MUSCATINE, Iowa – While it may look like little is being done on Phase 2 of the Mississippi Drive Corridor Reconstruction Project (MDCRP), Department of Public Works Director Brian Stineman urges the public to be patient.
“We are not going to open up Mississippi Drive until everything is done,” Stineman told the Muscatine City Council Thursday (Aug. 16). “We are going to make sure that every sub has completed their job, every punch list item is taken care of, and there will not need to be another full closure of this second of the road.”
There will be a brief, one-day closure next week in the Phase 1 area as the westbound lane on Mississippi Drive from Pine to Broadway will be closed on Friday, Aug. 24, to allow the landscaping contractor (Heritage Landscaping) to do maintenance on the medians. The lane closure will be implemented at 7 a.m. on Aug. 24 and last until the work is completed.
MISSISSIPPI DRIVE CORRIDOR RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT
ASI Signage Innovations was on site Thursday (Aug. 16) installing the street signs at the Mississippi Drive intersections while Heister Masonry put the 2,400 pound caps on the monuments located at the Walnut and Pine intersections.
Phase 2 (Iowa to Mulberry) continues to move toward completion with prime contractor KE Flatwork replacing a damaged sidewalk near the Mulberry intersection and then focusing on the Cedar Street railroad crossing starting Monday (Aug. 20). Weather permitting, the work on the crossing will be completed by Wednesday with Smith Fencing coming in to complete the Quiet Zone work in the final two days of the week.
KE Flatwork has been backfilling the medians and intersection areas with dirt as Heritage Landscaping is expected to begin installing plants on Monday. KE Flatwork has also started the process of cleaning the expansion joints of the roadway and sidewalks for caulking and tarring.
Muscatine Power & Water (MPW) installed the streets lights this past week and will begin installation of traffic signal lights at the Cedar Street intersection once KE Flatwork has completed work on the railroad crossing.
Another crucial piece to completing the project will also begin soon. KMA Excavating will be returning to the Phase 2 area to clean the sanitary and storm sewer lines from Iowa to Mulberry. KMA will also use a camera to visually inspect and record each line before the lines are accepted by the City of Muscatine.
Phase 2 of the MDCRP is tentatively scheduled for completion by Sept. 29, weather depending.
2ND STREET – Mulberry to Mad Creek
Major underground work in the Oak Street intersection with 2nd Street has been completed and the foundations for the traffic standards have been drilled by Taylor Ridge Drilling and poured this past week. Work in the intersection continues KE Flatwork anticipating completing installation of the duck bank, the quad duck and conduit, tiling, and earthwork during the next week.
Work from the railroad crossing east to Mad Creek will continue for the next month. The tentative completion date for 2nd Street from the railroad crossing to just west of Family Dollar is Sept. 18, and Nov. 12 for the section from Family Dollar to Mad Creek. The Oak Street intersection is tentatively scheduled to be completed by Oct. 1.
WEST HILL SEWER SEPARATION PROJECT
Phase 4A of the West Hill Area Sanitary and Storm Sewer Separation project (WHSSSSP) is moving up 7th Street from Iowa Avenue and is nearing Locust Street. All of the storm and sanitary sewer work has been completed from Iowa to Spruce and the Pine and Chestnut intersections have been closed to be prepared for paving. The Linn and Spruce intersections are now open after having the new storm sewer inlets and piping installed.
City project managers anticipate that 7th Street from Iowa to Linn will be paved within the next week to 10 days. That section of West 7th is currently being prepared for paving.
Work on preparing and paving Linn to Locust streets is tentatively scheduled to be completed by Sept. 28 with the final two sections (Spruce toward 8th and Locust toward 8th) tentatively scheduled to be completed by Oct. 26.
Phase 4A of the West Hill Sewer Separation Project is tentatively scheduled to be completed by November 9. The original contract date was November 30.
FULL DEPTH PATCHING PROJECT
All-American Concrete completed pouring the final section on Division Street between Evans Street and Breese. The section should be reopened to traffic early next week. This is the only full street closure of the project.
All-American will move to Stewart Road where they will replace several sections of the road. This will necessitate lane closures but no full closure. Houser Street is next on the list for the project but no date has been set when work will begin on that section.
All-American Concrete was awarded the $1 million project at the July 19 Muscatine City Council meeting.
HOUSER STREET PARKING EXPANSION PROJECT
Work on the Houser Street Parking Expansion and Athletic Field Grading Project began this past week with Needham Excavating, Inc., on site to begin the process of grading the 17.62 acres. The project includes 203 parking spots, enhanced street crossing safety features, a paved trail, and four multi-purpose athletic fields.
Needham Excavating, Inc., was awarded the $641,983.61 project at the July 19 Muscatine City Council meeting.
2018 ASPHALT ALLEY PROGRAM
Taylor Ridge Paving and Construction was awarded the $123,010 contract for asphalt overlay of selected alleys in the City of Muscatine at the July 19 meeting of the Muscatine City Council. No timetable has been established for the start of the project.