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Rep. Miller Meeks announces $6 million for Burlington’s Cascade Bridge replacement
Summary
Rep. Miller Meeks announced $6 million in federal community project funding to support Burlington’s Cascade Bridge Replacement Project. City staff said they expect to finalize a preservation agreement with the State Historic Preservation Office, bid the work next spring and complete construction in about a year, with the city’s financial plan modeling a roughly $10 million total cost.
BURLINGTON — Rep. Miller Meeks announced that $6 million in federal community project funding is headed to Burlington to support replacement of the historic Cascade Bridge, officials said at a news event with city leaders and state and local partners.
“Six million in federal community project funding is on its way to Burlington to support the Cascade Bridge Replacement Project,” Miller Meeks said, adding that the award had passed Congress and been signed by the President. City Manager Chad Bird and Burlington City Council member Kay Weiss joined the representative in thanking local and regional partners for their support.
The bridge, built in 1896 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, has been closed to vehicle and, later, pedestrian traffic for years, officials said. Council member Kay Weiss described the award as an investment in public safety and connectivity that will restore a key east-west route between downtown and the bluff-top parks.
City staff outlined next steps. Nick McGregor, deputy city manager for public works, said the project team will complete public engagement and finalize a memorandum of agreement with the State Historic Preservation Office before bidding the work. “We expect to bid out sometime next spring and then construction shortly to follow,” McGregor said. “It’ll be about a year [of] construction.”
Officials said the city’s financial advisers have modeled the project on a roughly $10 million budget and that the $6 million federal award will reduce the amount Burlington would need to bond. “That’s how important it was to the city council — we continue to proceed budgeting,” Chad Bird said, adding the federal funds will ease the tax burden the city would otherwise carry.
Staff and the representative also emphasized the bridge’s broader significance. The structure sits on the Great River Road, a national scenic byway, and restoring the connector will close a gap in the route along the Mississippi River, they said.
The speakers described a competitive selection process for the federal community project funding. Miller Meeks said Congress’s process is rigorous and that Burlington’s application demonstrated strong local support. Officials recalled earlier attempts to replace the bridge were derailed in part by insufficient historic-preservation analysis and limited community engagement; McGregor said the city now has consensus with the State Historic Preservation Office and the Iowa DOT on an approach that preserves the bridge’s character while replacing the unsafe structure.
Questions from reporters focused on timeline and whether the $6 million will be sufficient. City officials said the city would have proceeded even without the award — using local bonding across multiple issues — and that the federal funds make the project more affordable for residents.
Officials did not present final construction documents at the event. They said public engagement and the memorandum of agreement with the State Historic Preservation Office will precede bidding; formal contract awards and specific construction dates will be set after the bidding process. The city asked media and residents to consult the project fact sheet and timeline provided at the press table for additional details.
Mayor John Bips was unable to attend and sent his regrets; organizers closed the event after thanking partners and taking a few questions from the press.
