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Memo Hopkins Depot CTY RD 3 & 169 '. f 'C :____~,.,. . CITY OF HOPKINS MEMORANDUM DATE: September 16, 1993 TO: Honorabl~~nd city council FROM: Tom Harmeni g, 'co~munity Development Director SUBJECT: HOPKINS DEPOT - COUNTY ROAD 3 AND TRUNK HIGHWAY 169 I. Purpose of. Discussion In the past the City council has expressed an interest in having the depot refurbished and used in some fashion. Recently, city staff and the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority (owner of depot) were contacted by an individual regarding the possible purchase and use of the facility for a private purpose (in this case, a small . restaurant) . Staff wishes to discuss with the City council a basic policy question as to whether the council would desire to see this property being privately developed or used for some public purpose. To assist with this discussion staff has provided background information. II. Background Over the course of the last few years discussions have been held regarding the refurbishment and reuse of the Hopkins depot. Examples include: 0 August, 1986 - The Hopkins JCs discussed with the city council the concept of having the JCs renovate the depot and use it as a site for JC meetings and other civic activities. The Council seemed interested in this approach and suggested that .activities be undertaken to designate the property as historical. Staff is unsure as to any follow-up actions which may have occurred as a result of this discussion. . 0 July 14, 1992 - The city Council met in a work session with the Historical Society to discuss the disposition of the depot. During this discussion various opinions were stated with regard to whether or not the depot . Honorable Mayor and city Council Page 2 . should remain, be moved, or be razed. No specific action or direction was taken as a result of this discussion. 0 March, 1993 - The city Council adopted the strategic Plan for Economic Development. This plan contained a couple of references relative to the depot. These included: - "Undertake study of possibly reusing the railroad depot located at Trunk Highway 169 and County Road 3. Also, analyze the ability to incorporate Central Park with County Road 3 improvements." - "Develop an information center in Hopkins. * Analyze the potential of utilizing the depot as an information center in its current location. * Examine other facilities centrally located which' may be able to house an information center." with respect to the use of the property, the aforementioned items provide examples of discussions which have been held . regarding a general public use of the property. In addition, I have attached a memo from Lee Gustafson which expresses interest by Hennepin Parks regarding using the old railroad depot in some fashion. This use relates to refurbishing the depot in its current location as a trail head or possibly dismantling the depot and using the brick to construct a new depot/trailhead in conjunction with the MTCPark and Ride facility located further west along County Road 3. In both cases, the depot would provide parking facilities for trail users as well as bike lockers. with regard to a pUblic use of the property, it may be necessary for the City to expend dollars, perhaps for acquisition but more likely for refurbishment. However, these costs could possibly be defrayed by other agencies, such as Hennepin Parks, for a public use. with respect to a private use of the facility, an interested party has expressed an interest in using the facility for a small restaurant. The current site is attractive to the private individual based upon its location to the intersection of Trunk Highway 169 and County Road 3 and the fact that a regional bike system will be located directly adjacent to the building. . TH09163A . . 4It CITY OF HOPKINS MEMORANDUM DATE: september 14, 1993 TO: Tom Harmening, Community Development Director FROM: Lee Gustafson, Public Works Directo~ SUBJECT: Old Railroad Depot on County Road 3 I recently spoke to Doug Bryant, Hennepin Parks, to once again discuss their interest in the old railroad depot along County Road 3, just east of T.H. 169. Mr. Bryant informed me that the Hennepin Parks is still very interested in using the old railroad depot, in some fashion or another, in development of a "Trail Head" along County Road 3. He furthermore stated that their interest in the depot prompted them to include it in one phase of a trail project that was recently submitted for ISTEA funding. , I spoke to Mr. Bryant further about how he envisioned using .. the old depot in a Trail Head project. He stated that ,., Hennepin Parks thought the depot could possibly be used in the current location in conjunction with a trail leading into st. Louis Park. He further stated that Hennepin Parks had also thought about dismantling the depot and using the brick to construct a new depot to be used in conjunction wi th the MTC Park and Ride along County Road 3. In both cases the depot would provide parking facilities for trail users as well as bike lockers. Tom, I periodically meet with Mr. Bryant and his staff to discuss other trail issues. We typically discuss the status of the depot in these meetings to keep each other informed of pending issues. If during these discussions, Hennepin Parks informs me that their interest in the old' depot has changed, I will be sure to contact you to let you know how it has changed. cc: Steve Mielke, city Manager .