MUSCATINE, Iowa –The barricades will be pulled at the close of business on Friday (Oct. 4), reopening the Mississippi Drive corridor from Iowa to the Oak Street intersection on 2nd Street. The final portion of the Mississippi Drive Corridor Reconstruction Project (MDCRP), the two phases from the railroad crossing on 2nd Street to Mad Creek, will be completed over the next seven weeks with a project end date of Nov. 30.
“There are still some details that need to be finished (on Mississippi Drive) but ones that can be completed without having to keep the street closed,” Jim Edgmond, city engineer, said.
Drivers are asked to use caution when construction workers are present as there is still work to complete in the medians and on the city side of the street.
“We wanted to wait until we were sure that there would not be a necessity to fully close Mississippi Drive again as we wrap up this project,” Edgmond said. “We are confident that the items that need attention can be accomplished with traffic.”
The MDCRP began in May 2017 and is the biggest public works project undertaken over a two-year period in the city’s history. The project to reconstruct 1.6 miles of U.S. 61-Business has met its preconstruction goals of improved street lighting, landscaping, gateway features, pedestrian crossings and sidewalk improvements, new traffic signals and geometric improvements, and storm drainage improvement and roadway embankment work to improve flood protection.
Modernizing U.S. 61-Business through the reconfiguration and reconstruction of the sub-standard, deteriorated roadway, and enhancing the aesthetics throughout the corridor that are consistent with Muscatine’s riverfront improvements was one of the objectives of the MDCRP.
The proposal also sought to meet the objectives of Muscatine’s complete street policy by improving both Muscatine’s quality of life and image by providing a safe and attractive environment for street users of all ages and abilities such as motorists, pedestrians, bicyclists, mass transit, children, senior citizens, individuals with disabilities, freight carriers, emergency responders and adjacent land users.
The project has met all goals and objectives.
A ribbon cutting ceremony will be planned for a later date.
DETOURS
The detour for the MDCRP will remain in effect until the completion of the entire project. The detour routes traffic from Grandview Avenue, up Main Street to 8th Street to Washington and to Park Avenue. Traffic will be allowed the length of Mississippi Drive to Mulberry Avenue and east on 2nd to Oak Street. However, through traffic to the Highway 92 bridge will have to use the main detour route or the secondary route (5th street for cars and 8th Street for trucks) to reach the Highway 92 bridge.
THE FUTURE
Work on 2nd Street from the railroad crossing to the Family Dollar store continues with KE Flatwork finishing tile, earth work, and rocking each of the railroad in the next week. The section is tentatively scheduled for opening the week of Oct. 29, weather permitting. At that time, 2nd Street will be closed at Mad Creek and work will begin to reconstruct the final section from Family Dollar to Mad Creek. That work is anticipated to be completed by November 30.