Demolition clearing way to build better link for Cedar Rapids’ Time Check neighborhood

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect the number of traffic roundabouts being planned -- two. An earlier version overstated the number.

CEDAR RAPIDS — Work to connect Cedar Rapids’ northwest Time Check neighborhood to Interstate 380, downtown and the rest of the city is moving a step ahead as buildings in the path of the Ellis Boulevard extension are coming down.

A former MidAmerican Energy service hub sitting on 3.3 acres at the intersection of Ellis and E Avenue NW is being razed as part of the plan to connect the northwest side and, hopefully, spur development in Time Check. After the city bought the site for $1.8 million, MidAmerican moved its service center to 1035 76th Ave. SW.

The city expects the property to be cleared by the end of July. Schrader Excavating and Grading has a nearly $114,000 contract for the demolition and cleanup of the MidAmerican building as well as a small city-owned building once used by its transit services.

City officials believe the short extension of Ellis to Sixth Street NW could have a transformative impact by easing traffic flow and improving access to the Northwest Neighborhood, including a more direct link to I-380, downtown and the rest of the city via First Avenue W. It also would enhance the city’s “complete streets” connection for pedestrians and cyclists from north to south, and could create development potential, according to the city.

Plans for the two-year $8 million project scheduled to start in 2022 call for reconfiguring E and F Avenues NW to simplify the design at the intersection where First Street NW, E Avenue NW, F Avenue NW and the I-380 off-ramp come together. Sixth Street NW will be extended to Ellis Boulevard NW, allowing for easier access.

Connecting Edgewood Road to downtown via Ellis — part of a long-term vision plan adopted by the Northwest Neighbors Neighborhood Association — will “put more energy into the neighborhood,” Linda Seger said Monday. A member of the association’s executive board, she has been vocal about flood recovery and mitigation in the area, as well as development plans.

Seger, who chose to stay in her home after the historic 2008 flood, believes the city’s investment in the extension also will help get flood protection that would encourage development.

“It’s been a long time coming,” she said, adding that the Northwest Neighborhood is the last neighborhood to recover from the flood. “It will be a plus for the area.”

She’s not as excited by plans by the city to build two traffic roundabouts on Ellis — at F and E avenues.

“It would be nice if people could turn off First Avenue and drive down Ellis without getting too dizzy,” Seger said.

Much of the Ellis corridor was devastated by the flood. The need for the extension had been discussed before the flood, and after the Cedar River receded became a priority. City spokeswoman Emily Breen suggested that completing the connection could give rise to the sort of development seen in the Kingston Village, New Bohemia and Czech Village neighborhoods.

At one time, the Time Check neighborhood was populated with small grocery stores, restaurants and shops. Although it still is recovering from the flood, some businesses have reopened and new housing has been developed over the past 11 years.

More housing in planned along Eighth Street NW. Matthew 25, a neighborhood development organization that has rehabilitated more than 100 homes, established Iowa’s first urban farm in 2012 and grew a front-yard program to provide garden beds and outdoor seating to encourage interaction among neighbors, has plans for a grocery store at E Avenue NW and Ellis where it now operates a food pantry. A Matthew 25 spokesman said there are plans for a pizzeria and another restaurant.

Funding sources for the project include the city’s Paving for Progress local-option sales tax, tax increment funding, federal funding and a State Traffic Safety Grant for a roundabout at F Avenue. There will be an at-grade crossing of the Union Pacific Railroad tracks at a cost of $4 to $5 million, according to the city. A bridge over the tracks would be at least double that cost.

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