Hunter
08/17/22
A 1.3 mile stretch of Forevergreen Road extension that would connect it with North Liberty Road would open up access in the area to both Interstate 380 and Interstate 80. That’s according to Coralville and North Liberty officials who are championing the project.
The Gazette reports the $10 million project will take some pressure off surrounding streets in the area, which is seeing more and more development. Projects under construction or planned include a new elementary school, the Forevergreen Heights subdivision in Coralville, and the new University of Iowa Hospital in North Liberty.
Coralville City Administrator Kelly Hayworth told the newspaper that after the Iowa Department of Transportation installed the 380/Forevergreen Road interchange, the need for the extension of Forevergreen Road became apparent.
The extension, if funded, would run from the roundabout at 12th Avenue near North Central Junior High to North Liberty Road Northeast, which becomes 1st Avenue as it goes south into Coralville.
It would complete a 7.3-mile arterial street corridor between the Dubuque Street interchange on I-80 and the Forevergreen Road interchange on I-380.
The cities are working together to look for funding opportunities at both the state and federal level. The project doesn’t have a consultant and isn’t actively being designed, as the current focus is primarily on funding. No timeline has been announced for the project.