Highway 100 extension gets $4.3 million in new highway plan

The Highway 100 extension project in Linn County has finally made it back into the state's five-year highway plan after a long hiatus.

The plan approved by the Iowa Transportation Commission today includes $4.33 million to be spent on the project in 2012 and 2013.

The bulk of the money, $3.5 million, will be spent on right-of-way acquisition from Covington road to Edgewood Road in Cedar Rapids. About half the amount is budgeted for each of the two years.

The remaining amount, $765,000, is reserved for wetland mitigation in 2012.

The amount pales in comparison to much larger projects, such as the U.S. 61 Fort Madison Bypass, I-80 improvements in Council Bluffs, and I-35 improvements in Polk County. Getting Highway 100 back in the plan was a major goal of Cedar Rapids and Linn County leaders, however, with strong backing from the Cedar Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce.

The project was left out of the plan after opposition by the Linn County Conservation Board and environmental groups related to the impact of the project on diverse habitat in the Rock Island Preserve area about five years ago.

Supporters say the project is needed to provide another bridge over the Cedar River on the north edge of Cedar Rapids and to relieve traffic demands on a curving section of I-380 through downtown Cedar Rapids by diverting traffic to the west around the city.

The project is also expected to open a large area for future development.

The Sierra Club of Iowa and other opponents have questioned the need for the project and why it has to go through one of the area's most sensitive environmental areas. They have proposed that a route go further north in the area of Tower Terrace Road.