MUSCATINE, Iowa – City officials and the general contractor are pleased with the progress of the Mississippi Drive Corridor Reconstruction Project but both know that there is a long road (pardon the pun) ahead before the project is completed. Mother Nature is not always kind to outdoor construction projects and delays on one site may mean delays on another.
KE Flatwork has completed most of the major pours for Mississippi Drive with a section of the Mulberry Avenue intersection yet to be poured, and 2nd Street from Orange to Oak is scheduled for paving next week. In addition, KE Flatwork is coordinating the paving on Phase 4A of the West Hill Sewer Separation Project on 7th Street. That paving, from Iowa to Cedar, is also expected to begin next week.
Two road closures that are not part of the Mississippi Drive or West Hill projects will also affect drivers next week.
PARHAM TO BE CLOSED ONE WEEK
Muscatine Power & Water (MPW) will be installing new water main on Young Street that will need to be connected to the new water main on Parham and that will require Parham, from Mulberry Avenue to Cedar Street, to be closed for one week (June 11-18). Traffic on Young will be reduced to one lane at the same time. Emergency access to UnityPoint Health-Trinity Muscatine will be available from Cedar Street as will access to the specialty clinics on Parham. MPW is also coordinating to replace the electric distribution on Young Street during this time.
PART OF MUSSER STREET CLOSED FOR THREE DAYS
A new water and electrical service is scheduled to be installed at 1110 Musser Street which will necessitate the closure of Musser Street at that location June 11-13. The water main is located on the south shoulder of Musser Street and MPW will be installing a six-inch tap on the water main and running the pipe across the street.
100 BLOCK OF LINN STREET CLOSED FOR SIX WEEKS
The 100 block of Linn Street is currently closed to traffic at the intersection with Mississippi Drive as is #1 Alley at Pine Street. Muscatine Power & Water (MPW) has contracted with Triple B Construction for underground electrical work that will connect the underground cabling along Mississippi Drive with the substation. The work is tentatively scheduled to be completed by July 17.
2ND STREET (Mulberry to Mad Creek)
The second section of 2nd Street to be closed as part of the Mississippi Drive Corridor Reconstruction Project will take place on Monday, June 11, when 2nd Street from Oak Street east to just west of the Family Dollar store will be closed to traffic. Access to the Family Dollar Store will be maintained from Park Avenue west down 2nd Street.
KE Flatwork will begin removing the pavement on this section of the project in advance of the arrival of a company that will bore underneath the railroad for the installation of the new storm sewer line. The company is expected to arrive Wednesday and begin the bore on Thursday. Underground work on this section is tentatively scheduled to be completed August 21 when the section will be prepared for paving.
Preparation for paving of 2nd Street from Orange to Oak is well underway with the first pour for this section of the reconstruction project scheduled for Monday (weather permitting). All concrete work, landscaping, and signage is tentatively scheduled for completion June 25 when work shifts to the Oak Street intersection.
Limited access to 2nd Street will remain throughout the construction process.
KE Flatwork anticipates closing the final section of the 2nd Street project (2nd Street east of Family Dollar to Mad Creek) on October 1 with a tentative completion date of November 12.
A final walk through and completion of punch list along the reconstructed section of 2nd Street will be the last step before the street is reopened to all traffic in mid-November.
MISSISSIPPI DRIVE (Sycamore to Mulberry)
The major pours on Mississippi Drive are nearly complete with KE Flatwork working to complete the driving lanes at the Mulberry Avenue intersection. The contractor is hopeful to have the major pours completed this weekend, weather permitting.
Work on the Cedar Street railroad crossing has been delayed as engineers at Bolton & Menk work with Canadian Pacific to resolve issues concerning sidewalk installation. The tentative schedule has all concrete work, including sidewalks, completed by July 27. Landscaping, brickwork, and installation of signage will follow and take approximately two months.
The revised tentative has reconstructed Mississippi Drive open to traffic at the end of September pending completion of punch list items found during final inspection by City of Muscatine project managers and KE Flatwork officials.
City officials note that although the work appears to be slightly ahead of schedule, changes in the weather could delay the completion date. Mississippi Drive from Iowa to the #1 Alley on Mulberry Avenue will remain closed to traffic until all subcontractors (landscaping, brick work, signage, etc.) have completed their work.
THE ROUNDABOUT
The roundabout at the Mulberry-2nd Street intersection is on hold at the present time but city officials hope to have the project out for bid this fall. The exact schedule has not been established pending the outcome of property acquisition. The roundabout design will be completed soon and ready for presentation to the City Council at the appropriate time.
City officials and project managers have been meeting with business owners affected by the 2nd Street work and those who would be affected by the roundabout project to listen to and address any concerns they would have. The next business owners meeting is set for June 21 in the lower level conference room at Muscatine City Hall.
7TH STREET (Cedar to Locust)
Work on Phase 4A (7th Street) of the West Hill Sewer Separation Project completed its sixth week and has moved past the Chestnut Street intersection. KMA Excavating began working in the 200 block of East 7th Street on April 30 and has now moved into the 200 block of West 7th Street.
Phase 4A includes 7th Street from Cedar to Locust and the 700 blocks of Locust and Spruce.
KE Flatwork has started the process of preparing the completed sections for paving beginning with the Iowa Avenue intersection and working east toward Cedar Street. The original plan for the 4A work was to repave 7th Street in two block chunks as the underground work moved west. Paving of the Iowa Avenue intersection is tentatively scheduled to start on Monday (June 11) with paving continuing east toward Cedar Street. The Iowa Avenue intersection is anticipated to reopen the week of June 18. Paving of the Sycamore Street intersection is tentatively scheduled for completion June 23 with the 200 block of East 7th Street tentatively scheduled for completion July 7 and the 100 block of East 7th Street on July 28.
The Sycamore and Chestnut Street have been temporarily reopened but will be closed when work begins to repave the intersections. Drivers are urged to seek alternate routes around the construction area. Drivers are also reminded that the 200 block of West 7th Street is closed and the Pine Street intersection will be closed when underground work reaches the intersection.
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 2nd Street. To bypass the construction work on 2nd Street drivers are urged to use 5th Street from Park Avenue to Mulberry Avenue (no trucks allowed on 5th Street from Park Avenue to Cypress) or use 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.