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City advances Burlington Street bridge and dam planning with multiple concepts and public outreach
Summary
City staff and consultant HDR presented a planning study that considers replacing aging Burlington Street bridges, a range of dam options (including potential removal), multimodal crossing alternatives and next public workshops and surveys.
City staff and HDR Consulting presented preliminary concepts at a work session for the Burlington Street bridge, Riverside crossings and Burlington Street dam, and outlined next steps in public engagement.
Justin Harlan, the city’s senior engineer, introduced HDR’s study and Mike Curek, HDR’s project manager, who said the eastbound bridge is more than 100 years old and was flagged as structurally deficient in an engineering review. "The purpose and need really of the project is that the Eastbound bridge, owned by the city was built over a hundred years ago... It was deemed to be deficient and needed replacement," Curek said.
The study is examining multiple elements together: replacement of eastbound and westbound bridges with a single structure, several alternatives for the Burlington Street dam (from no modification to full removal), pedestrian crossings at Riverside and Grand, two‑way conversion options for Melrose and Byington and a range of roadway and multimodal alignments to reduce bike and pedestrian stress.
Public outreach to date and technical process
Curek summarized outreach: one public meeting with about 30 attendees, an electronic survey that received nearly 300 responses and a stakeholder working group that included neighborhood organizations, student government, bicycle groups and preservation advocates. The study team convened a technical advisory committee with Iowa DOT, University of Iowa, the MPO of Johnson County and city staff to score needs, wants and constraints.
Key issues and constraints identified include maintaining emergency access to the medical center during construction, utility impacts through the dam structure, potential historic‑property considerations for the dam (work will include the State Historic Preservation Office review), environmental impacts of any dam removal and the need to minimize construction disruption.
Alternatives and next steps
Concept options range from minimal roadway and safety work to a signature multimodal bridge and separate pedestrian structure; dam alternatives range from minor safety improvements to full removal with associated upstream and downstream hydraulic impacts. The team plans further public outreach this summer, follow‑up surveys, and a July workshop to narrow options to two or three concepts and then a preferred alternative for environmental review and design.
No formal decision was made at the session; staff said the study will return to council later in the summer with refined concepts and cost estimates.
