Pioneer Press Thu, 03 Jan 2008 07:42:20 -0700
St. Paul / Council postpones Trader Joe's vote
The "Two-Buck Chuck" vote got chucked to next week.After almost an hour of public comment for and against a proposed Trader Joe's grocery store in Highland Park, the St. Paul City Council postponed a key vote Wednesday night until Jan. 9. The council's unanimous vote not to vote - likely the only time members will be in total agreement on the controversial proposal - avoided the prospect that swing votes could be cast by first-time council members sworn into office only hours earlier. ... The council heard plenty of information during the staff reports and public hearing, little of it new. The city's traffic engineers have signed off on the project. Yes, it'll cause more traffic, but the developers, TOLD Development and Meridian Management, are planning to add new traffic lanes and improve traffic signals to address it. They'll pay for that themselves. Some neighbors said more traffic means more trouble. Laura Wallace, who lives nearby, said her vehicles have been the subject of two recent hit-and-runs, thanks to traffic that she said is already hazardous. Some said they wanted redevelopment and new investment, but not Trader Joe's, and not there. Some local business leaders said new neighborhood grocers mean a better quality of life and less reliance on residential property taxes, with no tax incentives or government subsidies.
[[keywords: LandUse;Metro;]]
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