Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Infrastructure topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Interim public works director reviews multiple projects; council agrees to apply for airport grant
Summary
Interim public works director Steve Snyder gave a rapid overview of roughly 18 capital and maintenance projects — including sewer separation closeouts, Carver Corner acquisitions, roundabout construction, harbor dredging and a redundant force main — and requested a resolution to proceed with a $1.1M airport grant application; council gave consensus to apply.
Steve Snyder, interim public works director, briefed the Muscatine City Council on a range of ongoing and planned infrastructure projects on May 12, and requested a council resolution to move forward with a grant application for an airport snow‑equipment storage building.
Snyder said work on the West Hill sewer separation (packages 6a/6b/6c) is in closeout or punch‑list status and that final documents for the 6e contract are being prepared. He reported Bolton & Menk completed design for the Carver Corner project while ProSource finishes property acquisitions. Final plans for a mini roundabout at Folium and Hauser are done; staff will request a one‑year extension from the Iowa DOT because construction could not be started before a June 30 deadline.
On the Avenue Reconstruction project, Snyder said a $2.2 million design grant is in place and designs are about 60% complete, but construction funding (estimated $20–$30 million total) has not been secured. He said HDR will present more detailed information in June and that the city faces a 10‑year scope tied to the design grant that would require construction to begin by May 2033 or risk repaying the $2.2 million.
Snyder described harbor work focused on dredge spoils and restoring an original water tube that was crushed in earlier construction; staff is pursuing Army Corps input and hopes to reduce dredging frequency if the tube or other flow improvements can be restored. He said the Police Department range location received county zoning approval and staff awaits a US Coast Guard response on design, and that the transit wash bay is near closeout with the designer agreeing to correct certain faulty installations.
Snyder asked the council to approve moving forward with a grant application for an airport storage building with a $1.1 million total grant request, which, as written, would include federal and state matches and a small local match (the transcript noted a local match figure of $347.43 as part of the application details). He emphasized that applying does not guarantee award and sought council consensus to submit the application.
Council members asked clarifying questions about the dredging timeline and the potential to time work around Great River Days and boating season; they also discussed whether other partners (e.g., a local power company) could share costs for railroad crossing work. The council indicated consensus for staff to move forward with the airport grant application and to continue work on the projects described; staff will return with formal documents and any required resolutions for committee/ordinance action.
