News Flash

MUSCATINE, Iowa – The closure of North Houser Street (Lucas to Hershey) is wrapping up its second week, and City of Muscatine project managers remain optimistic that the area known as Houser Hill will be reopened before the start of school.

Work in the West Hill Sanitary and Storm Sewer Separation Project is proceeding on two fronts as KMA Excavating continues underground work from Chestnut towards Linn, and KE Flatwork, Inc., has been paving between Cedar and Chestnut.

Saw cutting of the areas marked for repair on North Houser Street is nearly complete with the prime contractor, Heuer Construction, anticipating pouring the concrete patches in the south bound lane starting Monday, August 5, 2019, weather permitting. Tiling on the east side of the street is nearly complete and will be followed by pouring the concrete patches in the north bound lane.

Tiling on the west side of the street will be completed as part of the West Side Trail Project. That project will connect the Kent Stein Park trailhead with the trail in Discovery Park. Tiling was needed on both sides of the street to prevent water from the various springs along the right-of-way from flowing onto the pavement, and damaging the pavement. The Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) will award the Westside Trail Project at their August 20, 2019, bid opening. Construction is tentatively scheduled to start on September 30, 2019.

City project managers are anticipating that 8th Street from Cedar to Chestnut will be reopened to traffic within the next 10 days. KE Flatwork, Inc., was working on the Sycamore Street connectors with 8th Street Friday, August 2, leaving the connector with Cedar along with sidewalks and driveways in the 200 block of East 8th to finish.

Repaving of Sycamore Street from 7th to 8th has been accomplished including sidewalks, driveways, and backfilling behind the curb.

Barricades at the Chestnut and 7th Street intersection are expected to be pulled back to the entrances to the #7 alley next week as KE Flatwork, Inc., begins to prepare Iowa Avenue from 7th to 8th for repaving. Work on sidewalks and driveways in the 100 block of East 8th will also be completed in the next two weeks, weather permitting, with the contractor tentatively scheduled to have 8th Street from Cedar through the Iowa intersection opened by Sept. 2.

Uphill on West 8th Street, KMA excavating began installation of the sanitary sewer line from Chestnut west toward Linn Street. Storm sewer and water line work also needs to be accomplished up to Pine Street before that intersection is closed to traffic. The tentative schedule is to close the Pine Street intersection sometime next week.

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Updates on the work will be available on the City of Muscatine web site (www.muscatineiowa.gov/construction) and on the City of Muscatine social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram).