LRT Plans Lead to Proposed Starlite Center Improvements
The Starlite Shopping Center is located near the future Brooklyn Boulevard Light Rail Transit Station. It’s a popular destination for many pedestrians and bicyclists. Many folks visit the area to go shopping at the two anchor stores– Cub Foods and Target.
Now, Brooklyn Park, Hennepin County and local businesses are teaming up to improve safety measures in the area.
Light Rail Congestion
“Assuming light rail comes, that whole area is going to blow up, also because now you have a bunch of people coming in and out of there,” Brooklyn Park Mayor Jeff Lunde said.
He says many people will walk or get dropped off at the light rail stop.
Denise Butler is with African Career Education Resources Incorporated, one of the group’s trying to make the shopping center a more vibrant, safer space.
She said “The station will be exactly outside of McDonald’s out there and you noticed there’s a transit station over there, so how do people get off that bus and be able to navigate through this parking lot?”
Brooklyn Park officials say others are also worried about walking from the east into Cub, because they have to cross the street and a parking lot.
Temporary Safety Measures Installed
But with more congestion coming to the area, city, county and local agencies want to make is safer for pedestrians and bicyclists, so they installed yellow markers, creating a wide path, to help people navigate from the busy streets to stores. The safety measure is in place until the end of August. Once the temporary project is done, officials will look at the data.
“We’re going to have people there watching and counting and observing to see how traffic flows at different times of day,” Lunde explained.
