Four Mounds -IDOT road repair app
SEP-14-2005 12:34
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FOUR MOUNDS FOUNDATION
563 557 3159
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fOUR t\ OUnDS fOUnDftllOn
4900 Peru Road. Dubuque, Iowa 52001 .563-557-7292
OffIcers
John Gronen
President
Pat O'Neill
Vice President
Brian Houtakker
Treasurer
Mary Mulgrew Gronen
Secretary
Trustees
Elizabeth Adams
Jayne Banfield
Christine Chapin-Tilton
Jennifer Clemens-Conlon
Eric Dregne
James Gronen
Doug Horstmann
Charles Huntley
Ann Michalski
City Appointed Trustee
Jim Mulgrew
Michael Toskey
Richard Weber
Management Staff
Christine Happ Olson
Executive Director
Marie FitzGerald
Inn Manager/Job Coach
Ron Fritz
HEART Manager/Job Coach
Tina Hamel
Development/Administrative
Jay Potter
Y.E. S. Manager/Job Coach
Neil Winger
Wood Shop Job Coach
Sq>tember 14,2005
The Honorable Terrace Duggan and City Council
The City of Dubuque
50 W. nib Street
Dubuque, IA 52001
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Dear Mayor Duggan and City Council Members,
()
We are writing to request sponsorship of an application for transportation
enhancement funds from the Iowa Department of l'ransportation, under
SAFETEA, the Safe. Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity
Act of 2003.
A non-profit applicant requires a municipal sponsor of such a request to
SAFETEA. The City of Dubuque is owner of the historic Four Mounds estate
and has budgeted $164,000 in fiscal year 2007 toward road repairs and parking
improvements. Our to1al project cost for road repairs and the installation of a
new low-impact sewer system is $614,501. We are now requesting $200,000
from IA DOT -distributed SAFETEA funds. We plan to request $200,000 from
ECIA-distributed SAFETEA funds (when the grant process opens up this fall)
for the majority of the remaining costs. We will seek the remaining $50,501
from other sources.
We plan to utilize the generous road-repair commitment from the city to
leverage these transportation enhancement funds to improve the infrastructure of
this city-owned resource. improving the health and safety of the site through
historically sensitive improvements. As well, the project is necessarily
addressed to open the White House as an extension of our Inn & Conference
Center.
The historic Four Mounds estate is a National Register Historic District, is a
Dubuque Landmark Site, and is an affiliate partner of the Silos & Smokestacks
National Heritage Area. Use of federal funding will require that we go through
the section 106 process and the local review with the Historic Preservation
Commission. We have been working with the Planning Services and
Engineering Departments to ensure that we approach the project in a way that
meets the needs of the historic site as well as the needs for health and safety.
Prior to developing detailed plans for this project, we will have Four Mounds
surveyed by an archeologist to minimize impact on archeological resources and
avoid costly remediation during project implementation.
The road and parking portion of the project consists of: resurfacing the historic
Four Mounds lane, making repairs to the drainage ditch to the south of the lane
through a large culvert (and therefore improving the safety of that shoulder),
widening the curved lane in key spots to allow for ample passing of two-way
traffic, restoring historic elements to the road like limestone edging and curbing,
A Non Profir Foundarion ~ Preservation. Educarion
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FOUR MOUNDS FOUNDATION
563 557 3159
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surfacing existing high-use parking areas, and creating new low-impact parking areas as
needed.
The sewer installation project consists of proper abandonment of four existing septic systems
and extending the city's existing sewer system up Peru Road, from Tanzanite Drive and to Four
Mounds. Due to the needs of our site and because of the negative effect a traditional, gravity
sewer system would have on the historic site. the Engineering Department proposed the
installation ofa grind and pump, low-impact system. It would include six strategically placed
pumps throughout the site and would have a minimal effect on our historic and archeological
resources.
This project is part of a Four Mounds estate enhancement plan to:
. improve health and safety at the site through rue protection, security systems, sewer and
waste disposal, and road improvements,
. open the White House as an extension of our Inn & Conference Center, making this
building open to the public for the first time in history,
. improving day visitor services. through the creation of accessible outdoor restrooms,
improvements to the road, walkways and trails for pedestrians and cyclists, and educational
interpretation and wayfinding (signage) throughout the site, and
. overall site improvements like low-impact lighting and landscape restoration.
We thank you for your support and partnership. We will follow up with a final grant package
copy to the City Manager's office prior to submittal of our grant application. Please feel free to
contact me at 563/557-7292 with any questions regarding our request.
Happ Olson
Executive Director
cc:
Allen May, ECIA
Laura Carstens, Planning Services
Gus Psihoyas, Engineering
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