Iowa City’s Burlington Street Bridge project looks to balance community priorities

IOWA CITY — As plans to replace the Burlington Street Bridge progress, the entities involved in the project are determining how to balance different community priorities for the main connection between the west side of Iowa City and downtown.

The estimated multimillion dollar project isn’t a simple one. The existing Burlington Street Bridge structure, which includes the two bridges and a dam below, is owned by three different public entities.

The dam, which was built in 1906, is owned by the University of Iowa. The eastbound bridge, built in 1915 and restored in 1986, is owned by the City of Iowa City, while the westbound bridge, which was build in 1969, is owned by the Iowa Department of Transportation.

Estimates last year put the cost of the project at around $30 million.

Beyond the entities that own the infrastructure, the stakeholders impacted by the project include Municipal Planning Organization of Johnson County, EMS, area transit agencies, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, tourism and economic development representatives, and biking groups in the area.

The result is a variety of priorities for the project, including the future of the dam, pedestrian and bike access, bridge aesthetics and design, as well as traffic flow.

Beyond that, planners also must consider the financial implications, time frame and the scope of the construction.

Last fall, Iowa City hired a consultant, Cedar Rapids-based HDR for $1.18 million, to begin the process of planning to replace the Burlington Street Bridge.

The firm will study the bridges and offer a preliminary design for their replacement. A technical advisory committee — comprised of consultants on the project — has been meeting regularly.

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As of now, no final decisions have been made on the project, which could begin construction in 2028 or 2029. Planners hope to hold a public meeting next month to discuss the alternatives being considered and to launch another public survey to gather input on the project.

“We're trying to narrow down options and alternatives right now. Nothing's been decided yet,” said Iowa City Senior Engineer Justin Harland. “We're having a public meeting here coming up soon to kind of relay some of those alternatives that we've come up with so far.”

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Future of the dam

The dam below the Burlington Street Bridge is the last dam on the Iowa River before the Mississippi River. Modifications to the dam have been a topic of public discussion for years, but have intensified as discussions about bridge replacement have progressed.

Issues such as existing utility lines within the dam, safety concerns, environmental impact and potential recreational opportunities are all being taken into account. Harland said that all options — from complete dam removal, to preserving the existing structure and other modifications — still are on the table.

“We've learned that structurally, the dam is actually in fairly decent shape for its age. It does house some utilities that would be highly impacted if we try to significantly modify the dam. But there are other modifications that we could do that wouldn't be as impactful to the dam itself,” he said.

Some groups also have questioned whether a complete removal — or at least a modification — of the dam in the name of public safety is warranted. Dams present risk of drowning, and multiple deaths have been connected to the area.

Environmental impacts of decisions made about the future of the dam also are being considered. Part of that work has already begun. Last October, divers from Bio Survey group, a biological consulting firm, spent several days diving under the dam beneath the bridges to identify any endangered species. They also conducted surveys of the area near the dam.

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Future actions with the dam could impact how fish move up and down the Iowa River. The dam as it currently stands acts as an impedance to typical movement of species in the river.

“Those processes that slow the spread of those invasive species, like bighead carp, silver carp, there's positive aspect to that. It's slowing that process down, but they also slow down the natural movement of native fish populations, and directly related to that is the spread of native mussel populations. Those native mussel populations rely on those fish species being able to move, and so those dams impede that,” said Brad Freidhof, Johnson County Conservation director.

The river also could serve as a new attraction for visitors if recreational opportunities become available after changes are made. But much of that potential depends on what happens with the dam and the bridge project.

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“That’s kind of the elephant in the room where we’re waiting on their studies on what can be done with that and how that affects water levels all the way up the river, and what they do at Burlington Street will affect what could be done elsewhere,” said Nick Pfeiffer, vice president of public affairs at Think Iowa City, which has been part of stakeholder meetings about the future of the bridges and the dam.

Regardless of what happens to the dam, the project has spurred a larger push to think about the Iowa River as an asset to the community.

“It doesn't have to necessarily be the Burlington Street dam, but there's always an interest, the desire to take this wonderful body of water that is moving through the middle of our community and enhance it, and get people out there on it to use it,” Freidhof said of the Iowa River.

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Next Steps

A public input survey will be introduced next month for community members to provide feedback on initial alternatives.

“There's just a lot of questions that are still out there, and a lot of that's going to depend on some of the alternatives we come up with,” said Harland

Comments: megan.woolard@thegazette.com

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