WPCC submits letter in support of 33rd Avenue reconstruction 🚧

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The Waite Park Community Council in a special meeting on May 8 voted unanimously to submit the following letter to the Minneapolis Planning Commission and Capital Long-Range Improvement Committee regarding the long-delayed reconstruction of 33rd Avenue. The letter was drafted by the council’s Projects & Positions Committee and signed by the board and several community members:

May 9, 2023

As the official neighborhood organization representing Waite Park, we are writing to ask that the Minneapolis Planning Commission and Capital Long-Range Improvement Committee please expedite the reconstruction of 33rd Avenue Northeast between Johnson Street and Central Avenue. It is worth noting that the 33rd Avenue NE project (PV157) is absent from this year’s CLIC proposed report and was missing from last year’s. 

This project is long overdue. The roadway was already 60 years into its expected 40-year lifespan in 2017 when it was removed from PV108 Concrete Rehab program due to its poor condition. City staff indicated at the time that it would need to secure funding for full reconstruction.

In 2021, community concerns over the lack of action on this project were brought to CLIC. Although CLIC seemed sympathetic there has been no mention of this project since.  It is now 2023. Residents have waited patiently for too long. We deserve answers on why the city keeps pushing back its reconstruction. 

The concrete street has been subject to repeated asphalt patches, which now cover the width of the street in some places. The patches are not holding up and causing loose rocks and debris to scatter in and near the road, creating hazards for cars, pedestrians, and bicyclists. Manholes and intersections are particularly degraded. Some areas look like “washouts.” 

It is no longer sensible to keep this up. 

The corridor serves approximately 1,000 vehicles per day and is one of the few that traverses the entire neighborhood from east to west. It is an important connection to Central Avenue, Waite Park Elementary School, and Saint Anthony Village, as well as the cross street for three Metro Transit bus stops.

This letter reflects the views of the Waite Park Community Council with input or support from 22 residents and business/property owners, who were engaged through door-knocking, a neighborhood meeting, and other outreach in early May 2023. 

We collectively urge the committee to prioritize this project as a way to preserve the city’s tax base and property values, as well as quality of life and the safety of drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians.

Signed

Waite Park Community Council Board
Cosmic Coffee, 3301 Central Ave
Gayle Bonneville, Projects and Positions Committee
Anna Haywood and family, 3246 Lincoln St NE
Nicholis Murphy, 3231 Johnson St NE
Krystle, Johnny, Johnae Murphy, 3243 Johnson St NE
Je’Naya Brown and Emma Veach, 3044 Tyler St NE