Penn Avenue safety improvements

We have developed a recommended design concept for the future of the road. In case we miss you at our August 19 event, take a look at the design and tell us what you think by leaving a comment on our interactive map and completing our survey online up until September 25.

We will use your feedback to refine the design and share the recommended design of Penn Avenue with City Council this Fall.

Community-driven design of Penn Avenue

The new Penn Avenue design is based on your preferences that address your vision and concerns and county policies and plans. Improvements include:

• Safer roundabout and limited access intersections, reducing potential crashes and speeding along Penn Avenue, and improving access for left turning vehicles to and from businesses
• Safer and more comfortable sidewalk-level bike lanes for people of all ages and abilities
• Safer and shorter crossings of Penn Avenue for people walking, biking, and rolling
• Wider green boulevards that separate people walking, biking, and rolling from vehicle traffic, while providing space for trees and areas to store snow after plowing and shoveling
• Expanded on-street parking between 65th and 68th streets to support local businesses

We have been gathering feedback on design concepts for a safer Penn Avenue. From February 2026 to July 2026, we made more than 400 points of contact in our third phase of engagement, including:

• An online engagement site
• An open house at Richfield Middle School
• A pop-up event at Lunds grocery store
• Conversations with the Richfield Transportation Commission
• Conversations with Penn Central business owners
• Conversations with Richfield City Council

We also mailed project information to residents and businesses and shared promotional materials through the community.

Key Themes

Here’s what we will be incorporating into our design based on your feedback:

• Sidewalk-level bicycle lanes and sidewalks, like 66th Street
• Boulevards and green space between bicycle lanes and roadway
• On-street parking between 65th and 68th streets
• Roundabouts at 64th, 69th, and 75th streets
• Safer intersection designs for people walking, rolling, biking, and driving

We are developing a recommended design based on your input that we will share with you this Fall for feedback.

We have been gathering feedback on a recommended vision for a safer Penn Avenue. From October 2025 to January 2026, we made more than 350 points of contact in our second phase of engagement, including:

• An online survey
• An open house at Sheridan Hills Elementary
• Tabling at Richfield Fare for All food distribution event
• Conversations with the Richfield Transportation Commission
• Conversations with Penn Central business owners

We also mailed project information to residents and businesses and shared promotional materials through the community.

Key Themes

Most people who responded support the project goals and vision. Specifically, we heard people:

• Prefer a 3-lane design
• Prefer sidewalk-level bicycle lanes
• Like roundabouts, primarily within the residential zone between 68^th and 75^th streets
• Want to prioritize green boulevards
• Want to see flashing signals at pedestrian crossings

We are developing design concepts based on your input that we will share with you this spring and summer for feedback.

From June to September 2025, we gathered feedback about community experiences through more than 3,000 points of contact with the public during our first phase of engagement with the following engagement activities:

• Open House
• Virtual comment map
• Tabling at Penn Fest, and Richfield Farmers Market, and St. Nicholas Church
• Multiple conversations with the Richfield Transportation Commission
• One-on-one conversations with Penn Central business owners
• Project information mailers and promotional materials

We used your feedback, the 2021 Penn Avenue Study, policies, and technical information to develop project goals for Penn Avenue to create a vision that reflects the feedback we heard this past summer. These goals serve as the basis from which we have developed roadway, bicycle, and pedestrian features and intersection treatments on which to get your input.

Join us Tuesday, November 18 from 4:30 to 7 p.m. at Sheridan Hills Elementary to help us decide what to include in the new design of Penn Avenue.

Your input will help us develop design concepts next spring that we will bring to the public for feedback.