urbanMSP

CIDNA wasn't too happy with Marlys' article. Here's their response: http://www.minnpost.com/letters/2014/01 ... -community

Allow me to translate that letter paragraph for paragraph into what they are really saying.


First we need to pat ourselves on the back because look at us we braved the cold to complain about this development. Seriously we're really really awesome. It's also important to point out that Marlys hates on us.

We are already dense enough and we don't want anything to change. We don't want any more development here unless the developer does exactly what we want them to do.

Marlys and MinnPost lied about why a proposal wasn't built, but seriously it wasn't our fault, trust us. To prove that here's some information that nobody's going to read to back up our claim. Again Marlys hates us.

We automatically reject each project unless the developer does exactly what we want and tell them to do. One developer actually did that so we like him but the new guy doesn't so he's mean and evil. Also we don't want it to take any longer for us to get to work. We can force people to spend money on doing exactly what we want them to do because otherwise our feeling's will be hurt and we'll cry about it.

Again MinnPost and Marlys hate us and didn't write and post exactly what we wanted. Our neighborhood association is really super duper awesome and how dare you say otherwise. Again it's important to point out that MinnPost and Marlys hate us.

Mayor Hodges please do what we want, but I can't forget to mention once again that MinnPost and Marlys hate us. Our idea of "collaboration and creative solutions" is to sit around and waste everyone's time talking and complaining about things endlessly until developers can only do exactly what we want.

Signed,

Jackass 1, President NIMBY

Jackass 2, Executive Director of the Department of Ridiculously Stupid Concerns and Complaints

Nailed it!

Boom: Truthbomb!

http://www.southwestjournal.com/voices/ ... e-scrutiny

I appreciate the nuance in this guy's letter, compared to other anti-development individuals, but it remains super unclear what he's asking for, other than for folks to visit his website.

EDIT: After visiting the guy's website, it appears he's some kind of engineering consultant and has designs to increase road capacity in the area (he lives at 3131 Excelsior). His work does explore a France Avenue connection (which definitely has merit, if only it weren't so expensive). Unfortunately he has all sorts of other wild designs for modifying or even *gulp* grade-separating the intersection of Lake & Excelsior. His chief concerns are "traffic delays" and "parking supply" in the area. He never actually criticizes the development in that letter (aside from calling it girthy), which is what had me so confused.

Weird it's almost like there are a zillion different organizations in the Twin Cities that exist only to promote the people involved in them.

I have heard from several people that some people support height in West Calhoun but feel this proposal is too wide. I think that's what he was getting at, that the project would be better if it were thinner and maybe even taller.

As for the engineering...the car traffic in that area is over 40,000 per day. it often is congested for long periods of time, including the buses getting stuck. The area is incredibly auto-oriented and the speeds are fast. Despite all of it, the area is quite dense and the people who live there value having amenities that they can walk and bike to. they just want safer streets and many feel that an engineering solution would improve traffic flow and allow them to slow speeds while increasing output and improving pedestrian/bike access.

i think he deserves a lot of credit, as he and the neighborhood took it into their own hands to look into issues facing their community. The solutions are very engineering-oriented, but they got engineering students from the u to do the studies. The dialogue is started and that is key.

I always thought it would be cool if Lake St could be elevated further east, sloping down to grade between Market Plaza and Excelsior. Then the strip malls could be redeveloped with parking at grade and ramps connecting it to Lake. The signal at Market Plaza could then be replaced with a raised crossing, and two perpendicular pedestrian promenades created at the level above grade, one running north-south between the Midtown Greenway and Lake Calhoun above where Market Plaza is now and one running east-west between the LRT station and the N-S promenade parallel to and south of Lake St. These promenades would be surrounded with mid-rises with retail bases. Here is a crude google map of what I'm thinking:

https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit? ... MvnOdA0JHg

This would get rid of the close spacing between Market Plaza and Excelsior on Lake that can least to westbound backups. Additionally I would propose eliminating the Market Plaza to eastbound Lake St movement to reduce queuing at Excelsior. I think that the spacing between Market Plaza and Lake on Excelsior is less of an issue but the Market Plaza intersection could be made RIRO if that's an issue, with left turns from the parking area relegated to Abbott.

There would be two primary advantages to this redesign:
1. It would significantly improve the currently atrocious pedestrian realm both through the ped-only promenades and by allowing the Lake and Excelsior sidewalks to be widened and lined with storefronts.
2. It would outsource much of the congestion to the parking level, which would even it out by reducing the speed.

It would also take a politically unfeasible amount of upfront city money though. I think it could probably be funded mostly with TIF money, though, with some MSA and Transportation Alternatives for the ped infrastructure (assuming MSA rules were revised to allow raised intersections as would be logical and reasonable).

Speaking of poor pedestrian realm at this intersection, a woman was hit by a truck this evening at this corner and dragged as I was leaving work.

Apparently CIDNA took that "look, it could be worse, we could build a six story megablock" to be a good thing...
http://www.southwestjournal.com/news/ne ... -west-lake

Ugh no thanks. I just don't get why people are afraid of heights. At least one of the main lakes should allow for more new buildings above 6 stories and since Calhoun has the most let it continue.

"Fuck you got mine"

It's a shame the 11 story proposal won't happen. It had a light and airy appearance with beautiful proportions. The very generous amount of green space would have been an asset for the whole community. That said, the smaller proposal is also quite attractive in design and the architects did their best. But the building will definitely feel more crammed into the narrow site and not as appealing.

That said, the smaller proposal is also quite attractive in design and the architects did their best.

- A positive viewpoint, but sometimes its best to call a spade a spade....
A lot of complaining has produced a compromise which is in fact a worse result for everyone. The community organizers can say they accomplished something; while the developer are happy because they probably originally planned this ugly 6 story building but brought the 11 story version to the neighbors anticipating the backlash so that they could propose the cheap ugly version free of complaints..........Thank you neighbors

The neighbors were morons. Since when is a sky you couldn't see unless you were standing at the window craning your head out better than views of the horizon you can see from the comfort of the couch.

You win neighbors, you win.

I think the joke is on the condo owners, as a larger percentage of the units will have at least partially blocked views and less sunlight with this version than with the 11-floor version, as this version's 60-foot base is tall enough to block EVERY condo's view at or below that height looking West, including all sunsets. Otherwise, only about a quarter or less units would have sunsets and sunlight blocked most days, since a skinny bldg would only block views part of the day part of the year.

The developer likely doesn't care since they can charge similar rents with either option, and the costs are now likely less.

And we really expect to get significant TOD if we build SWLRT in this neighborhood?

Here's the letter from Loop Calhoun Condos opposing the development: http://cidnalanduse.files.wordpress.com ... sition.pdf

CIDNA Land Use Committe meets again April 7 to consider the revised proposal: http://cidnalanduse.wordpress.com/2014/ ... ril-7-6pm/

Does anyone on the forum live in Cedar-Isles-Dean or know anyone that does?

I"m so over these people... They seriously make my blood boil with their ridiculous oppositions!!

I like the deliberate point: "LRT and streetcars are neither an immediate solution, nor an adequate long-term one, so the project will contribute to traffic congestion." Followed by a proposal for more parking than the developer's plan for both residential and Trygs. What do they think will happen to area congestion if they demand more cars space and limit the number of people who could actually utilize LRT/bike/streetcar infrastructure over the next 30-50 years?

sounds like these people are living in the city physically but stuck in the suburbs mentally