MUSCATINE, Iowa – Wednesday’s two-inch rain did not dampen the efforts of KE Flatwork, Inc., and KMA Excavating crews this week. Work continued on several fronts in Muscatine with KE Flatwork working on preparing Mississippi Drive for paving from Sycamore to Mulberry, and KMA Excavating completing sanitary and storm sewer work on 2nd Street from Orange to Oak while also completing the first half block of the 7th Street sewer separation project.
MISSISSIPPI DRIVE (Sycamore to Mulberry)
The rising Mississippi River is expected to have no impact on the unpaved portion of Mississippi Drive with KE Flatwork set to begin pouring concrete at the Sycamore Street-Mississippi Drive intersection next week. Paving will continue toward Cedar Street as weather permits.
Underground conduit work from Walnut to Mulberry will be completed within the next week which will allow that section to be prepared for paving.
This section of the Mississippi Drive Corridor Project is still projected to be finished by late October or early November.
2ND STREET (Mulberry to Mad Creek)
Work on the sanitary and storm sewers from Orange to Oak streets has been completed but the roadway needs a little drying out before KE Flatwork can begin preparing that section for paving. The schedule calls for that section to be paved before work moves to the next section which includes the Oak Street intersection and 2nd Street up to the Family Dollar store.
Work on the next section will not begin until after a crew arrives to bore underneath the railroad crossing. That work is anticipated to be completed in late May. One that task is completed KE Flatwork and KMA Excavating will begin work on the Oak Street intersection. However, that intersection will remain open until the reconstruction work actually begins.
The schedule for the second stage (Oak Street intersection to the railroad crossing) has a tentative completion date of August 13 for the portion that includes the Oak Street intersection to the railroad crossing and a tentative completion date of September 17 for the section from the railroad crossing to the Family Dollar store.
The third stage will take place from Family Dollar to Mad Creek (Sept. 17-Oct. 12) and the fourth stage will complete the reconstruction of the Orange Street intersection (Sept. 17-Oct. 12).
MISSISSIPPI DRIVE (Chestnut to Broadway)
Mississippi Drive from Chestnut to Broadway was reopened to traffic on Saturday (April 28). The monument at the Pine Street intersection and the street signs are waiting for the final pieces to arrive but should not cause a complete closure of the street to complete. Video surveillance and cleaning of the sewer system along Mississippi Drive is nearly complete with work yet to be completed near the Iowa Avenue intersection.
MPW will be closing Linn Street from Mississippi Drive to the #1 alley for underground electrical work that will connect the underground cabling along Mississippi Drive with the substation within in the next month.
7TH STREET (Cedar to Sycamore)
KMA Excavating began working in the 200 block of East 7th Street on April 30 and has completed the first half block despite the two-inch rain Wednesday. Work is expected to continue up the block next week and be close to the Sycamore Street intersection. Drivers should anticipate that intersection to be closed within the next two weeks although the actual time period is dependent on the weather.
Work on Phase 4A includes 7th Street from Cedar to Locust and the 700 blocks of Locust and Spruce. The separation work will be accomplished on a block-by-block basis throughout the summer and fall of 2018. Parking will be allowed on the portions of the street unaffected by the separation work until crews from KMA Excavating begin the sewer separation work in specific blocks.
The contractor and project managers for the City of Muscatine will attempt to restore each block to useable condition as soon as practical after the sewer work has been completed until the street pavement is replaced. Pavement replacement will require the poured sections to be closed for at least a week as the concrete cures.
KE Flatwork, Inc., of Elbridge, Iowa, was awarded the $6.1 million contract for Phase IV of the West Hill Sewer Separation Project at the April 5, 2018 Muscatine City Council meeting. The contract spans three years with work completed in three phases.
Phase 4A is expected to be completed by November 30, 2018.
THE CONES OF DETOUR
Two detours were established for drivers to use as work progresses on 2nnd Street this construction season including using 5th Street from Park Avenue to Mulberry Avenue (no trucks) and using Washington Street from Park Avenue to Cypress then to 8th Street to Mulberry (truck traffic allowed).
In two areas (the intersection of Cypress and Washington and the intersection of 5th and Mulberry) cones have been set in the roadway. The cones divide a turning lane in half and keep traffic down to one lane. This, along with no parking signs on Mulberry approaching 5th Street, was set up to allow for larger vehicles with larger turning radius to be able to make the turn without damaging other vehicles or public property.
Drivers are asked to be cautious at these intersections and be alert to larger vehicles attempting to turn from one street to another.