9.c Engineering Updates 11-17-2020
City of Scandia
Engineering Updates 11/17/2020
Engineering italics = old information
· Washington County’s first Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan
TAC Meeting #3 was held virtually on March 25, 2020. The planning consultant used this time to
present draft materials, which included a revised Future Network map and a methodology for
prioritizing future projects.
Washington County is launching their last phase of the public engagement. The website up
to date with the final draft plan, videos summarizing each chapter and a questionnaire for
folks to provide feedback.
· https://www.co.washington.mn.us/bikepedplan
Project Manager, Emily Jorgensen, 651-430-4338
· emily.jorgensen@co.washington.mn.us
· Public Works/Fire Hall Parking Lot Improvements
Project was awarded to Bluhm Construction at April 21, 2020 City Council Meeting.
Original project work has been completed and as a separate agenda item, will include Contractor’s
Request for Payment No. 1. Bad spot that has surfaced will have to be excavated to review what the
cause is, working with Contractor on schedule.
Contractor’s Request for Payment No. 2 and Final will be on the November 17th City Council
agenda as a separate business item.
· 2021 Street Improvement Project & Layton Ave
City Council authorized Plans and Specifications for the 2021 Street Improvement Project at
the October 20th City Council Meeting.
· Bliss Drainfield System
Both the 2020 permit application for this system and the “final report” for nitrogen mitigation have
been completed and submitted to the MPCA. The memo which serves as a final report doesn’t
present final solutions for the nitrogen issue, but instead outlines the issues that have been found
and solved in this treatment system, as well as some additional testing that will now be
recommended to get a handle on the nitrogen, BOD, and TSS entering and leaving the facility. The
hope is to gain us a little more time from the MPCA before they mandate action. We’ll use this time
to perform the aforementioned testing and evaluate options for removing nitrogen at Bliss.
To date we still have not heard anything from the MPCA regarding the permit and this is very typical.
This means the City’s existing permit is still in effect until the new permit is issued.
· Sump Pump Inspection Program
3 homes/cabin remain to be inspected. City moving forward with issuing a citation to one property, a
final letter to the second property requesting an inspection, and third property doesn’t have their CO
issued yet and will be inspected during routine building inspections.
Inspection was scheduled for October 28, 2020 then owner cancelled, and property was
shortly sold days later. However, new Owner closed on property November 5, 2020 and
has been in contact with us and said once they get settled will call to schedule an
appointment.
· Bliss Addition Stormwater Planning
Public Outreach meeting being held at City Hall with the adjacent property owners prior to the City Council meeting, on April
16, 2019, from 5:30pm – 6:30pm.
Met with watershed district on 8/2 to discuss preliminary options for expanding regional water storage, restoring infiltration
capacity and improve water quality. The watershed made some great recommendations for managing overall project costs
and those options are currently being explored.
Second public meeting occurred on August 20th. Preliminary stormwater management practices were presented to the
residents and were well received. Some new recommendations were also presented and considered in the plan revisions.
Final Draft will be presented to the City Council at the November 19, 2019 meeting.
Meeting with City Staff and Watershed District was held on January 16, 2020 to discuss prioritization and implementation
schedule for the items presented in the final stormwater study. Separate costs estimates have been put together based on the
prioritization which will be used for future funding submittals.
Recent engagement with the Carnelian Marine St. Croix Watershed District resulted in the two bullet points below:
· Cost responsibility - Who would take on what costs and how? Ideally the District would like to participate with a
Clean Water Fund Grant.
· Timeline - The District is working to complete the Subwatershed analysis for Big Marine Lake. It will be complete by
June 2021. Clean Water Fund Grants are awarded based on how the score. Without a completed Subwatershed
analysis for the entire lake and application would score low. We planned to apply for a CWF grant in the fall of
2021 (after the completion of the analysis). If the City would like to dedicate funding and move up the timeline, they
could request the CMSCWD Board of Managers consider funding a phase of the project without a CWF grant. I do
know that next year’s budget is tight with the state required 10-year management plan update.
Temporary drainage improvements that included two options were presented at the August 5th City
Council Workshop that were intended to relieve drainage concerns at the property of 19123 Layton
Ave. Upon the discussion there seems to be separate opinions forming on both sides of the street of
what temporary solutions are favored but why the ultimate correction is not just completed in
conjunction with the storm sewer improvements identified in the neighborhood stormwater study.
On October 14, 2020 at the Watershed Board meeting, Board Managers approved $3,600
cost share for option 1.
Watershed anticipates in 2021 they will apply for 2022-2025 Clean Water Funds to
implement stage 1 and 2, but could potentially also apply for all three stages. It should also
be noted it will be difficult for the District to participate in just the directional pipe
installation without the water quality BMPs being installed in that area. City may want to
consider adding water quality practices to this stage to leverage more funds from District
(with or without Clean Water Funds).
· Stage 1 – directional drilled pipe to re-route drainage to wetland
· Stage 2 – North Layton Ave bioinfiltration basin, concrete trench and enhanced
ditch improvements, west bioinfilration basins, and 189th culvert crossings and
enhanced ditches.
· CLFLWD Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan
Watershed District staff reviewed the following topics with the City staff though a Zoom Meeting on May 12,
2020. Some of the topics included; Lakes (pollutants, recreational use, shoreline), Aquatic invasive species,
Stormwater management (Low Impact Development, rules), Floodplain (flood resiliency), Resiliency planning
(climate adaptation, development demands), Groundwater (quantity and quality)
View draft plan sections at www.clflwdplanupdate.org/documents
Below is a brief summary of immediate next steps and major checkpoints:
· May 2020
· Continue issues workshops, engaging TAC members in small groups
· Coordinate at the staff level with cities and townships
· Review EOR scope of work for next phase of plan update process
· Workload Analysis: Staff workshop with Houston Engineering (note that this is a separate,
parallel process from the plan update, but the information from the analysis will be useful in
planning the next ten years, so it is noted here)
· June 2020
· Hold the last of the issues workshops, engaging TAC members in small groups
· Begin holding joint board-council/town board workshops (workshop with Scandia City
Council occurred on June 22nd)
· June 25th regular board meeting: Board review and approve draft plan update outline
· July 2020
· Bring proposed plan section drafting schedule to Board.
https://www.clflwd.org/documents/Agendaitem5c-WMPUpdate.pdf
· Begin discussing draft plan sections per schedule. Sections will be brought to board meetings
for discussion, posted to the District website, and sent to the District’s Technical Advisory
Committee and Citizen Advisory Committee throughout the summer.
· August 2020
· Continue holding joint board-council workshops (City of Wyoming)
· September 2020
· Continue holding joint board-council workshops (City of Forest Lake)
· Hold a full TAC meeting (via Zoom). This will be the first time the full TAC is convened since
the Initial Planning Meeting on June 20, 2019. The District has been engaging TAC members
in smaller groups through the issues workshops this spring and via email with the draft plan
sections throughout the summer.
· October 2020 – December 2020
· Continue plan drafting through fall/winter 2020.
· January 2021
· Begin the first official review period, to last 60 days. Required review
agencies will be notified (BWSR, DNR, PCA, MDA, MDH, DOT, Met Council,
counties, cities, townships, SWCDs and adjacent WMOs/WDs), as well as
the public (through the District listserv, social media, newspapers, lake
association meetings, etc.).
· March 2021
· 60-day review ends. Respond to comments received and revise plan as
necessary.
· April 2021
· Hold public hearing.
· May 2021
· Goal to submit final draft plan to BWSR for 90-day review.
· By this time, we will have a clear view of the 2022 CIP for budgeting
purposes.
· August 2021
· BWSR completes its review and sends letter of approval or disapproval.
· Board adopts updated plan. Afterward, staff proceeds with distribution and
printing.
· September 2021
· September 28, 2021: Current Watershed Management Plan expires.
· CLFLWD & Scandia Staff Quarterly Meetings
Meeting on October 19, 2020 covered the following topics:
· MnDOT – Hwy 97 & Oakhill/CR 52
First initial contact/conference meeting with MnDOT to discuss issues and concerns with
intersection safety on October 13, 2020.
· Emailed MnDOT 10/21/20, 10/29/20, and 11/10/20
· Washington County – Draft Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) 2020 – 2024
Washington County prepares a five-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). The 2021-2025
CIP includes the county's tentative plans for roads, bridges, parks, land, trails, transit, and
public facilities. The first year of this plan is included in the county's proposed 2021 budget.
The “out-years” of 2022-2025 reflect projected needs and estimated costs, which may
change based on future priorities and funding opportunities. Projects that were budgeted
in 2020 (or prior to), and are not yet complete, are not reflected in the draft 2021-2025 CIP;
funding for the completion of those projects has been set aside, and therefore aren’t
reflected in future years’ CIP documents.
Draft CIP link: https://www.co.washington.mn.us/DocumentCenter/View/39207/Draft-
Capital-Improvement-Plan-2021-2025
Comments must be received in writing (via U.S. Postal Service or email) no later than
November 25, 2020, to be considered when developing the final CIP. A public hearing will
also be held on December 15, 2020, prior to adopting the final document.
DRAFT COMMENTS ATTACHED TO REPORT AT END
14727 209 th St. N. PO Box 128, Scandia, Minnesota 55073
Phone (651) 433-2274 Fax (651) 433-5112 http://www.ci.scandia.mn.us
November 17, 2020
Larry Phillips
Washington County Office of Administration
14949 62nd Street North
Stillwater, MN 55082
Re: Washington County 2021-2025 Draft Capital Improvement Plan Comments
Dear Washington County,
The City of Scandia would like to provide comment on the Washington County 2021-2025 Capital
Improvement Plan (CIP), by expressing our support for the following planned projects:
· Project RB-2204 to include pavement preservation & rehab in 2021 on CSAH 3 from Old Marine
Trail to County line.
· Regional the City is in support of the project RB-2641, CSAH 3 from CSAH 7 to CSAH 4 as
identified in 2025.
· Project RB-2673 CSAH 15 Rumble Strips – planned 2025 construction projects, request the
County review the installation of mumble strips versus traditional rumble strips on CSAH 15
(Manning Ave) from CSAH 12 to 240th Street which is the county line.
We would also like to provide our support on the plan incorporating the following projects:
· Intersection improvements at CSAH 15 & Hwy 97
· Intersection evaluation and safety improvements at County Road 52 and Hwy 97
· Implement within the CIP by identifying studies, funding, and/or provide resources to assist the
DNR in pursuing regional trail development and better connectivity throughout northern
Washington County.
· CSAH 3 from Old Marine Trail to County Road 4 pavement preservation project.
Portions of the CSAH 3 corridor were previously planned and communicated to the public for a 2018
improvement until suddenly, the project was cancelled. It was later communicated to the City the
planned improvements were then programmed and currently schedule for 2020 and 2021 with the CIP
(RB-2204) projects that included Phase 1 – planned for 2020, CSAH 4 to Old Marine Trail and Phase 2 –
planned for 2021, Old Marine Trail to County line and request that the County stays committed to that
schedule. However, this schedule has changed again.
14727 209 th St. N. PO Box 128, Scandia, Minnesota 55073
Phone (651) 433-2274 Fax (651) 433-5112 http://www.ci.scandia.mn.us
The intersection of County Road 52 & Hwy 97 brings additional concerns with its skewed alignment that
limits driver and pedestrian sight distance when trying to cross the intersection. The City requests this
intersection be added to the CIP for the County to complete an intersection evaluation and to
implement low cost-high benefit safety improvements at the intersection that may include improved
intersection lighting, enhanced signing, and installation of intersection conflict warning system. The City
has initiated conversations with MnDOT but looking for a County present to be involved in this process.
The intersection of CSAH 15 & Hwy 97 has been the source of concern for many years and the City has
submitted comments on this intersection on past draft CIP’s. This intersection experiences backups at
AM & PM peak hours and is an intersection that has had many close calls that could have resulted in
serious T-bone crashes. The City requests this intersection be added to the CIP that would include
future intersection improvements. The City also would like to request the County complete an
intersection study in 2021 in coordination with MnDOT at this intersection so future improvements or
project constraints can be identified.
Thank you for allowing our comments to be submitted on the Washington County 2021-2025 Draft CIP.
Sincerely,
Ryan J. Goodman, P.E.
City Engineer