Hawkeye Reporter

The City of Cedar Rapids is set to receive $25 million from the Department of Transportation for a project aimed at improving flood resilience and upgrading street infrastructure at I-380 through the Union Pacific Railroad Project. The funding comes from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which was supported by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in 2021. The grant is distributed through the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) program.

“I’m happy to announce that the City of Cedar Rapids is receiving a $25 million award to improve its flood resilience and infrastructure,” Grassley said. “You can imagine how important this funding is for Cedar Rapids, after the city has been hit by devastating floods. These federal dollars will be put to good use to strengthen the Cedar Rapids community.”

The project will involve completing design work, acquiring necessary right-of-way, and constructing flood resiliency features and multimodal improvements along I-380 up to the Union Pacific Railroad. Plans include building a 0.3-mile levee with F Avenue NW realigned over it, along with a trail on top of the levee.

Other elements of the project feature converting F Avenue NW from one-way to two-way traffic, adding a floodwall between E Avenue NW and an existing levee south of I-380, installing a roundabout on F Avenue NW, developing a stormwater system, creating a railroad flood gate, and constructing a pedestrian bridge.