MUSCATINE, Iowa – The eastbound lane of East 2nd Street will reopen to traffic on Monday, Aug. 17, but the westbound lane will be closed as the second phase of the 2nd Street Streetscape Project continues.
Work resumed this week on the final section of the West Side Trail, from Crossroads, Inc., to Discovery Park, and grading of West 8th Street from Linn to Broadway in preparation for paving as part of Phase 4C of the West Hill Sanitary & Storm Sewer Separation Project is also underway.
The eastbound lane of the 200 block of East 2nd Street was closed on July 28 as KE Flatwork, Inc., the prime contractor for the project, began curb and gutter replacement along with replacement of the sidewalk on the south side of the block. The replacement work has been completed with Eastern Iowa Landscaping scheduled to complete installing the brickwork over the weekend. Stripping of the parking spaces on the south side will also be completed over the weekend, weather permitting, and prior to the change in lane closures.
Muscatine Power & Water (MPW) relocated the light poles from the north side to the south side on Friday, and anticipated having the poles energized, but that time frame could change if unforeseen circumstances are encountered.
KE Flatwork, Inc., will switch the lane closures from the eastbound lane to the westbound lane on Monday depending when all work on the south side has been completed to ensure the safety of work crews. Once the switch has been made, westbound traffic through the 200 block of East 2nd Street will be detoured to Cedar Street, to 3rd Street, to Sycamore Street, and back to 2nd Street. Traffic will be permitted eastbound through the construction area.
No parking will be permitted on the north side of the 200 block of East 2nd Street starting Monday as work begins on north side curb and gutter replacement. Advanced notice cones were placed on the north side Friday.
Full depth patching in the driving lanes of the 200 block of East 2nd Street will be done once the north side has been completed. Drivers need to be aware that there will be parking and traffic restrictions during the full depth patching process.
The 2nd Street Streetscape Project includes replacing the curb, gutter, and sidewalks on both sides of the street along with some full depth patching in the driving lanes from Walnut to Pine and includes some work from Walnut to the Roundabout. Work in the 300 block of East 2nd Street been completed except for some punch list items that will be addressed later.
The second stage also includes the reconstruction of the intersection of 2nd and Sycamore streets to match the work completed at the 2nd and Cedar intersection. The intersection work is tentatively scheduled to begin after work in the 200 block of East 2nd Street is completed. The intersection at Iowa and 2nd Street is also scheduled for replacement as part of the project.
The construction contract does not allow project work to continue past October 1 in each year of the two-year project, and work on the Sycamore Street and 2nd Street intersection may be postponed until the start of the 2021 construction season. The contractor indicated that, depending on available time, replacement of the curb, gutter, and sidewalks in the 100 block of East 2nd Street may occur before the intersection work.
All dates are tentative and dependent on weather conditions or other unforeseen circumstances.
Drivers are urged to use caution when proceeding in or around construction areas and to find alternate routes of travel when possible.
West Hill Sewer Separation Phase 4C
The second stage of Phase 4C of the West Hill Sanitary and Storm Sewer Separation Project (WHSSSSP) has completed underground work with prime contractor KE Flatwork, Inc., currently grading West 8th Street from Linn Street to just east of the Broadway intersection for paving. Work on repaving Linn Street along with sidewalks and driveways on Linn Street has been completed. Paving of West 8th Street may begin the week of August 17, weather permitting.
Work on this stage of Phase 4C is expected to continue to September 2, weather permitting. This section will be opened to local traffic only before the final stage of Phase 4C begins. The final stage includes the Broadway and 8th Street intersection along with work on Roscoe Avenue and Maiden Lane. The current tentative schedule has all work completed by October 15, weather permitting.
A full closure of West 8th Street from Linn to Broadway, and Linn Street from 7th Street to 8th Street will remain in effect through the end of the project. Portions of West 8th Street from Iowa to Linn may have lane restrictions as the Phase 4B punch list items are completed.
Traffic is detoured to 7th Street from Cedar to Broadway, and Broadway from 7th Street back to 8th Street. No parking will be allowed on even number side (river side) of 7th Street from Cedar Street to Broadway, or on the east side (odd number) side of Broadway from 7th to 8th Street. The detour route will remain in place until the project is completed in October. There may be a slight change to the detour route once work begins on the final stage of Phase 4C.
All dates are tentative and dependent on weather conditions or other unforeseen circumstances.
Drivers are urged to use caution when proceeding in or around construction areas and to find alternate routes of travel when possible.
West Side Trail
Heuer Construction, Inc., has resumed work for the West Side Trail project from Crossroads, Inc., to Discovery Park. Wok on this section was delayed by the infrastructure work for the Arbor Commons development. The contractor has completed the trail from Hershey Avenue to Crossroads, Inc., along Houser Street and has permitted that section to be opened for public use.
Mississippi Drive lane restrictions
Muscatine Power & Water (MPW) will be continuing underground work as part of the Mississippi Driver Corridor Reconstruction Project by moving the overhead 69kV power lines underground. Lane restrictions are possible as the lines are moved underground, and the power poles on the river side of Mississippi Drive from the bluff area upriver to the HNI property are removed to provide an unrestricted view of the Mississippi River from the Downtown Muscatine Business District.
All dates are tentative and dependent on weather conditions or other unforeseen circumstances. Drivers are urged to use caution when proceeding in or around construction areas and to find alternate routes of travel when possible.
Park Avenue 4-to-3 Lane Conversion Project
The Park Avenue 4-to-3 Lane Conversion Project was awarded to Manatts, Inc., at the June 16, 2020, Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) bid opening, and approved and accepted by the Muscatine City County at the July 1`6 Council meeting. Manatts, Inc., bid of $1.97 million was lower than the projected cost of $2.3 million and the lowest of three bids received by the Iowa DOT.
The project improvements focus specifically on safety, including traffic lane reconfiguration that would change the road from four lanes (two operating in each direction) to three lanes (one lane in each direction and a center two-way, left turn lane from Harrison Street to the Iowa 92 bridge. A total of 78 new curb ramps, full depth patching of Park Avenue, improvements to traffic lights at four intersections, and an asphalt overlay of the roadway are part of the project.
A pre-construction meeting was held on July 27 but a schedule for the work has not been announced as yet.