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Dirt work nearly finished for Fairfield’s Sunrise Trail Subdivision
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FAIRFIELD – A dry summer and early fall might not be the best weather for crops and other vegetation, but it’s just what the doctor ordered for the area’s construction projects.
One of Fairfield’s biggest projects under development is the new Sunrise Trail Subdivision on the south edge of town by Jefferson County Health Center. Grow Fairfield held a groundbreaking ceremony on the 53-acre subdivision in June, which will house 33 lots once it’s all done.
In the months since then, Fye Excavating of Sperry, Iowa, has been hard at work moving dirt in preparation for the installation of infrastructure just south of the Cambridge Little Achievers Center. Company superintendent Jay Fye said construction is on schedule, and that he hopes to be laying rock for the roads in the next two or three weeks.
The western edge of the subdivision was well below grade and needed about 15 feet of fill, but Fye said the rest of the land needed only a couple feet of fill. On Oct. 10, Fye said the company was about 90 percent done with the grading and that, if the weather remains warm, he foresees pouring concrete in 2025.
Grow Fairfield Executive Director Ed Malloy said home construction contractors should be able to start work on June 1, 2026.
Fairfield Mayor Connie Boyer said she was pleased with the progress she’s seen so far, and hopes it will get people excited at the prospect of moving into the subdivision. She noted that the city has invested in the project through Tax Increment Financing and a $200,000 investment to help purchase the land with Grow Fairfield.
“We are starting to see the fruits of our labor,” Boyer said. “We eagerly look forward to next year when the infrastructure is in and we start to see houses being built. As lots are sold, the City will recoup their $200,000 investment.”
Boyer said the city must continue to invest in projects that expand the tax base and help the town grow.
This new development will be the largest single-family development the city has been involved with in a quarter of a century, dating back to the development of Park Place Subdivision on the southwest part of town that started in the 1990s. The Sunrise Trail Subdivision will have curb and gutter, sidewalks, and water and sewer connections.
Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com
