Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty drivers beware: Get ready for detours

Drivers in the Corridor may find themselves hard-pressed next year to avoid major roadwork.

From North Liberty's Highway 965 to Coralville's main arterial streets directly off Interstate 80 to Iowa City's two connectors to the same interstate, several big street projects are on the menu for 2018.

'We can do the best we can, but I think there is the potential that there will be some sort of overlap during those projects and it will be a challenge sometimes,' said Jason Havel, city engineer for Iowa City. 'You have to take advantage of the opportunities that you do have. It may not be ideal timing, but it's work that needs to be done.'

Seeing multiple road projects across several municipalities is nothing new. But what's a little more unusual with next year's agenda is just how many projects are on major arterials or connected to Interstates 380 and 80.

North Liberty

In addition to North Liberty's ongoing Forevergreen Road interchange project, which aims to add a diamond interchange at I-380 to handle traffic when work begins on the overhaul of the I-80/I-380 interchange, the city also has plans to upgrade nearby Kansas Avenue.

With a new GEICO building is set to open in April in an office park along Landon Road, the city plans to pave Kansas Avenue from Forevergreen Road to St. Andrews Boulevard to manage the additional traffic. The city anticipates completion of the Kansas Avenue overhaul in late 2018.

While work takes place to beef up Forevergreen Road, the city's main arterial — Highway 965/Ranshaw Way — is slated to begin its third phase of updates.

Nick Bergus, North Liberty's communications director, said this phase — which includes widening and updated traffic signals — is slated for the highway between Penn and Zeller streets.

With so much growth — the new Liberty High School and the GEICO building have pushed public works updates to the forefront of needs — North Liberty's biggest challenge has been prioritizing projects.

'We've been kind of doing it as funding is available. Obviously with growth, we have a lot of needs and a lot of priorities,' Bergus said.

Coralville

Coralville is poised to see extensive construction on two of its most-traveled streets — both of which also serve as Coralville's main access points to I-80.

Scott Larson, Coralville's assistant city engineer, said bid letting is scheduled for December for a $7.1 million widening project on Coral Ridge Avenue and a roughly $6.7 million update to First Avenue.

The Coral Ridge Avenue project includes about $1.7 million in state funding and includes widening the street, also known as Highway 965, from two lanes to four between Holiday and Forevergreen roads. Turn lanes, a median, updated traffic signals and bike trails are included in the project, which will begin construction early next year.

Also set to begin next spring is the final widening project for First Avenue between Sixth and Ninth streets.

The project will update sidewalks, add a center turn lane and create a four-way intersection at Sixth Street and First Avenue, which will create future access to the Iowa River Landing.

Larson said the project will help handle growing traffic and enhance safety with dedicated turn lanes.

'We see First Avenue traffic continue to increase as the Iowa River Landing develops and the Iowa Arena becomes a real thing. We need everything we can get out of First Avenue to facilitate those types of events,' he said.

Larson said First Avenue will be reduced to two lanes of traffic during most of the project, while much of Coral Ridge Avenue is expected to close completely to expedite work. The nearby Crosspark Road will serve as a detour.

Iowa City

In Iowa City, the massive Gateway Project will keep Dubuque Street limited to one lane in each direction while work continues into next year, Iowa City's Havel said.

The roughly $40.6 million flood mitigation project — which includes raising Dubuque Street to a foot above the 100-year flood level and building a new Park Road Bridge — is on track for a late 2018 completion.

'I think, overall, the project is progressing, so it's just work as planned,' he said.

Iowa City also is looking at two major street overlay projects — both of which are on heavy-traffic streets.

Highway 6/Riverside Drive, the main connector between Iowa City and Coralville, is scheduled for a $4.4 million overlay from Rocky Shore Drive to about Sturgis Corner Drive, just north of Highway 1.

To the east, Governor Street — not far from the city's Dodge Street interchange with I-80 — also is poised for $2.5 million in overlay work from Dodge Street to Burlington Street.

Both projects are joint efforts between the state and city, Havel said.

'It will be a big year for overlays in Iowa City,' Havel said.

l Comments: (319) 339-3175; mitchell.schmidt@thegazette.com