Union Drive project will begin April 3

The long-awaited reconstruction of Union Drive has seen some delays even after the $4.2 million project was initially approved in summer 2022, but city council member Evelyn George last week announced the official estimated start date will be April 3. No, really! This isn’t some cruel April Fool’s joke.

“We’ve had people waiting way too long for that particular road to be redone,” George said. “We do want to assure people that they will be able to travel on that though there may be times when it’s one-lane only. There will be a special meeting held with the residents and businesses on Union Drive.”

Which will provide those individuals with more details about the project, including when to expect the complete road closures and where detours will be set up. Newton Public Works Director Joe Grife said about the only time there will be one-lane of alternating traffic is at the beginning of the project, or even before.

“Tree removals will start taking place in March,” he said. “Once April 3 gets here it’s going to be a full closure with signs of posted detours during construction.”

The city will provide notices to residents living along Union Drive and make social media posts about the reconstruction. While the open house is mainly focused on the residents and business owners who reside along the stretch of Union Drive, the meeting is open to any citizen interested in what’s happening.

In October 2022, the mayor and previous public works director Jody Rhone spoke of the delays. Initially it was thought the additional $550,000 in SWAP funds from the Iowa Department of Transportation was the cause, but this was false. Rhone said the contractor was trying to fix up other projects before starting Union Drive.

Reilly Construction Co., Inc. of Ossian was given 200 working days to complete the project; 100 days up to winter shutdown on Nov. 15 and 100 days in spring starting in April. The contracting company has this window to get the work done. The contractor has been charged working days already but work has not started.