Indianola tries to prepare drivers for the switch to two-way traffic around the city square George Shillcock, Des Moines Register
Indianola replanting trees lost to storms, disease and construction over last decade
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Change is coming to Indianola s downtown Square starting Monday, May 17, when traffic will convert from one-way to two-way for the city s streetscape project.
The streets undergoing the conversion include Howard and Buxton streets from West Kentucky Avenue on the city s north side to Highway 92 just south of the Square. The change also includes all four sides of the Square, including West Salem and West Ashland avenues.
The only bid for Indianola s downtown streetscape project came in $2.7 million over budget, potentially bringing progress on the city s facelift for the downtown Square to a halt.
City Manager Ryan Waller said the $9,645,509.80 bid, submitted by Absolute Concrete Inc., was the only bid submitted before the deadline. The original engineer s estimate for construction was $6,877,765.10.
He said Indianola City Council will hold a public hearing on the bid Monday.
Charlie Dissell, the director of Indianola Economic and Community Development, said city staff would also recommend the council drop plans to solicit an alternate bid that would cost an estimated $700,000 more because of the already high bid on the initial work. Dissell said the alternate bid would have extended the streetscape s infrastructure improvements north of the Square on Buxton and Howard streets.
The first phases of Indianola s $4.7 million streetscape project will begin this spring with two main streets converting to two-way traffic.
North Buxton Street and North Howard Street in the Indianola Downtown Square will convert from their current one-way on May 17, city officials announced at a public meeting last week.
They announced other construction on the square would begin as early as May, after the City Council accepts a construction bid, and would be complete in fall 2022.
The streetscape project aims to revitalize the square, envisioning a city center upgraded with aesthetic changes, green infrastructure and safety upgrades that will change the face of the downtown business district. Changes include new trees, benches, planters and pavement, as well as monument signs installed at the square s entrance.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds visits Indianola to talk economic development with local officials George Shillcock, Des Moines Register
Indianola wastewater treatment facility to be completed in 2022
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Local Indianola officials were eager to tout the city s economics and upcoming projects to Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds as she visited the city on Friday.
Reynolds, along with Lt. Governor Adam Gregg and State Sen. Julian Garrett, toured the Missouri Valley Line Construction training facility with a group of city officials. Robby Foxen, the executive director of the Missouri Valley Line Constructors Apprenticeship & Training Program, led them through the facility.
Kim Reynolds tours the Missouri Valley training facility in Indianola desmoinesregister.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from desmoinesregister.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.