Through most of south Minneapolis, I35W is below grade, which in my opinion improves the livability of the adjacent areas; less noise, less dirt, less salt-spray, etc. More than a few people have asked throughout the Lake & 35W Access Project if putting the freeway below grade at Lake is an option.
It has recently come to my attention that the PAC did have their "consultants" do a study to ostensibly determine the feasibility of putting the freeway below grade at Lake Street. So far so good. Now the fun part. The authors of the "study" decided that the elevation of the Greenway could not be altered at all, for some reason, and postulated that the freeway would need to either go over or under the Greenway at it's current elevation. This assumption makes putting the freeway below grade at Lake essentially impossible. I do not understand why the elevation of the greenway could not be affected; as long as it was a gradual change. When the former railroad on the greenway was in use, it was clear that the tremendously heavy freight trains needed a constant grade. Even if at some future date light rail is added to the greenway, I've seen many light rail systems that can accomodate fairly serious grade issues, so I doubt that is the issue. Did the consultants just re-cycle an older study that really was limited by freight rails when it was written, or was this a way to achieve a pre-determined outcome? The expense to the taxpayers for this study, I am told, was about $15,000. Unless someone can provide material reasons for why the elevation of the greenway could not be altered, then I believe the taxpayers have been fleeced, and the study needs to be re-done by a more objective consultant. David Piehl Central __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! - Official partner of 2002 FIFA World Cup http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
