Southwest LRT compromise draws hundreds to hearing

Hundreds of people packed a public meeting Tuesday night in Minneapolis about a new Southwest light rail route compromise, and from the the sounds of it, many weren't there as a show of support for the deal.

July 9: Mediator forges rail deal; no formal approval yet

"This is not what we had started off expecting," said Mayor Betsy Hodges. "There are great costs to the city as a result of moving forward in this way, and that has to be acknowledged."

At the heart of the transit agreement is a scaled-back version of the so-called shallow tunnel proposal. Rather than building two tunnels for the trains as they pass through the Kenilworth Corridor between Cedar Lake and Lake of the Isles, there would be only one tunnel -- the one south of the channel between the two lakes. Instead of a tunnel north of the channel, the trains will run at ground level.

In spite of those costs, the mayor says she "wholeheartedly" endorses the agreement, which she, two City Council members and city staff negotiated behind closed doors with the Metropolitan Council.

Bob Sherman lives near that part of the planned route. At last night's meeting he said eliminating the north tunnel only makes the project worse.

"The overall effect of this is going to be extremely disruptive -- both in the construction and in the final product -- to the peace and gentility of the neighborhood in which I live," he said.

City officials say getting rid of the north tunnel will actually make the construction process less intrusive. But they acknowledge eliminating it would mean more noise for some neighbors once trains start running.

The deal also gives residents near the Kenilworth Corridor a place to board the light rail trains at 21st St. But Sherman isn't thrilled about that, either.

"From my point of view -- and probably many around me, who will not be using it -- I would find it only a disruptive influx of traffic we don't want," he said.

The line would connect Minneapolis to St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Minnetonka and Eden Prairie, and the line's supporters also turned out for the meeting.

Gerald Savage predicted that without support from Minneapolis, the project would be mothballed, and future transit improvements would go elsewhere, damaging the city's tax base.

"So the prudent thing to do is to focus on the majority of the property owners and not just .01 percent in Kenilworth. Minneapolis needs to move forward with the Southwest light rail project," he said

Still, some supporters of the line are skeptical of the deal. Several groups representing minority residents wanted to see the city win more concessions that would improve transit in north Minneapolis.