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City Tour Handout 20230 Commissioner Bus Tour September 19, 2023 City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 1 Infrastructure Improvement Project 42nd Avenue North In partnership with Hennepin County, the city completed various infrastructure improvements along 42nd Avenue North in 2023. The project aligned with the MnDOT’s Highway 169/42nd Avenue Bridge and Interchange Project, which also occurred in 2023, and included: • Burying Xcel Energy overhead power lines. • Installing a new traffic signal at Boone and 42nd avenues. • Installing new decorative lighting. • Paving a pedestrian trail on the south side of 42nd Avenue North between Boone and Gettysburg avenues. • Replacing the existing water main along 42nd Avenue North between Xylon and Gettysburg avenues. • Milling and overlaying 42nd Avenue North from Winnetka Avenue North to Gettysburg Avenue North. • ADA and signal push button improvements from Winnetka Avenue North to Gettysburg Avenue North. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 2 Scattered Site Housing Project 4201 & 4205 Boone Avenue North Construction is underway on one of the two new single-family homes that will be located at the northwest corner of 42nd and Boone avenues. The site was previously owned by TreeHouse, a nonprofit organization that serves teenagers. In 2021, the organization merged its New Hope and Plymouth locations and closed the New Hope building. The Economic Development Authority acquired the tax-exempt property, demolished the existing building, and split the lot into two parcels. Both parcels were sold to Great Buy Homes for the construction of two single- family homes. Both homes are split-level designs and include 2,537-square feet of finished space, five bedrooms, three bathrooms, and three-stall garages. Construction on the south lot (4201) will be completed this fall and construction on the north (4205) lot will begin shortly thereafter. The home under construction is currently listed for $469,000. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 3 Curbside Appeal Program Single & Two-Family Homes The city launched the Curbside Appeal Reimbursement Program in June of 2022 to assist single and two-family property owners with making upgrades to the exterior of their homes and garages in areas that are visible from the street. The city reimburses a portion of costs for projects meeting eligibility requirements. Goals of the program include improving the city’s housing stock, instilling confidence in neighborhoods, and increasing home values. Projects must be pre-approved by city staff, cost at least $4,000 and be completed within 180 days. The program reimburses property owners for 25% of eligible project costs with a maximum reimbursement of $5,000. Funding for the program is dispersed on a first-come, first-served basis. To date, 18 projects valued at approximately $175,000 have been approved. Projects include new front porches, additions with roofline alterations, new front doors and garage doors, new windows, and stone address numbers. 7 City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 4 Scattered Site Housing Project 3611 Louisiana Avenue North The city acquired the distressed property at 3611 Louisiana Avenue North in December of 2022. The home was demolished in the spring and the lot has been prepared for the construction of a new single-family home. The lot was sold to Great Buy Homes for the construction of a 2,537-square foot split-level home. It will feature five bedrooms, three bathrooms, and a three-stall garage. The front of the home will be reversed (garage left) from what is depicted. The builder is projecting that the home will sell for $475,000 to $480,000. The primary focus of the scattered site housing program is to target distressed single-family properties throughout the city, with the goal of improving residential neighborhoods. Objectives include removing distressed and/or blighted properties, providing step-up housing options in the city, improving the city’s overall housing stock, investing and instilling confidence into neighborhoods, and increasing housing and land values. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 5 Ice Arena – South Rink 4949 Louisiana Avenue North Last November, a contract was awarded to All-American Arena Products to replace the cement floor, dasher boards, and glass in the south rink at the New Hope Ice Arena. The previous floor, boards, and glass were installed in 1996 when the south rink was originally built. The project started in March and was completed in June of 2023. It included replacement of the 86' x 201' concrete floor system including replacement of the piping, insulation, vapor barrier, and concrete. It also included replacement of the existing dasher boards and glass, including the player, penalty, and timekeeper boxes. The project also included the addition of 25 advertising panels that will be used as a protective covering for "drop in" advertising panels. Armstrong Cooper Youth Hockey Association and the city have an ongoing partnership for dasher board advertisements. The project was completed for approximately $1,075,000 and was paid for with an interfund loan from the Temporary Financing Fund, which will be paid back over 15 years. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 6 Scattered Site Housing Project 4965 Winnetka Avenue North The EDA acquired the property in June of 2023 with plans to demolish the existing building, split the lot into two parcels, and sell the lots to a builder to construct two new single-family homes. Prior to demolition work, the property will be used for police and fire training exercises. The fire department will conduct live fire training exercises throughout the day on October 7. City staff will process the lot split this winter and market the lots to builders for the construction of two new single-family homes off 50th Avenue North in the spring of 2024. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 7 Scattered Site Housing Project 5306 Rhode Island Avenue North Fieldstone Family Homes recently completed construction of the single- family home that sold for $550,000. The 2,259 square foot home includes four bedrooms and a den, three bathrooms, a three-stall garage, a front porch, and a deck. The home that was previously located at this property was deconstructed by the nonprofit organization Better Futures Minnesota. Deconstruction is an environmentally friendly alternative to the typical demolition of buildings. Unlike demolition, deconstruction carefully removes a house or building so that materials can be recycled, repurposed, or reused instead of being sent to a landfill. Since the scattered site housing program was reinstituted in 2014, the EDA has coordinated the construction or rehabilitation of 26 single-family homes, increasing the city’s tax base by approximately $5.5 million. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 8 Infrastructure Improvement Project 2023 Projects The 2023 Infrastructure Improvement Project involves the mill and overlay of 0.39 miles of roadway and the reclaim and overlay of 2.1 miles of roadway. Pavement rehabilitation methods were determined by the city engineer based on current pavement conditions. This area was determined based on the 10-Year Pavement Management Plan. In addition to the pavement improvements, portions of the water main were replaced along 37th, Virginia, Xylon, and Yukon avenues. These sections of water main were in poor condition with a history of water breaks. Work was completed between May and August of 2023. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 9 Seal Coating & Fog Sealing 2023 Projects To maximize the life of the pavement on the city streets, the city schedules annual crack repair, seal coating, and fog sealing of selected streets. This activity is a critical part of the city’s current pavement management strategy. This summer over 12 miles of city streets had varying degrees of crack repairs, seal coating, and fog sealing. The intent of this process is to seal the roadway to limit moisture from absorbing into the asphalt, which is the leading cause of asphalt failure. After the road cracks are filled, the contractor applies an asphaltic emulsion and trap rock aggregate. Excess rock is swept off the roadway prior to the fog sealing. The fog sealing further seals the road surface and eliminates any excess rock release. It also provides the appearance and feel of a brand-new road surface, while extending the lifespan of the roadway. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 10 Scattered Site Housing Project 5802 Boone Avenue North In June of 2023, the Economic Development Authority approved a contract to demolish the home. The property had been deemed uninhabitable and had gone into foreclosure. The site was prepared for redevelopment and a Request for Proposals was sent to homebuilders this summer. The lot will be sold to Great Buy Homes for the construction of a 2,537- square foot split-level home. The home will feature five bedrooms, three bathrooms, and a three-stall garage. The builder is projecting that the it will sell for $475,000 to $480,000. The home and garage will be configured to face north, along Boone Place, and the curb cut along Boone Avenue North will be eliminated. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 11 Meadow Lake Pickleball Courts 8525 62nd Avenue North With the increase demand for pickleball courts, the existing courts at Meadow Lake School are being converted from three pickleball courts to eight courts. The courts were built approximately 25 years ago as three tennis courts. Several years ago, pickleball markings were added to the courts and clips were added to the nets so they could be temporarily adjusted to pickleball height. In 2021, the nets were permanently adjusted to pickleball height. This project is being done as part of the 2023 Street Infrastructure project but will be paid for with Park Infrastructure Funds. Earlier this year, a lighting retro fit project also took place. The existing light poles were reused, and the retrofit included new LED fixtures, electrical wiring from the fixtures to the panel boxes, a wireless control system, and a player activated push button. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 12 Safe Routes to School Grant Boone & 62nd Avenues In December of 2022, the Metropolitan Council approved the city’s grant application for infrastructure improvements near Meadow Lake Elementary. The city requested $363,000 in federal funds for the project, which includes the installation of high-visibility crosswalks, flashing stop signs, curb extensions and ADA-compliant ramps, blinking pedestrian crossing lights, stop bars, additional signage, and the elimination of a turn lane. The intersection was identified as an area of concern for students walking to and from school. A 2019 demonstration project allowed the city to evaluate potential infrastructure improvements to the intersection before investing in permanent changes. Improvements are scheduled for 2027. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 13 Park Signage 2023 Projects Various signs are being added to city parks this year. A new Urban Orchard sign for Little Acre Park was installed, and a flyer display board was also purchased and will be installed at Liberty Park this fall. New park signs have been ordered and will be replaced at Lions, Little Acre, Meadow Lake, and Terra Linda parks. A grant was received from Hennepin County for the Paso a Paso and Find Your Five programs, and these funds were used to purchase new park signs with maps for Begin, Fred Sims, Liberty, Sunnyside, and Victory parks. These funds were also used to purchase wooden posts and smaller park name signs for Dorothy Mary, Civic Center, Hidden Valley, Northwood, Lions, and Meadow Lake parks. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 14 Liberty Park Playground 9015 60th Avenue North Earlier this year, the playground at Liberty Park was updated. It was last replaced in 2000 and was the oldest in the park system. Staff held neighborhood meetings in November 2022 and a decision was made on the final design for the new play equipment. In December, the City Council awarded the project to Flagship Recreation and Landscape Structures, who refurbished identified components, installed additional playground equipment, and added geotextile fabric, playground mats, poured in place material, and engineered wood fiber. Installation of a sunshade, picnic table, and minor concrete repair work was also completed. Some benches in the area were replaced by city staff. Funding for this project was available in the Park Infrastructure Fund and is estimated at $200,000, including indirect costs. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 15 Liberty Park Basketball Court 9015 60th Avenue North The basketball court at Liberty Park is being fully reconstructed with new basketball hoops to be installed. The previous court was built almost 30 years ago and had varying levels of repairs over the years. As part of this project, the Utility Department staff also replaced a portion of watermain pipe from Gettysburg Avenue to the general skating rink area. This project is being completed as part of the 2023 Street Infrastructure project with funding from the Park Infrastructure Fund. Project costs are expected to be approximately $70,000, including indirect costs. To help with some of the project costs, a $3,000 Hennepin Youth Sports Equipment Grant was received. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 16 Emerald Ash Borer City Parks & Boulevards The city is currently dealing with severe infestations of Emerald Ash Borer. Parks – Many park ash trees have either been taken down or have been identified for removal this year. Greater efforts to remove park trees will continue over the next several years to bring ash tree infestations to manageable levels. Replacement trees will be planted for many of the trees removed, but the timing will vary from park to park depending on the season, weather, tree availability, and funding. Boulevards – The city also continues to work on the removal of dead and dying ash trees along the boulevard areas. In 2022, nearly 400 ash trees were removed from the city’s boulevards. Staff expects to remove as many, if not more, trees this year. Funding – Due to the elevated number of removals and replacements identified for 2023, additional funding was needed. Transfers from the Parks Infrastructure Fund assisted with park trees and transfers from the Streets Infrastructure Fund assisted with removal and replacement of infested ash trees in boulevard areas. The city forester has also been proactive in applying for grants. City of New Hope 2023 Commissioner Bus Tour 17 Lighted Baseball Field 8810 49th Avenue North Several improvements to Lighted Baseball Field were budgeted for 2023. Lighting retrofits took place this winter due to the need to work around the Osprey nest that is located on top of the left field lights. The retrofits included new LED fixtures, electrical wiring from the fixtures to the panel boxes, a wireless control system with performance monitoring, and an electrical service upgrade. The upgrade will provide environmentally friendly lighting for the residential area with less light spillage and the savings from LED lights will also be beneficial. Field work started this fall and will include reshaping and grading the infield grass area, infield, and baselines, reshaping and leveling a portion of the outfield, replacing the fence (backstop posts will remain), and rebuilding the pitcher’s mound. The use of sod, rather than seed, will be used in order for play to resume on the field next spring. The batting cage located north of the field, will also be replaced. The project includes trail improvements, and a shade structure will replace the old park building. Funding is available in the Park Infrastructure Fund, and the total cost is estimated at $896,000, which includes indirect costs. A grant award of $10,000 was received from the Twins Community Fund.