replaced. The design of Phase II between 4th Avenue and the Wisconsin River Bridge is 30% complete. Like in Phase I, bicycle accommodations and sidewalk are proposed to be included. Underground utilities will be replaced, and dedicated turn lanes are proposed to be added to the intersections. The design will also include a raised median to improve safety and streamline traffic flow. The meeting was announced through a news release and in a letter to adjacent property owners. Approximately 50 people attended the meeting. Exhibits included a handout and full-size aerial drawings showing the proposed 30 percent design. The project displays were available for people to review and the design team was available to answer questions. Written comment forms were also available for people to record and submit their questions and/or concerns about the project. There were 26 written comments received. - 88% of comments came from Wausau residents - 40% of comments came from Thomas Street residents Some of the more recurring comments received either verbally or written are listed below: Public Information Meeting Minutes Thomas Street; 4th Avenue to Wisconsin River Bridge December 6, 2017 Page 2 1. There is concern about the raised median restricting access to residents and businesses. Driveways will not be accessible from both directions on Thomas Street. 2. There is concern about the existing soil contamination within the project area. The disturbed soil will present safety and financial issues. 3. Expanding Thomas Street will be expensive and is not necessary. Where is the money for the project coming from? 4. There was opposition to installing bike lanes on Thomas Street. They feel that this is unsafe for all traveling the roadway. 5. Why propose expanding Thomas Street when it will displace residents that are veterans, mentally ill, minority, and low income? Preserve the neighborhood. 6. Affordable housing is hard to find in the area. The displaced individuals and families will be greatly impacted because of the lack of affordable housing. 7. There was a lot of discussion about the U-turns not being a practical option for access. 8. There will be 1 on 1 conversation with business owners if the project proceeds beyond 30 percent. 9. The Hmong community would like to see some project descriptions and related information in their language. 10. There was concern about the backups 3M causes at certain times of the day with their truck and rail traffic. 11. There were several comments in regards to removing the railroad crossing just east of 1st ave. as it impedes traffic flow significantly. Lori Wunsch From: Eric Lindman Sent: Wednesday, December 06, 2017 7:41 PM To: Lori Wunsch Subject: FW: Phase II Thomas Street Project Please upload to the public comments From: Judith Miller [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2017 12:40 AM To: Eric Lindman; Robert Mielke Subject: RE: Phase II Thomas Street Project Having reviewed the proposed construction plans for Thomas Street Phase II from 4th Avenue to the bridge, I have several objections and concerns. 1) The finished construction on the Phase ! aspect of this project clearly reveals that the destruction of the homes and businesses on the north side of the street was utterly unnecessary; further, the appearance of the "new" street is incongruous to the remaining neighborhood; I can only say that, had the original ;proposition of a four-lane road with turning lanes been instituted, we would now be looking at a miplaced would-be superhighway in the middle of a residential neighborhood; 2) The meridians are obviously an impediment to accessing residential and commercial driveways and to moving large vehicles such as campers in and out of driveways; they are clearly an unjustified expense and a glaringly impractical design feature that should certainly NOT be continued into the next phase of this project; 3) The proposed Phase II design also calls for destruction of the low-income housing units in the first building on the right side of the street past the bridge as one is heading west on Thomas which brings back the issue raised when the Kwik Trip wanted space on Bridge Street: where will these tenants go? Wausau has no available low-income housing for them; will the City move them out to Athens? Will they be compensated for loss of shelter? Or will it be only the owner of the building who is compensated? I think all citizens are aware that it will be the owner. I am amazed that the City has not, to the best of my knowledge, even had a serious discussion about the matter of a lack of available low-income housing here, and I strongly object to the idea of uprooting these people whose only recourse may be the Warming Center (when it is open), the Salvation Army Shelter, or seeking refuge under the bridges where they may well be subject to arrest for malingering or some such slight to the City. I submit that the "young professionals" the City is always saying it wants to attract here are unlikely to be drawn to an area which has not found better solutions to the dilemmas of growth than creating an expanding homeless population; 4) I am not aware that the City of Wausau has yet responded to the request of the citizens' group that has asked permission to conduct independent soil sampling of the Thomas Street area to assess the level of contamination there before any further excavation or construction begins; in that the soil sampling ordered by the Mayor was ordered solely by the Mayor, I fail to understand the delay in responding and would urge the City to respond quickly to this request, especially since the first sampling was not done according to well- established protocols as I stated at the last CISM meeting; if there is nothing there to hide, there is no legal or procedural reason for the delay; 5) I will conclude my objections by saying that I can find no rational justification for the expense of what has already been "constructed" on Phase I of Thomas Street or for the destruction of so many properties. and that I strenuously object to a continuation of that approach in Phase II; what construction has already been completed seems clearly to be an advance move toward gentrification of a working-class neighborhood in the hope of driving up real estate values there by attracting higher-priced retail and commercial development so as to better guarantee restitution of the TIF funds, thus enabling the City to propose further destruction of such neighborhoods throughout the Wausau area and so driving out the very people without whom Wausau would not exist; those who were made rich by logging and heavy manufacturing in Wausau would be destitute were it not for working-class people who accepted the hardships of the labor - and I, for one. really do not see the likes of Nordstrom's or Whole Foods rushing to this area. In short, I find the construction plans and the expense engendered by those plans to have no justification; I call on the Mayor to authorize the independent soil testing to be conducted as soon as possible so the public may truly know the extent of any 1 contamination and urge CISM and the City Council to DO NO MORE than correct any wiring/plumbing/electrical problems and then rebuild the rest of Thomas Street within its current footprint without endangering any more of the existing properties. Most sincerely, Judith M. Miller 903 Kickbusch Street Wausau, WI 54403 2 Lori Wunsch From: Eric Lindman Sent: Wednesday, December 06, 2017 7:42 PM To: Lori Wunsch Subject: FW: Thomas Street public comments Please upload to the public comments From: Debra Ryan [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Tuesday, December 05, 2017 4:25 PM To: Eric Lindman Subject: Thomas Street public comments Hello- Below are my public comments and concerns with the Thomas Street proposed Phase 2 construction from 4th Avenue to the Wisconsin River.