Bridge upgrade
101-year-old Highland Park bridge to be replaced; FD council awards contract, reviews paving plans
Trending
The 101-year-old bridge will be replaced under a contract awarded by the City Council Monday.
The council voted unanimously to hire Cramer and Associates Inc., of Grimes, to replace the bridge at a cost of $3,871,770.68.
The city has $1 million from the state to help pay for the project. It also has $632,380 from Union Pacific Railroad, whose tracks are beneath the span. The rest of the money will come from an account the city opened with state money after it took over the former Iowa Highway 926, which included Kenyon Road and part of Second Avenue South.
Replacement of the timber frame bridge has been discussed for at least a decade.
Councilman Cameron Nelson, who represents Ward 2 where the bridge is located, thanked the city staff for working for years to move the project forward.
"I do feel it is a tremendous need on that side of town," he said.
The bridge replacement project could start this winter.
Other bidders for the project were United Contractors Inc., Johnston, $4,082,174.04; and Peterson Contractors Inc., Reinbeck, $4,120,683.38.
Infrastructure work was a theme for the council Monday, which started its efforts for the evening with a workshop on street projects.
Chad Schaeffer, the city's chief development officer, reported that since 2008 there has been "significant work done throughout the community in all areas of the community."
He said that engineers grade streets on a scale of zero to 100, with zero being a deteriorated dirt road and 100 being a perfect hard surface street.
He said that in 2014, the average rating for Fort Dodge streets was 54.34.
He said this year, the average rating is 62.61.
Schaeffer released this list of streets that are expected to be resurfaced next years:
• Avenue B from A Street to B Street and K Street to Avenue C.
• Avenue C from A Street to D Street and G Street to Kenyon Road.
• Avenue D from A Street to D Street.
• Avenue E from A Street to C Street.
• Avenue F from A Street to C Street and E Street to F Street.
• Avenue G from A Street to dead end.
• B Street from Avenue B to Avenue G.
• C Street from Avenue C to Avenue G.
• D Street from Avenue C to Avenue E.
• H Street from Avenue C to dead end.
• I Street on both sides of Avenue C.
• J Street on both sides of Avenue C.
• K Street on both sides of Avenue C.
• L Street from Avenue B to dead end.
• M Street from Avenue B to dead end.
• Sixth Avenue South from South 15th Street to South 16th Street.
• South 16th Street from Fifth Avenue South to Sixth Avenue South.
• Third Avenue Northwest from 12th Street Northwest to frontage road.
• Frontage road on south side of Third Avenue Northwest.