Daily Newsletters
Account
Washington Evening Journal
111 North Marion Avenue
Washington, IA 52353
319-653-2191
Libertyville Road to close for seven months during bridge replacement
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
FAIRFIELD – Motorists who travel between Libertyville and Fairfield will need to take a detour starting Monday, Oct. 28.
Jefferson County Engineer DeWayne Heintz announced that the county is closing a portion of Libertyville Road to rebuild the bridge over Big Cedar Creek. The bridge will be closed for about seven months. In addition to the bridge closure, Juniper Avenue north of Fairfield Quarry will also be closed during this time so the contractor can use that road to stage the construction by parking vehicles there or storing materials.
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 with Highway 1.
Since a large share of this truck detour is on gravel roads, Heintz said the county will apply dust control in front of the homes on this route, and on the intersections, so the dust does not both residents and to ensure good visibility.
The bridge is being replaced because it’s “just plain worn out,” Heintz said. He said it was built in the 1950s and has reached the typical lifespan of a bridge.
“The county got its money’s worth out of it, and now it’s time to be replaced,” he said.
The project is expected to cost about $2 million, and about $1.5 million of that is coming from federal grants, with the rest coming from state grants.
“We’re not using county road funds for any of this project,” Heintz said. “We were very fortunate to get those grants.”
Heintz said the only downside to receiving federal grants is that there are strings attached. That meant the county had to hire researchers to look into whether this construction would damage a historically significant sites, or have a negative impact on endangered or threatened species. Heintz said that the federal dollars also required more stringent safety standards, such as flatter slopes on the shoulder.
Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com
