Iowa City to hold special meeting on railroad project

IOWA CITY – The City Council will hold a special meeting Thursday to try to save money, and avoid a delay, on a railroad project at an industrial park.

The council is being asked to OK an agreement with Iowa Interstate Railroad regarding the construction of railway sidings to serve the city-run Iowa City Industrial Campus, which is along 420

^th

Street in southeast Iowa City.

In May, the council approved a $1.3 million contract with Reinbeck-based Peterson Contractors Inc. to construct sidings and spur lines. The contract, however, did not include connections to the railroad's mainline, and Iowa Interstate Railroad requires that work to be done by its contractor, according to a memorandum from city engineer Ron Knoche released Wednesday.

Knoche said in an interview that the city had been negotiating with Iowa Interstate Railroad and was told that the company's contractor was scheduled to leave the area at the end of this week and, once gone, would not be able to return until November.

City officials do not want the overall project to be delayed, and the council's next scheduled meeting had been July 31. Knoche said it would cost the city $2,500 a day to keep the railroad's contractor in town until an agreement is reached, so the special meeting has been called to avoid that expense.

The work to install the connections would cost $427,122 and take about two weeks, he said.

Peterson Contractors' duties would not change so that contract would not need to be revised if the council, as is expected, approves the Iowa Interstate Railroad agreement, he said.

The 173-acre industrial park also is known as the Wind Energy Supply Chain Campus and is being marketed mainly to companies that supply components to the wind-power industry.

The city gave public notice of the 3 p.m. meeting just ahead of the 24 hours required by state law.