Things continue to look up for Eagle Grove as we’ve watched many new and exciting projects come to life in recent months. The Grove Inn & Suites will be our community’s newest business, preparing to open for business in June (see separate article). “All projects are commencing despite COVID-19, just at a little slower pace, but that’s obviously because there’s a lot of procedures and paper work in place with a different agencies that are working from home, some that are not working from home…and there’s a lot of coordination via Zoom so it’s a lot more difficult to go on site and see it…so it’s a lot of interaction in a lot of different ways to get the projects to the point where they can be constructed,” said City Administrator Bryce Davis.
The Subdivision
A new 12-lot subdivision in the southeast corner of Eagle Grove, across from the Wellness Center, is moving along quickly. All that is left before houses can start going up is to complete the underground infrastructure, pave the street, and backfill. “They are slated to be done by a July/August time frame,” said Davis.
After that, there will be some seeding that takes place and MidAmerican Energy will bring in the electrical and natural gas for project completion.
DD15
A $410,047 construction project is underway on Drainage Ditch 15. There are three components to the project including the “Upper Ditch” which is north of the high school and is 100 percent complete; Lateral A which goes around the cemetery to the southwest part of town; and the Lower Level which is the open ditch that goes all the way down to the Boone River. Davis anticipates they are about 20 percent complete with the overall contract and that the project will be completely finished by September 2020.
“Obviously there’s a lot of dirt being excavated out there,” said Davis. “What’s supposed to happen is the spoils that get taken out of the ditch get land applied right there next to the ditch to create basically a bank and then they put top soil over it and seed it.” Any “undesirable” soil types left over are removed from the site.
Downtown Facade
Contractors will submit their bids to the City on Tuesday, May 26. Two days later is when the City will have a conversation with the applicable downtown property owners for the 12 buildings that are eligible for the program. Contracts could then potentially be awarded on June 8, 2020. Work on the buildings, according to Davis, will start and finish this fall.
Downtown Streetscapes
“We are finishing up environmental reviews and we have 100 percent of the plans completed so far,” said Davis. A June 1 public hearing has been scheduled. Bids will be accepted the end of June/early July and contracts will be awarded shortly after. The project is estimated to start in the fall “pending a good bid price.” Most likely it won’t be completed until the spring of 2021 because contractors are not allowed to leave a block open.
“They have to complete a block in terms of concrete pouring and making sure there’s access to the businesses/residents before they start on a new block,” said Davis.
They will start on the west side of Broadway and work their way east.
NE Water/Sewer Program
This project is simply waiting on final approval from environmental reviews on the water side. The sanitary sewer side has already been approved by the DNR. Davis expects the project to go to bid June/July with the project getting underway this fall. The sewer should be completed sometime this winter. They can slip line the sewer main in the winter pending the temperature is appropriate.
“The water side will probably bleed into spring of 2021 because we are extending a water main…which will give better water quality, water pressure, and provide for a substantial loop in the distribution system,” said Davis.
Parks
Everyone is anticipating the improvements being made to the former tennis courts at Hewett Park. Work is in full swing to turn them into a multifunction court for tennis, volleyball, and Pickle Ball. To date, concrete has been poured and the fence has been installed. The new basketball hoops and the tennis nets have also been set up just this week. That leaves only the backfill to be finished and the lines to be painted, which should be happening very soon.
It’s no doubt this will be a busy place when COVID-19 restrictions at the park have been lifted.
The next step is to work on the restrooms starting with the interior. The exterior will follow.
At this past Monday’s City Council meeting, the board also ordered rubber mulch to go around playground equipment. They will start application at Hewett Park by mid-June, then go to Greenwood, and then take what is left and go to Parkview around the playground equipment.
“We’ll take it one park at a time,” said Davis.
Cemetery
One of the issues that has arisen from COVID-19 is weed control. Two city employees have completed certification classes for spraying, but were unable to take the test before Iowa State Extension Office closed due to the pandemic. In the meantime, they have hired Eagle Grove Greenhouses, Inc. to spray at the swimming pool, Gazebo Park, Museum and the cemetery.
“We’re working on it,” he said, hoping the community will be patient as they try to get them taken care of.
Streets
Davis said the 2020 street projects will begin mid/end June with work being completed by July 31. Fort Dodge Asphalt will be working on SW 2nd St. between S. Iowa and S. Lincoln as well as SW 4th St. from Hwy 17 & S. Park (two blocks each). Wellness Center
The Wellness Center expansion project continues to move forward. Davis said they are still in the Capital Campaign phase but making great progress. Davis is also working on a grant that will be submitted July 15.
“My goal is to start the design process in June. That will be about a two-month process, then start construction by September so that we can get it enclosed by winter and that we can have an early spring completion date,” said Davis. “That’s an aggressive goal but I don’t want to put it on the back burner. There are a lot of things we need to do to complete the project using this time schedule.”
Former Eagle Grove High School graduate Luke Reiland with Push, Pedal, Pull in Ankeny has been hired to design the weight room, multi-purpose room, and the cardio room.
Spring is the time for new life and Eagle Grove is starting to bloom. There’s a lot to watch and a lot to look forward to as our city leaders continue to lead us down the path of growth and improvements.
