Title
Authorizing the City to enter into and execute a Cooperative Funding Agreement for Rice Street and Larpenteur Avenue Gateway Alliance Consulting Services with the City of Roseville and the City of Maplewood in accordance with the Rice-Larpenteur Vision Plan.
Body
WHEREAS, the Rice Street and Larpenteur Avenue intersection is a key gateway into the cities of Maplewood, Roseville, and Saint Paul (the “Three Cities”); and
WHEREAS, the Three Cities continue to coordinate efforts to improve the area surrounding the intersection of Rice Street and Larpenteur Avenue; and
WHEREAS, the Three Cities held a joint public input event to identify needs for the corridor, including improved public safety, better pedestrian facilities and public realm, and more community-oriented business; and
WHEREAS, in 2017, the area was designated a Commercial Vitality Zone and the Housing and Redevelopment Authority of the City of Saint Paul, Minnesota provided funds to help prepare a vision plan in partnership with the City of Maplewood and the City of Roseville; and
WHEREAS, the City Council approved the Rice-Larpenteur Vision Plan (“Vision Plan”) by RES 18-1741 as a foundational document to guide transportation improvements and the overall revitalization of the area and included recommendations for the following elements of the plan:
• pedestrian, bicycle, and transit user experience enhancements
• public realms improvements around streetscape and urban forest
• stormwater management
• roadway changes and intersection improvements
• key redevelopment sites within the gateway area
• project implementation; and
WHEREAS, the Three Cities issued a Request for Proposals for consulting services to begin implementation of the Vision Plan on January 7, 2019; and
WHEREAS, the Three Cities interviewed finalists on February 12, 2019, and unanimously selected the Saint Paul Area Chamber of Commerce to lead the implementation phase of the Vision Plan; and...
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