Minnetonka Area – General Topics

[VacantLuxuries]

Seems financing for quite a few projects is struggling. Is there something going on that needs investigation and reporting?

Probably the investor/leisure class realizing that the bigly economy isn't going to be around much longer and getting more stingy with their investments.

[Anondson]

Another apartment proposed in walking distance to the Opus LRT station.

https://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/ ... tonka.html

[Anondson]

After a previous abandoned proposal that had a lot of affordable units, a new proposal for a LRT adjacent site in the Opus business park.

https://finance-commerce.com/2020/10/lr ... ent-pitch/

[alexschief]

Almost nothing in the Opus area is conducive to transit-oriented urban design, but there's a lot of space available and you don't have to worry about NIMBYs, so it'll be interesting to see what goes there.

I would hope that Minnetonka will insist on new development creating new pedestrian pathways through this site, and building new sidewalks, because I doubt many people will willingly walk in circles in tall grass to reach transit. The rendering, of course, does not show any pedestrian accommodation. Almost all transit riders start and/or end their trips as pedestrians. The two modes are directly linked.

[Anondson]

It’s difficult to see, but just to the left out of the drawing frame is a trail that tunnels under Bren Rd, and follows up the left side of that building up to the station. The trail continues west to the restaurants and shops along Shady Oak and Red Circle.

There was going to be a parallel trail tunneling under 62 to the LRT tunnel linking to the Optum campus but I think that was dropped in the cost cutting phases of SWLRT.

The trail network around Opus kind of nice considering the roads are motor vehicle exclusive.

[Tcmetro]

OPUS was originally built on the philosophy of having separate road and ped networks, like Greenbelt Maryland and Milton Keynes UK.

It seems a lot of the office buildings are aging and there is redevelopment pressure (as seen by other residential projects that have gone up). I hope the city can reform the road network to a more traditional two-way system with sidewalks. The way it is laid out now is not amenable to a light-rail centered residential neighborhood.

[nordeast homer]

I imagine this will not be the last of this type of development in OPUS. You're right Tcmetro, there are a lot of aging buildings that are ripe to be taken down and replaced with residential.
Because of the size of some of the businesses in this area I wonder if you will see a shuttle going through OPUS connecting with the LRT stations?

[Korh]

I know the drivers at my work have an old rumor that the circles where partly designed by some European drifting team but most take it with a lot of salt and the rumor probably started with some of said drivers messing around during their high school days.
As for the circles themselves, I don't think the city will change them into two-way streets, they had a chance with red circle when they replaced a bride and had it as a temporary two-way, but it went back to a one way afterwards. I would argue that it might be a better investment to give the trail network more TLC since its can be faster then driving sometimes. Although the current trail network is a bit rough from personal experience, some sections desperately needs to be repaved and you can get turned around if your not familiar with the network.

[Anondson]

Business Journals has another view of it.

https://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/ ... tonka.html

You can better see the trail that passes under Bren and goes to the station.

[alexschief]

There is a plan for pedestrian and wayfinding improvements in the Opus Park, and the existing trails are a fun resource. But a serious transit-supportive walking grid they are not.

What I'm saying is that, each of these developments is an opportunity to think about what more connections could be made and how something approaching a grid could be created. Each developer in this area should be asked to contribute a new section of trail or sidewalk.

[Anondson]

Doran’s proposal near the Opus light rail station is a lot of apartment units, taking over a portion of another proposal that failed to advance, but has a really bad trail. I mean really dumb, why bother.

https://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/ ... tonka.html

[alexschief]

An insane amount of parking, of course. I don't expect developers to overnight start building zero-parking buildings in this area. But I would hope that the light rail might be an invitation for some risk taking. Doesn't look like it with this project, but then again, it is Doran.

[QuietBlue]

It's less than two spaces per unit, so it's reasonable for the area. People will still need to drive to places and there's no street parking around it.

[Anondson]

The abundance of development at the Opus Station is being noticed.

https://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/ ... pment.html

[mckilanowski]

I know the drivers at my work have an old rumor that the circles where partly designed by some European drifting team

I thought it was based on the Olympic rings?