Libertyville Road to be repaved this year

LIBERTYVILLE – Commuters between Fairfield and Libertyville must brace for another detour this coming construction season.

Jefferson County is repaving nearly the entire stretch of Libertyville Road that connects the two towns, and the road will be closed to through traffic during construction, though remain open to local residents who live on the route. Jefferson County Engineer DeWayne Heintz said on Monday, Feb. 9 that he could not give a definite timeline on when the paving will start or end, but expected it to begin either this spring or summer.

“It would be nice to get it all done when school is out, but that’s usually not in the cards,” he told The Union.

The official detour will be the same as the detour motorists followed last year when a portion of Libertyville Road was closed to reconstruct the bridge spanning Big Cedar Creek.

Heintz said most motorists will be able to take a detour north of Libertyville along Hemlock Avenue, connecting to Old Highway 34 and then turning east to get to Fairfield. Grain trucks and other heavy automobiles will need to use a separate detour, however, to avoid a bridge on Hemlock that has a 40-ton weight limit. Their detour will take them south and east of Libertyville on Indigo Boulevard and onto 250th Street before connecting to Highway 1.

Heintz said that access to Jefferson County Park will be maintained at all times. However, the road will be closed to through-traffic during construction for the safety of the workers.

“We’ll work to minimize driveway interruptions for the people who live there so they can get in and out,” Heintz said.

Those who live on the route can get to their home by following a flagger car, since the road will be reduced to one lane during construction. Heintz said that, given the extra time of waiting for the pilot car and the slower speed along the one-way route, he hopes this is enough incentive for motorists to follow the posted detour, which is only one-tenth of a mile out of the way.

Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com