Bettendorf is planning to construct a $3 million pedestrian bridge in the TBK Sports Complex corridor. This is a conceptual architectural rendering of that project. CREDIT HDR, INC.
Billed as the largest Bettendorf Public Works Department project ever, the $11.5 million reconstruction of Forest Grove Drive is nearing the final phase of roadwork in the area of the TBK Bank Sports Complex. Marked by a roundabout soon to be under construction, the reimagined intersection of Forest Grove and Middle Road is the centerpiece […]
Billed as the largest Bettendorf Public Works Department project ever, the $11.5 million reconstruction of Forest Grove Drive is nearing the final phase of roadwork in the area of the TBK Bank Sports Complex.Marked by a roundabout soon to be under construction, the reimagined intersection of Forest Grove and Middle Road is the centerpiece — literally and figuratively — of a planned new gateway into a community living up to its former billing as “Iowa’s Most Exciting City.”Once completed by the end of this year — barring any unforeseen setbacks — Bettendorf will follow in 2024 with a $3 million pedestrian bridge over Middle Road and north of the re-made intersection.The Interstate 80 interchange at Middle Road also is receiving a $48 million modernized facelift beginning in 2025 from the Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT) to better manage the traffic explosion in one of the state’s fastest-growing areas.The Forest Grove Project’s improvements to the city streets and sewers also is tied to the $100 million expansion of the TBK Bank Sports Complex and surrounding commercial developments. The pedestrian bridge will serve as a link between the original and new parts of the sports complex as well as the focal point of the city’s trail system extension to the area.The QCBJ received a progress report about the many tentacles of the project in an interview in late January with Brent Morlok, city engineer, and Jeff Reiter, the city’s economic director and newly appointed assistant city administrator.
Iron Tee Golf, complex advances
Bettendorf’s Planning & Zoning Commission approved minor modifications to site plans in mid-January, Mr. Morlok said, and the city council will have a chance to review those changes at its next scheduled meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 7.“(The developers) reduced the size of the building slightly — but still have the same number of hitting bays” in the driving-range portion of the $50 million Iron Tee Golf facility, Mr. Morlok said.“They found some wasted space by really doing their homework and some value engineering. They’ve been out and visited three or four other locations and learned from some of their mistakes,” he added. “So, they really refined their site in terms of the number of overall parking stalls and the size of the building.”According to Mr. Reiter, the most significant change is to the parking lot, which was originally planned to serve both the golf facility and four additional ballfields planned east of Middle Road and the existing sports complex.“It was just a large parking lot, and for lack of a better term, it was very boxy,” Mr. Reiter said. “Now, it’s a little more linear with a lot more parking closer to the fields and the golf amenity.”Mr. Morlok said developers “carved out” additional parking space on the west side of the ballfields by simply pushing that part of the development farther east on the 109-acre property. The revision provides more dedicated parking to the ball fields as well as assuring the same for Iron Tee Golf.“Before, it was all one big parking lot that was shared between the two,” Mr. Morlok said. “But there was concern that the ballfield patrons would take up all the close parking and the golf amenity patrons would be forced further away. I think they’ve done a nice job of solving that problem with this latest change.”Besides closer proximity to the venue of choice, the design change also is allowing for additional commercial rooftops in areas originally planned for parking, Mr. Morlok said.“That’s really good for both the city and the development,” added Mr. Reiter. Iron Tee Golf is on schedule to open for business in the spring of 2024, which is close to original projections, he said.At one time, a December 2023 completion date was considered, “but they thought it was better to open in warmer weather to give people a better feel and really showcase this facility rather than open in the dead of winter,” Mr. Reiter said.Spring 2024 also matches the expected opening of the four new ballfields.Besides offering a triple-decker driving range with 58 climate-controlled bays, Iron Tee’s plans also include mini-golf, an arcade, a bar and a restaurant.
TBK corridor roundabout on deck
Mr. Morlok said Iron Tee Golf’s expected opening is perfectly aligned with the projected completion of Forest Grove’s reconstruction by the end of 2023.
The first signs of progress came just before Christmas when the city reopened Forest Grove just east of International Drive through the intersection with Friendship Path — the first entrance into TBK Bank Sports Complex.“There may be some minor work spilling over into ’24 — maybe some trail work or landscaping restoration — but all the roadways will be open by the end of ’23,” Mr. Morlok said.Construction of the Forest Grove & Middle roundabout was expected to begin in January, but the date of the intersection closure had not yet been announced at press time.“We’re a little behind where we wanted to be,” admitted Mr. Morlok. “We got about 800 to 1,000 feet paved this year on Forest Grove, which did at least allow us to reinstate access to TBK from the west, which was a big component of what we needed to get done in 2022.”According to Mr. Morlok, also key was completing an extension of Competition Drive — north of the new gateway’s intersection and east of Middle, through the heart of the planned new portion of the sports complex.“We will open that (new portion) when we close the intersection, and that will become our east-west detour,” Mr. Morlok said, estimating an announcement sometime in February.“That will greatly shorten what we had planned originally — going all the way out under the interstate on Wells Ferry Road and coming back to the interchange and Middle on Indiana Avenue. Getting the Competition Drive extension done eliminates the need for that detour.“That also helps complete site work on the extension of the sports complex. Instead of gravel construction access roads that you have to maintain now they’ll have a new concrete street to use.”Along with the new intersection, Mr. Morlok said another 800 feet of Forest Grove is prepped and ready to be paved between Friendship Path and Middle Road. He added crews from Rock Island-based Valley Construction are simply waiting for a consistent string of temperatures above 34 degrees.“All the earth work is done, subdrains (are) in, it’s rocked — we just ran out of days to get it paved in 2022,” Mr. Morlok said. “But as soon as we get some (good) weather, that’ll get constructed in early spring and we’ll be able to see a lot more progress once that’s done. “We have to make sure there is no frost in the rock or in the sub-base that’s out there. Generally speaking, if the temperatures are on the lower side, we’re going to need some sunlight, which we’re not seeing a lot of right now. “So, they won’t plan on paving anything until probably late April,” he added. “But we’ve got a lot of additional sewer work that still has to be completed and they will be able to work — hopefully the rest of the winter.”Unexpected mild temperatures in November, December and January have helped Valley crews to play catchup after a delayed start, Mr. Morlok said.With federal money tied up in the project, he explained, the bidding process went through the Iowa DOT, but the state government’s final project review was delayed because of a glut of projects statewide.“So, it bid a little later than expected,” Mr. Morlok said. “And then we had supply-chain issues — waiting on sanitary sewer pipe, waiting on storm sewer pipe — that took a lot longer than expected.”Much of the difficult underground work has been completed, though, and Mr. Morlok said the Forest Grove & Middle intersection will close once the 20-feet deep sewer installation reaches the corner of the new roundabout.
Next up? Pedestrian bridge
Once the city’s roadway improvements and the sports complex expansions are completed, Bettendorf will turn its attention to adding the planned pedestrian bridge.“We’ve applied for a couple of state and federal grants that we unfortunately have not been successful with,” Mr. Reiter said. “But we’re still committed to doing the project. We’ve integrated it into our (Community Improvement Program or CIP), and they’re just starting the design process.”Mr. Morlok expects city approval in the next month for the contract with HDR, the Nebraska architectural firm in charge of designing the Forest Grove improvements. Design work on the bridge should be completed by this fall, he added, with project bidding next winter so construction can begin in the spring 2024.The pedestrian bridge work should wrap up some time in 2025, Mr. Morlok said, just as the Iowa DOT launches the I-80 interchange improvement project less than a mile north at Middle Road. The state gave that project the greenlight last summer; the bid letting process is scheduled to begin in May 2025.“I’ve actually had quite a few virtual meetings with the DOT’s design team, and they’re moving forward to hit that deadline or maybe even a hair earlier,” Mr. Morlok said. “It’s a master project with a lot of moving parts, but they’re well underway with the design.” From the start, Mr. Reiter said, the city planned to follow up the sports complex expansion with the pedestrian bridge. Approval of the long hoped-for interstate interchange improvement simply made the bridge project’s work timetable more exacting.“But we wanted to do it this way as opposed to having it all done at one time,” he said, adding “That would have been an even more congested mess.“Luckily, we’re in a good position financially as a city and we have a great development team out there at the TBK who’s committed to the project. With increased expenses and supply chain problems, some of the stuff is a little bit of a moving target, but all of it is happening.”
