And the train keeps on coming

Transit hit the front page of the Star Tribune again today, as East Metro’s complains that it is not being served. (East Metro means Washington County and Scott County, with Ramsey County and St. Paul counted as served by the Central Corridor.) The Strib notes that:

In addition to the Hiawatha light-rail line from downtown Minneapolis to the Mall of America, the west metro area is getting the Northstar commuter rail line from Minneapolis to Big Lake and bus rapid transit along Interstate 35W and Cedar Avenue south of the city. Plans for a Southwest Corridor light-rail line from Minneapolis to Eden Prairie appear to be high on the list of what’s next.

Meanwhile, MPR, two churches, people who depend on the #50 and #16 buses for daily transportation, and businesses up and down University Avenue in St. Paul continue to protest that LRT plans will leave them without sufficient bus service, without parking spaces for customers, without access for handicapped churchgoers and hearses, and with an excess of noise and vibration.

In November, the Strib interviewed the pastor of Central Presbyterian:

Colby is worried that vibrations will affect his building’s foundation and the domed ceiling over its 1,100-seat sanctuary. The fact that the rail tracks will seal off his church’s access to Cedar Street is another major concern. No hearses will be allowed to park out front for funerals, and the driveway that allows handicapped members to park or be dropped off next to a wheelchair-accessible entrance will be closed.”

and the pastor of the Church of St. Louis:

Next door to Colby’s church is the Church of St. Louis, King of France, which was designed by the architect of both the Cathedral of St. Paul and the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis. The building, which will celebrate its centennial next year, has been meticulously restored in the past couple of decades, and a new, million-dollar organ was installed in 1998.
Had the Central Corridor route been definite at that time, “the organ would have been designed quite differently,” said the Rev. Paul Morrissey, who has been at the church since 1985 and pastor since 1988. As things are now, he said, “the constant vibrations from the train would cause the organ to be permanently out of tune.” A retrofit is possible, at a cost of $100,000, he said. It’s not clear who would pay.

Morrissey also notes that the loss of parking in front of the church during daily masses “would be a blow to the church’s predominantly elderly membership.”

Since MPR and the University of Minnesota, both with concerns about vibration and noise, are big players, the Central Corridor Project produced a new study in January. The Strib reported that, predictably, the Central Corridor Project-produced “216-page report shows vibration concerns can be resolved in every case.” Also predictably, the report failed to convince the U of M laboratories that will be impacted by the trains or MPR and the churches.

Responses to small businesses faced with years of construction and complete loss of on-street parking, and to people whose bus transportation will be slashed, replaced only by LRT stations spaced a mile apart in poor neighborhoods, has been less than satisfactory to both constituencies. Central Corridor Project promises to put in some kind of infrastructure to make it possible — at some undetermined future date when there is enough money — to add three more stations to serve lower-income communities better. The response to businesses along University Avenue has been more along the lines of “we hear your concerns.”

The Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder summarized concerns of University Avenue area residents:

The train will stop 15 times as it journeys between St. Paul and Minneapolis. But, in an area where more than 40 percent of the population doesn’t own cars and depends on bikes and physical ability to get to bus stations, a light-rail stop every mile or so isn’t enough, according to neighbors.

In response to this issue, the Met Council has proposed including the infrastructure of three additional stops during construction. If enough funding is allocated, the extra stops will be added.
Minority business owners are especially concerned that their businesses will not be able to withstand the loss of customers during and after the construction process. Parking spaces will be lost to make room for the rail line on University Avenue. Snow removal will be challenging; there will be less room for the snow at the curbside, since lanes for traffic and a lane for the train will have to be accommodated.

The Twn Cities Daily Planet noted that older residents draw parallels between the destruction of the African American Rondo community in the 1960s and today’s light rail plan:

Dennis Presley Sr., 58, recalled the last major transportation project in this area. In the 1960s, Presley watched Interstate 94 slice through the heart of the Rondo neighborhood. The construction decimated Saint Paul’s vibrant, tight-knit, African American community. He saw many of the businesses shut down and families, including his own, displaced. Presley believes approving the current light-rail proposal will result in the same devastation and lead to the disenfranchisement of people of color again. “Will the light rail do that again to our neighborhood? I think so, no matter what our government says. I’m not happy with this at all.”

To all of its critics, the Central Corridor Project (and Met Council) have two standard responses, roughly summarized as:

Response #1: “We hear you and we will take your concerns seriously, (but not seriously enough to make any changes in the master plan.)”

Response #2: “The plan is too far advanced for changes at this stage, and we have been working on it for years and listening to all concerned parties, and everything will be fine.” (See Response #1.)

As the Central Corridor train rolls inexorably toward construction, University Avenue businesses continue to seek strategies for survival. The University Avenue Business Association is sponsoring a survey and meetings to “learn more and give your input about seeking financial assistance for small businesses to manage Light Rail construction” (January 15) and to “Explore your ideas and others for retaining more street parking and calling for action to keep small businesses in business. Your time will result in recommendations to change the current plans of eliminating 85% of the street parking that serves our businesses and residents on University Avenue today.” (January 29).