Housing report, road construction, utility risk assessment, and more

Greetings! Here’s city-related news for residents of Ward 1 and beyond. 
 
Minnetonka Blvd east reconstruction getting underway: The two-year, County-led reconstruction of Minnetonka Blvd between France Ave and Hwy 100 is getting underway. This project includes reconfiguration of CSAH 25 west of France Ave. to improve safety and traffic flow in that busy, tangled area. I’ve heard from quite a few folks their disappointment in seeing mature trees removed as that work gets underway, and I share a sense of loss whenever mature trees are removed. My understanding is that the removal of these trees was truly necessary for safety and stormwater management improvements to occur. And while new trees don’t provide the benefits mature trees do, the County, like all developers and builders in the city, is required to replace trees that are removed per caliper inch, resulting in new resilient varieties that will be planted. 
 
Minnetonka Blvd west reconstruction coming soon: Exciting news! Hennepin County plans to continue the reconstruction of Minnetonka Blvd west of Hwy 100, from Vernon Ave to Xylon Ave, in 2027/2028. In addition to new pavement and watermain replacement (the existing main was installed in 1952), project components could include a cycle track and undergrounding of overhead utilities. 
 
More road construction news: Phase 1 of Redo Cedar Lou is getting underway, with a groundbreaking set for next week. Phase 1 will improve Cedar Lake Road from Hwy 169 to Rhode Island Ave. with new pavement, enhanced pedestrian crossings, watermain replacement, and more.
 
From parking lot to housing? The old Sam’s Club site – now the corporate headquarters for tech business Loffler Companies – has a vast parking lot that exceeds the company’s needs for parking. Before Loffler bought the site in 2021, the City conducted a planning study that envisioned portions of the southern parking lot for apartments with ground floor commercial spaces. As a potential first step in that process, Loffler recently applied for funding to explore potential contamination on the site (which is near the former Reilly Tar and Chemical Corporation, Minnesota’s first Superfund site) and cleanup that would be required.

Other news at Loffler: Sports performance training facility TRIA GameFace recently opened in the Loffler space, offering customized sports performance training and physical therapy to athletes of all levels and in every sport. 

Loosening up on liquor: Council recently approved a change in zoning rules that allows restaurants selling liquor to operate within 25 feet of residential properties in C-1 commercial districts, a change from the previous requirement of 100 feet. This change will apply to all restaurants in any C-1 district including the new Wells Roadside, which plans to open on the former Galaxy Drive-In site in the South Oak Hill neighborhood.

More new SLP businesses: Punch Pizza opened its first SLP location late last month near Costco in the West End. Pet Evolution has opened at Miracle Mile offering pet food, full-service grooming and self-serve dog washes, and a mobile nail trim service. And thanks to the advocacy and collaborative efforts of SLP City staff, The Coven will open a coworking facility at 6726 Walker Street in the Historic Walker Lake Business District in June. The Coven is a locally focused, mission driven, coworking community centered on creating inclusive and supportive shared workspaces. The City provided a low-interest loan to facilitate the buildout of the new spaces, which features 10 private offices, 10 dedicated desks and two conference rooms that can be leased through tiered memberships. Pretty cool! 

50 new trees in Birchwood Park: In partnership with Tree Trust and community volunteers, 50 trees of varying species were planted in Ward 1’s Birchwood Park last weekend as part of the city’s annual Arbor Day Celebration. They look great!
 
What’s up with Webster Park? Sorensen residents have been waiting for years to vision and plan for the future of Ward 1’s Webster Park. The parcel is currently owned by the MN Department of Transportation and while city staff have been persistent in advocating for a planned transfer of ownership of the land to the City, staffing changes at MnDOT are delaying the process. We should hear more on this soon though. 
 
Three Rivers Park District Regional Trail update: Late last year Three Rivers Park District (TRP) staff presented information to council and the community on a planned north-south regional trail from Crystal to Bloomington traveling through St. Louis Park. TRP’s desire is for the trail to enter SLP from Golden Valley north of Otten Pond, cross the new Dakota-Edgewood bridge, travel along Dakota Avenue to the south, and connect with the Cedar Lake Regional Trail. In response to resident feedback, council paused on approving this option last year to give more time to study alternative routes, including Louisiana Avenue. At a recent study session, the majority on council supported TRP’s preferred route along Dakota, with a strong push to preserve mature trees over preserving parking. Council will vote on this item June 3; the work won’t take place for another 7-10 years. 
 
Arrive + Thrive is a community-led process to shape an overall vision for four “gateways” within St. Louis Park. The project is nearing completion and community input is needed! Here’s an easy to navigate website where you can learn about this work and provide your input through the end of May. Thank you for engaging! 
 
Boards & Commissions redesign, next steps: As part of council and the community's continuing work to improve the experience and effectiveness of our boards and commissions, council will take this issue up again at our study session tomorrow, May 20. Topics to be addressed are potential changes to the appointment process; offering compensation to board and commission members; and how board and commission members can provide policy direction to council. If this topic interests you, I encourage you to attend! 
 
Speed limit evaluation: In 2021, following a change in state law, council approved a plan to lower the speed limit from 30 MPH to 20 MPH on most residential streets in SLP. Two years later, an evaluation of 48 sites throughout the city shows:

• Vehicles are traveling about one mile per hour less than prior to the changes in speed limits.
• A one-mile-per-hour reduction in vehicle speed reduces the risk of severe injury or death by three percentage points.
• Most drivers are currently driving within 5 mph of the posted speed limit, reinforcing the appropriateness of the updated speed limits.
• There has been an overall reduction in crashes in the city including a 25% reduction of all crashes in the city and a 2.4% reduction of any injury type crash within the city.
• Pedestrian and bicycle crashed have stayed relatively constant, but injury crashes have decreased.
• The police department has experienced increases in speeding complaints.

Reminder that “20 is Plenty” yard signs are available free at City Hall. 
 
Getting on the council agenda: Want to speak to city council about a topic that’s not on an agenda? Here’s a form that can help you get started. Of course, folks are welcome and encouraged to reach out to city council member(s) too.
 
Study sessions – you should come! Pre-pandemic, city council met every other week (more or less) in the cozy community room on the first floor of City Hall for study sessions, where we discussed things we’d be voting on in the future. Later in the pandemic and since, study sessions have been held in the more formal Council Chambers, live-streamed and broadcast on ParkTV. To create conditions for more open, informal dialogue, council is returning to the pre-pandemic practice of meeting in the community room and not broadcasting meetings. Study sessions of course remain open to the public to attend in person, and official minutes will be available on the city’s website after the meeting. Council meetings (where we vote) will continue to be broadcast. Do you have feedback on this return to historic practices? Email me and/or city staff or call (952) 924-2505. 

City Instagram account: City staff are really killing it on Instagram on topics ranging from composting to classes to construction projects. I encourage you to check it out and follow!

So much housing activity! I’m proud of how SLP is a leader on housing in so many ways, from creating affordable for-sale and rental housing to protecting renters to helping homeowners repair and remodel their homes. Highlights from the city’s 2023 housing report, released last month, include: 

• 53% of properties in SLP are owner-occupied; 47% are rental properties.
• The City provided five loans totaling $166,081 for property owners to expand their homes through SLP’s Move Up in the Park program.
• Our down payment assistance program provided 22 loans totaling $310,050 to first time homebuyers in SLP.
• Our equity-focused first-generation homebuyers program provided four loans totaling $186,125 to first-gen buyers.
• Our Legacy program for single-family property owners planning to sell their homes resulted in two homes being sold to nonprofit Homes Within Reach that will keep the homes affordable in perpetuity.
• Our Kids in the Park Rental Assistance Program, which provides rental assistance to low-income households with school-age children, supported 30 families in 2023 
• The city’s 4d Affordable Housing Incentive Program continues to grow, with the addition of three new properties to the program in this year, bringing the total number of units remaining affordable in SLP through this program to 553.
• You can read the full housing report as part of the April 24 council packet here (starting on page 35). Detailed information on the above programs (and more) are available on the city’s housing page.

Sidewalk Poetry Contest deadline extended: Anyone with a meaningful connection to St. Louis Park is invited to submit 1-2 original short poems for consideration for this cool ongoing project. Winning poems will be sandblasted into sidewalks throughout the city. Deadline for this round has been extended to midnight May 19. Info here.

Utility risk assessment: Following the disastrous water main breaks in 2022, SLP has invested considerable resources into identifying ways we can be strategic and proactive in managing our aging infrastructure. A recent risk assessment completed by HDR Engineering revealed that: 

• Less than 5% of the city’s water main pipe is believed to be high or very high risk of consequential breaks.
• 40.3% of the city’s sanitary sewer is believed to be high or very high risk of consequential breaks. Pipe lining currently underway is helping with this. 

Information gathered in this study will inform future investments in infrastructure repair and replacement. 
 
Here’s a select list of upcoming events in our community: 
 
Gardening swap, Tuesday, May 21, 5-7 pm, the ROC. Bring your gardening tools and other gardening-related items to share with others and look for things you need. More info and list of accepted items here.
 
Rain Garden Workshop, Tuesday, May 21, 5:30-7:30 pm, Willow Park. Learn how to identify native plants, manage weeds and maintain your garden throughout the year. Hosted by Metro Blooms. Info and to register here. 
 
Annual Spring Cleanup, Saturday, June 8, 8am-1 pm, Municipal Service Center. Info here. 
 
St. Louis Park Parktacular: June 13-16, Wolfe Park. Enjoy a variety of activities including a Pickleball Tournament and the Grand Day Parade. Info here. 
 
Juneteenth Celebration, Sunday, June 16, 1-4 pm, the ROC. Experience local Black-owned business booths, food, educational content, and special guests centered around the Black and African American community. Hosted by the City of St. Louis Park, St. Louis Park Community Education and St. Louis Park Parktacular. Info here.

Thanks for reading and please stay in touch!
Margaret