Windsor Heights staff advance CIP changes, highlight new public map and 73rd Street rail‑crossing grant coordination

City staff presented updates to Windsor Heights’ draft Capital Improvement Plan and Equipment Replacement Plan, proposing schedule changes for multiple street and utility projects and introducing a public GIS map to show project locations, costs and funding sources.

Staff said they plan to shift parts of 64th Street from reconstruction to a full overlay to save costs and limit multi‑year disruption to school traffic, and to advance Elmrest Drive while moving Carpenter farther out in the schedule. A short reconstruction on a heavily trafficked portion of 66th Street was proposed to address recurring water‑main breaks and failing curb. Staff also described a Del Matro project to upsize a 4‑inch water main to an 8‑inch main; much of that work would be funded by De Moines Waterworks with remaining costs borne by city funds.

Andy and Adam demonstrated an interactive CIP map created from the city’s GIS data that allows residents to filter projects by year, type and funding source and view estimated costs and descriptions. Staff said the map will be posted to the city website and used to improve transparency during the annual budgeting cycle.

On 73rd Street South, staff reported tentative receipt of a state DOT grant to help pay for rail‑crossing improvements but cautioned the crossing is maintained by railroad companies and that three different rail entities must cooperate for a durable fix. Staff said they are coordinating with DOT and the railroads to align any crossing work with the planned reconstruction to avoid rework.

No new contracts were approved at the meeting; staff asked council for feedback on priorities and noted that project timing remains contingent on final engineering, grant awards and bond timing.