Downtown Celebration - August 27th

The City of Kalona will be hosting a Downtown Grand Opening Celebration on August 27th. The event will include live music from 3-11 from Scott Cochran & Flannel (3-5), Dave Zollo (5-8) and finishing up the evening will be the Morning After (8-11).

On Wednesday the 3rd we'll be posting a finalized schedule of event so please check back.

If you have any questions or comments please don't hesitate to contact me at rschlabaugh@cityofkalona.org

Lights & Sidewalks on B Avenue:

We should have the North side of B Avenue sidewalks completed in the next few hours. As well we are installing lighting on it as well as the concrete strength permits. This afternoon we'll be starting the 2' banding on the South side between those businesses that have purchased "heated sidewalks". The goal is to pour the same areas on Thursday with sidewalks. From that point we'll be pouring the remaining bump outs on B and 4th and the last one on B and 5th.

You'll notice that we are removing some concrete in the street on B Avenue around the intake grates. This is due to what they call a "Birdbath" effect where water pools. While this is not uncommon it does need to be fixed and we're trying to handle it now as opposed to next spring.

Sidewalks & Bump Outs:

We had a very good week with getting 5th street sidewalks poured and opened up. This week we are going to work towards getting some of the bump outs completed and getting the North side of B Avenue ready for banding and sidewalks. As well on Sunday we had LL Pelling in town to stripe the majority of the downtown. We'll be completing the East side of B Avenue beginning at 10:00 Monday.

• Bump outs on 5th Street will be completed.
• Pouring of the intersection of 4th and B Avenue will be completed with the goal of having it opened up and ready for traffic on Friday
  
• Installation of remainder of street lights on 5th Street.
• Removal of sidewalks on the North side of B Avenue.
• We are working on getting our first round of quilt blocks in early next week with the hopes of starting the installation process.

Thanks again for everyone's patience and if you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.
Ryan

Sidewalk Pouring & 5th & Hwy 22:

We'll begin pouring of the stamped and colored sidewalks today at 10:00. The delays that we've seen have been 100% due to the high winds. The process as you'll see is that the colored concrete is poured and a powdered release agent is thrown on it to give it the desired look, from that point the concrete banding is stamped. This release agent is in essence black and with the high winds would have been difficult not only to apply but to keep the businesses clean.

Today we are starting the removal of the downtown gateway entrance signs on 5th street and Highway 22. The removal will be done on both the North and South sides of 22 and will be projected to be poured back on Monday, November 1st. The pouring will be done in "M" mix which will allow for the street to be opened up 24 hours after pouring.

Sidewalk Removal:

Well the removal of sidewalks has begun on 5th Street. The goal is to have gravel base replace the sidewalk immediately so that the surface can still be utilized by the public. We are looking to begin framing up of the 2' banding as early as Friday with the goal to have the pouring crew in on Monday to start.

The process will be that we'll pour the stamped banding and as soon as cured and cleaned come back in and pour the standard concrete up to the building. As with any old community we've run into some structural issues but have been working through those as they arise.

Again any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

Ryan

Colored Crosswalks & 5th & B Avenue:

The pouring of the colored crosswalks will continue on Tuesday with the goal of having them completed by Wednesday morning. This will include all the crosswalks on 5th street.

Our goal for the remainder of this week is to hand over the main intersection of 5th and B Avenue over to All American on Wednesday so that we can begin to frame up the quilt design and crosswalks with the goal of pouring late this week. This area is critical to get completed so that we can open up both 5th and B Avenue to regular traffic. To increase the timing of the pouring we are working with All American about the possibility of bringing in a pumper truck to pour the entire intersection at once. This will speed up the process and make it available for use quicker.

Once the main intersection is completed we'll be looking at sidewalk removal and replacement as well as the completion of the intersection at 4th and B Avenue. Optimistically I feel that we can be working on sidewalks next week. We are working with All American to come up with the most effective starting point to begin with sidewalks. As we have all discussed we'll be communicating with businesses prior to the removal and replacement of their sidewalk. As well that will be the appropriate time to utilize the Alley entrances for those that are able. Again if you have specific needs please communicate them to me and we'll take them into consideration.

Thanks again for everyone's support!

5th Street & Construction Update

We are going to start heading North on 5th street. This will include saw cutting and removal of sidewalks on Monday and the removal of the street later in the week. The plan is to remove immediately the areas up to the intersection and get it put back into place before jumping to the other side.

Along with the removal of streets on 5th the electricians will be moving to the East side of B Avenue to complete the wiring and light pole bases. As well All American will be working on starting the new sidewalks / plaza areas on the West end of B Avenue. Late last week the storm sewer infrastructure was completed by Maxwell Construction. We'll have Maxwell back to install storm sewer inlets in the curbs and once the streets are poured they will install the street inlets.

I hope everyone had a great Fall Festival weekend. And let me know if you have any questions.