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The University of Minnesota has been constructive partner in the development of the Central Corridor Light Rail Transit (CCLRT) line for many years. The original proposal for the line included a tunnel under Washington Avenue as the line traversed the East Bank campus. Earlier this year, when it was determined that the cost of a tunnel might preclude this important transit project from receiving federal funding, an alternate alignment on Washington Avenue at-grade was proposed by the Metropolitan Council, the agency in charge of this project. That change necessitated a through study and analysis of the potential impacts to campus and the neighboring communities and businesses. After many months of work, an agreement stipulating how these impacts will be addressed is complete.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the Central Corridor Light Rail Transit (CCLRT) project will be presented to the University of Minnesota Board of Regents on July 9, 2008 for their approval. The MOU is an agreement between the Metropolitan Council, the Regents of the University of Minnesota, the City of Minneapolis, the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority, and Hennepin County (the Parties). The MOU lays the framework for addressing the impacts of the CCLRT and defines the mitigations that will be submitted to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for funding.
The MOU commits the Parties to working together cooperatively to resolve any outstanding project-related matters including mitigation impacts, design issues, construction issues, and operations matters for the Washington Avenue at-grade alignment with a transit/pedestrian mall. The MOU will define the scope and commitment of the Parties to the project mitigations and provide direction to develop a second MOU to address specific details of design, construction, and operations.
View the MOU here. (815 KB PDF)
View the Board of Regents resolution here. (431 KB PDF)
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