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CR 07-027 Resolution of Support for a Fed Appropriation for a Railroad Switching Yard in Glencoe, MNMarch 6, 2007 Council Report 2007-027 Resolution of Support for a Federal Appropriation for a Railroad Switching Yard i n Glencoe, M N Proposed Action Staff recommends adoption of the following motion: Move to approve Resolution 2007- 18supporting afederal appropriation for a railroad switching yard in Glencoe, Minnesota. Adoption of this motion will show support by the City of Hopkins for a federal appropriation of funds to assist in the creation of a railroad yard in or near Glencoe, Minnesota. Overview The City of Hopkins, along with the cities of St. Louis Park and Minnetonka, have for a number of years been attempting to find ways to relocate railroad blocking and switching activities from the three cities. The representative city managers have met with Twin Cities and Western Railroad and the City of Glencoe regarding the creation of anew switching yard in the Glencoe area. Both parties have been willing to consider the creation of this switching yard in their area. The City Council has previously passed two resolutions in support of this project. The cities, with the help of State Representative Steve Simon and State Senator Ron Latz and former State Senator Steve Kelley, received $700,000 in state funding in 2006 for this project. The remaining project dollars, $2.5 million, must be secured before the state monies are available for construction. Primary Issues to Consider • If the federal appropriation is approved, will the yard be constructed? Supporting Information • Copy of 02-27-07 letters of support for federal funding of the switching yard • Resolution Number 2007-18 1 ick Getschow City Manager Financial Impact: N/A Budgeted: Y/N N/A Source: Related Documents (CIP, ERP, etc.): Notes: Council Report 2007-027 Page 2 Primary Issues to Consider If the federal appropriation is approved, will the yard be constructed? The federal appropriation is just one funding source. As previously stated, state monies have already been secured. Funds may also be sought from MnDOT and Twin Cities and Western Railroad. The City of Hopkins anticipates no direct funding for this project. Future actions by all affected cities will be required prior to the implementation of this project. Council is being asked to adopt a resolution in support of the appropriation for the FY2008 HUD appropriation process. Senators Norm Coleman and Amy Klobuchar have indicated strong support for this project as has Congressman Keith Ellison. Senator Coleman was able to insert $1 million for this project in FY2007. However, it was not included in the House version and following the election, no action was taken on the FY2007 HUD bills. Due to the size of the appropriation, it may require two funding cycles for this project to be funded. City of Hopkins Office of the Mayor 1010 ~"irst Street Soutk ~fopkins, JI~fJ1~ 55343-7573 Pkone: 952-935 8474 • ~"ax• 952-935-1834 ~INed ac~cfress: www.kopkinsmn.com February 27, 2007 The Honorable Norm Coleman 320 Senate Hart Office Building Washington DC, 20510 Dear Senator Coleman, Thank you for your past support and continuing interest in the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation Project. While the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation Project was not funded through a FY2007 appropriation, I sincerely appreciate all of the work you did on this last year. I am writing to you today to ask for your support of the City of Hopkins' FY2008 HUD request of $2.5 million for the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation Project. Residents in my community, along with neighboring cities Minnetonka and St. Louis Park are subjected to nighttime noise, vibration and traffic delays due to rail blocking activities. In addition, citizens living near Shady Oak Lake in Minnetonka experience train cars parked for several hours at a time, blocking their view of and access to the lake. With rail traffic anticipated to increase from 2-4 trains daily to 4-6 trains daily because of boosted ethanol production in western Minnesota, it makes good sense to build the switching yard in Glencoe as soon as possible. With these proposed infrastructure improvements, there will be economic benefits not only for rail freight operators but also for the general business activity in the region. This project will be constructed in an industrial development outside the city of Glencoe and will also relocate existing train blocking operations away from downtown Glencoe. This project is expected to encourage economic growth by supporting new industrial development with efficient access to railroad facilities and operations. I enthusiastically support the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation project and anticipate that it will provide many benefits to the residents and economy of our state. I respectfully urge you to include this project in the Senate version of the FY2008 HUD bill. Please contact me at (952) 935-8474 or City Manager Rick Getschow at (952) 548-6301 if you have any questions or require additional information on this project. Sincerely, Ge e Maxwell Mayor Partnering witk tke Community to ~nkarcce tke Quality of Life • Inspire ~ educate ~ Involve ~ Communicate • City of Hopkins Office of the Mayor 1010 ~irstStreetSoutk ~lopkins, ~ 55343-7573 Phone: 952-935-8474 • ~ax;• 952-935-1834 ~INed address: www.hopkinsmn.com February 27, 2007 The Honorable Keith Ellison 1130 Longsworth House Office Building Washington DC, 20515 Dear Congressman Ellison, Congratulations on your recent election as Congressman of the Minnesota 5th Congressional District! It was a pleasure to meet with you this fall to discuss the transportation needs of our community. I am writing to you today to ask for your support of the City of Hopkins' FY2008 HLJD request of $2.5 million for the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation Project. Residents in my community, along with neighboring cities Minnetonka and St. Louis Park are subjected to nighttime noise, vibration and traffic delays due to rail blocking activities. In addition, citizens living near Shady Oak Lake in Minnetonka experience train cars parked for several hours at a time, blocking their view of and access to the lake. With rail traffic anticipated to increase from 2-4 trains daily to 4-6 trains daily because of boosted ethanol production in western Minnesota, it makes good sense to build the switching yard in Glencoe as soon as possible. With these proposed infrastructure improvements, there will be economic benefits not only for rail freight operators but also for the general business activity in the region. This project will be constructed in an industrial development outside the city of Glencoe and will also relocate existing train blocking operations away from downtown Glencoe. This project is expected to encourage economic growth by supporting new industrial development with efficient access to railroad facilities and operations. I enthusiastically support the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation project and anticipate that it will provide many benefits to the residents and economy of our state. I respectfully urge you to include this project in the House version of the FY2008 HUD bill. Please contact me at (952) 935-8474 or City Manager Rick Getschow at (952) 548-6301 if you have any questions or require additional information on this project and thank you again for meeting with me this past fall. I appreciated your insight and interest in my community and I look forward to working with you in the future. Sincerely, Gene Maxwell Mayor Partnering with tke Community to ~nkance tke Quality of Life • Inspire ~ ~rfucate • Involve ~ Communicate • City of ~Iopkins Office of tFie 91~fayor 1010 first Street South • ~lopkins, ~ 55343-7573 • Phone: 952-935-8474 • ,~ax• 952-935-1834 ~YVed address: www.hopkinsmn.com February 27, 2007 The Honorable Jim Ramstad 103 Cannon House Office Building Washington DC, 20515 Dear Congressman Ramstad, I am writing to you today to ask for your support of the City of Hopkins' FY2008 HUD request of $2.5 million for the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation Project. Residents in my community, along with neighboring cities Minnetonka and St. Louis Park are subjected to nighttime noise, vibration and traffic delays due to rail blocking activities. In addition, citizens living near Shady Oak Lake experience train cars parked for several hours at a time, blocking their view of and access to the lake. With rail traffic anticipated to increase from 2-4 trains daily to 4-6 trains daily because of boosted ethanol production in western Minnesota, it makes good sense to build the switching yard in Glencoe as soon as possible. With these proposed infrastructure improvements, there will be economic benefits not only for rail freight operators but also for the general business activity in the region. This project will be constructed in an industrial development outside the city of Glencoe and will also relocate existing train blocking operations away from downtown Glencoe. This project is expected to encourage economic growth by supporting new industrial development with efficient access to railroad facilities and operations. I enthusiastically support the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation project and anticipate that it will provide many benefits to the residents and economy of our state. I respectfully urge you to include this project in the House version of the FY2008 HUD bill. Please contact me at (952) 935-8474 or City Manager Rick Getschow at (952) 548-6301 if you have any questions or require additional information on this project. Sincerely, Gene Maxwell Mayor Partnering with the Community to enhance the Quality of Life • Inspire ~ educate • Involve • Communicate • City of ~Iopkins Office of the J~fayor 1010,~irstStreetSouth ~fopkins, ~ ~.~343-T.~T3 PFione: 95'2-935=8474 • ~"ax•95"2-935-1834 Ned address: www.hopkinsmn.com February 27, 2007 The Honorable Collin Peterson 2211 Rayburn House Office Building Washington DC, 20515 Dear Congressman Peterson, I am writing to you today to ask for your support of the City of Hopkins' FY2008 HUD request of $2.5 million for the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation Project. While the City of Hopkins lies outside of your district, the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation Project affects your constituency as well, and I appreciate your support of this project. Residents in my community, along with neighboring cities Minnetonka and St. Louis Park are subjected to nighttime noise, vibration and traffic delays due to rail blocking activities. In addition, citizens living near Shady Oak Lake in Minnetonka experience train cars parked for several hours at a time, blocking their view of and access to the lake. With rail traffic anticipated to increase from 2-4 trains daily to 4-6 trains daily because of boosted ethanol production in western Minnesota, it makes good sense to build the switching yard in Glencoe as soon as possible. With these proposed infrastructure improvements, there will be economic benefits not only for rail freight operators but also for the general business activity in the region. This project will be constructed in an industrial development outside the city of Glencoe and will also relocate existing train blocking operations away from downtown Glencoe. This project is expected to encourage economic growth by supporting new industrial development with efficient access to railroad facilities and operations. I enthusiastically support the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation project and anticipate that it will provide many benefits to the residents and economy of our state. I respectfully urge you to include this project in the House version of the FY2008 HUD bill. Please contact me at (952) 935-8474 or City Manager Rick Getschow at (952) 548-6301 if you have any questions or require additional information on this project. Sincerely, Ge e Maxwell Mayor Partnering with the Community to enhance the Quality of Life • Inspire ~ educate ~ Involve ~ Communicate • City of Hopkins Office of the Mayor 1010.~irstStreetSouth 3fopkins, ~ 55343-7573 • Pkone: 952-935=8474 • ~ax• 952-935-1834 Ned address: www.kopkinsmn.com February 27, 2007 The Honorable Amy Klobuchar SRC4 Russell Building Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator Klobuchar, Congratulations on your recent election to the United States Senate! We here in Hopkins are proud to call you our Senator and look forward to following your career as you serve the citizens of Minnesota. I am writing to you today to ask for your support of the City of Hopkins' FY2008 HUD request of $2.5 million for the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation Project. Residents in my community, along with the neighboring cities of Minnetonka and St. Louis Park are subjected to nighttime noise, vibration and traffic delays due to rail blocking activities. In addition, citizens living near Shady Oak Lake in Minnetonka experience train cars parked for several hours at a time, blocking their view of and • access to the lake. With rail traffic anticipated to increase from 2-4 trains daily to 4-6 trains daily because of boosted ethanol production in western Minnesota, it makes sense to build the switching yard in Glencoe as soon as possible. With these proposed infrastructure improvements, there will be economic benefits not only for rail freight operators but also for the general business activity in the region. This project will be constructed in an industrial development outside the city of Glencoe and will also relocate existing train blocking operations away from downtown Glencoe. This project is expected to encourage economic growth by supporting new industrial development with efficient access to railroad facilities and operations. I enthusiastically support the Glencoe Railroad Mitigation project and anticipate that it will provide many benefits to the residents and economy of our state. I respectfully urge you to include this project in the Senate version of the FY2008 HUD bill. Please contact me at (952) 935-8474 or City Manager Rick Getschow at (952) 548-6301 if you have any questions or require additional information on this project. Sincerely, Gene Maxwell Mayor Partnering witk tke Community to Entrance tke Quality of Life • Inspire ~ Educate ~ Involve ~ Communicate • City of Hopkins Hennepin County, Minnesota RESOLUTION NO. 2007-18 RESOLUTION OF SUPPORT FOR A FEDERAL APPROPRIATION FOR A RAILROAD SWITCHING YARD IN GLENCOE, MN WHEREAS, Cities of Hopkins, Minnetonka and St. Louis Park (the Cities) have been jointly working to eliminate noise disturbances to their residents living adjacent to segments of rail lines where rail car sorting operations are performed. WHEREAS, in 1999, the Cities funded a noise study that concluded these sorting operations generate noise levels that exceed the State of Minnesota noise standards; and WHEREAS, the Cities have actively pursued short-term and long-term solutions to mitigate the noise from these rail operations. To date, the short-term solutions have provided little improvement; and WHEREAS, the construction of a switching yard in Glencoe, Minnesota was identified as the long-term solution that would completely eliminate the blocking operations from the residential communities. A switching yard would be beneficial to Glencoe from both an operational and an economic development standpoint; and. WHEREAS, the state of Minnesota appropriated $700,000 for the construction of the switching yard in 2006; WHEREAS, an application for a Federal capital transportation appropriation for this project in the amount of $2,500,000 for land acquisition and design, development costs, and economic development funds to aid in the construction of a new railroad switching yard in Glencoe has been submitted; and NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT: The City Council of the City of Hopkins does hereby support the application for a federal transportation appropriation by the Cities of Hopkins, Minnetonka and St. Louis Park, in cooperation with the City of Glencoe and the McLeod County Rail Authority for a railroad switching yard in Glencoe, Minnesota. Adopted by the City Council of the City of Hopkins this 6th day of March, 2007. By Eugene J. Maxwell, Mayor ATTEST: Terry Obermaier, City Clerk