New and Improved Fuller and Grand

The intersection of Fuller Rd and Grand Avenue is now open for travel on the south, west, and east sides. The north leg is still closed for the next phase of the Grand Avenue project. This project is part of a larger reconstruction of Grand Avenue from the Raccoon River Park entrance to Railroad Avenue as a four and five-lane section. The new intersection allows for safer traffic movements through the intersection and roadway, and includes traffic signals.


Although the intersection officially opened up last Wednesday afternoon, we had to close it again at times on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for Hy-Vee elite and age group races.







Grand Avenue was originally paved in the early 1930s, so this rehabilitation is very much needed. The overall project involves a widening of the street to increase traffic capacity and wider lanes (12 feet). All three phases are described below.

Phase 1: This phase of the overall project involved reconstruction of the Grand Avenue/Fuller Road intersection, including the installation of signals. Construction in 2008 included relocation of public utilities as well as construction of the retaining wall south of Heatherwood Drive. Construction began March 23, 2009 for the 2009 Construction season and involved the remaining utility work, full pavement removal and replacement, and construction of new traffic signals at the Grand/Fuller intersection.

Phase 2: This phase will include construction of the four and five-lane section of Grand Avenue from the limits of Phase One northerly to the railroad tracks north of Delevan Drive. Phase Two will be constructed during the 2009 construction season.

Phase 3: This phase includes construction of a similar pavement section from the limits of Phase One southerly to just beyond the entrance to Raccoon River Park. The construction timelime for Phase Three is yet to be determined.

Tri Weekend in WDM

June is always a busy month in West Des Moines, and one of the biggest events in the city is quickly approaching.

The Hy-Vee Triathlon will fill up Raccoon River Park this weekend. On Saturday, hundreds of kids will participate in a shortened version of the event inside Raccoon River Park. In the afternoon, the world's top male and female triathletes will compete for an impressive prize purse. On Sunday afternoon, they will represent their countries again as part of the World Championship Team race (a new event for the sport of triathlon that we in West Des Moines will be the first to see)!

Earlier on Sunday, nearly 2500 amateur athletes will test themselves by swimming, biking, and running through the park and on some of our city streets. Due to the number of people participating in this race, the route must be longer to avoid problems that frequent lapping would cause.

This is a tremendous event for the City of West Des Moines and the greater Des Moines metro area. Here are some questions we are often asked at the City regarding the event:

Q. Which streets are impacted?
A. This year, the race impacts the portion of Grand Avenue from S. 35th St to Fuller Rd. for about an hour Friday (during elite practice) and from 12 - 6 pm Sunday, the elite race.

On Sunday, the bike portion of the race will take place on Grand from the park entrance out to Raccoon River Drive, continuing into Dallas County and back. The run will then go up Grand Avenue to Fuller Road, west to S. 35th, north to Mills Civic, and turn around short of the Valley Stadium west entrance. Sunday's closure starts at 5 am. Grand west of S. 35th will open as soon as the last biker leaves the road, and should be open no later than 10:30 am. The rest of the route will remain closed until noon. For road closure maps and route maps, view the Triathlon news item on our website.

Q. Where should I park to see the event?
A. Hy-Vee has done a lot of advertising of its shuttle routes for the event, and that is the best way to park without hassle and without having to navigate the road closures. You can park and ride at Valley High School and Valley West Mall.

Q. What impact does this have on Raccoon River Park?
A. Portions of the park have been closed during event-setup, and the entire park will be used during the triathlon weekend. There will be some lingering impact as the event is taken down as well. View a graphic showing the park impacts here. Other impacts that may be of concern to residents include aesthetic changes to the park or changes to the natural beauty of the park. Hy-Vee has committed to leaving the park as good as or better than it was prior to the event.

Q. Who pays for this event to take place?

A. This event (including any overtime costs incurred by the city) is entirely funded by Hy-Vee, and any proceeds they recover go to Variety - the Children's Charity and other designated nonprofits. Although there is some city administrative staff time involved in planning for the event, it is a worthwhile investment of time because of the community benefit and the impact of bringing visitors and participants to our city for an elite competition. Although the amateur event creates some inconvenience for residents because of its size, which necessitates holding part of that race on city streets Sunday, it is this part of the event for which West Des Moines residents - and people around the state -- spend months preparing. Many of us know someone participating. As a city, we must weigh the costs of some temporary road closures with the benefits of providing a location for this community activity to occur. We have tried to minimize the inconvenience to residents in the area to the best of our ability.

Q. What does it cost to attend?

A. The event is free for the public.

Please view the Hy-Vee Triathlon news item on the City website or http://www.hyveetriathlon.com/ for any additional questions you have about the 2009 Hy-Vee Triathlon.

Fuller and Grand Construction Update

Due to great weather last week, the contractor was able to make great progress in paving operations at Fuller Road and Grand Avenue. Below are some photos taken last Friday morning.

Fuller Road Looking East:

Grand Avenue Looking North:

Grand Avenue Looking South:

Currently the intersection is scheduled to be open in time for the Hy-Vee Triathlon, although it will be closed to thru traffic for most of that weekend. For important information regarding the Triathlon weekend including park impacts, road closings information, and more, visit the Triathlon News page on the city website.

Site Selection Recognizes the Greater DSM Partnership

Site Selection magazine, which recognized Jordan Creek Town Center earlier this year as a development that creatively combines retail and entertainment options, recently gave the Greater Des Moines Partnership an Honorable Mention as one of the Top Economic Development Groups of 2008. The Microsoft Data Center slated for West Des Moines is mentioned in their discussion of the Partnership's work.

The article in Site Selection is also interesting because it suggests that the "jobs of the future" are headed to Middle America. The author notes that, based on Site Selection's data, communities in the central United States are leaders in job creation and corporate investment in facilities.

Site Selection's choices for the top economic development groups were based on numerous criteria: total capital investment; investment per capita; total jobs created; jobs created per capita; the contributions of the local or regional economic development organization toward the attainment of these numbers; overall economic vitality; depth and breadth of economic strength; diversity of industry; ability to generate breakthrough deals; and the ability to provide documentation for all projects.

Another sign that Central Iowa is considered a strong and vital economic power! Thanks to the Partnership for their continued commitment to attracting and retaining businesses in our area, assisting business expansion, and developing our workforce.

If you haven't visited the Partnership's website recently, I suggest you view the Partnership's Workforce Attraction Video or get information about their recent I Believe campaign.

Employees Mark Earth Day

Last Wednesday, ten West Des Moines employees took an hour out of their day to collect garbage and litter near Interstate 35 between Mills Civic Parkway and Grand Avenue. They collected over 20 bags of trash in that short time. A commendable effort that I know mirrored the efforts of numerous groups, organizations, and individuals who demonstrated their commitment to making our community more sustainable on Earth Day.

Another group of city employees is working to develop a comprehensive sustainability strategy for the City organization, which will serve as a year-long reminder that we need to be cognizant of the effects of our present-day activities on the future.

Relocation Source Spotlights WDM

West Des Moines was named one of America's Top 100 Places to Live for 2009 by Relocate America, a website that provides relocating consumers and area residents with access to local community resources. The award is based on outlook for future growth, visionary leadership, improving or thriving economies--including housing--and realization of "green" initiatives. Congratulations to our community members for being active participants in and contributors to our education systems, community events, and business community. It is only by being a successfully well-rounded community that West Des Moines appears on these lists.

Online Services Review

At Monday's City Council meeting, we reviewed the first year of the West Des Moines website, which was launched March 31, 2008. For those of you who missed the meeting, here are the highlights from that report.

From approximately March 31, 2008 to March 18, 2009) over 272,000 “sessions” were recorded on the West Des Moines website. That resulted in an average of 772 sessions per day. A 'Session' is defined as a series of clicks on the site by an individual visitor during a specific period of time. During that same time, over one million page views were recorded on the West Des Moines website. That resulted in an average of 2,892 page views per day.

In all, 135,218 unique visitors came to the West Des Moines website in that timeframe. A Unique Visitor may have more than one session during the date range, but is only counted once.

According to the 2008 Citizen Survey, citizen satisfaction with the website increased 7% from 2006 to 2008. 40% of residents were “very satisfied;” 45% of residents were “satisfied;” and
14% of residents were neutral.

37% of residents reported having used the website to get information in the last year.

Some new features we've added this year include:

Online Development Center
eUpdates
Restaurant listing/hotel listing
Email to a Friend - available on any page
Add to Outlook - available on calendar items
Report a Crime Online
File a Traffic Complaint Online
Online directory of parks
Awards and Recognitions page
Publications and Reports page
Online RFP and Bid listings
Online holiday sponsor form
Online Human Services volunteer application
Small Business/Entrepreneurship assistance
Comprehensive new resident guide
City Council Meeting video online
Online magazine/document viewing (page turning program)

Our next steps will involve more e-commerce options for residents on the website.

Our most frequently viewed pages on the website in that timeframe were:

1) Employment
2) Parks and Recreation
3) Adult Sports Info
4) City Calendar
5) Valley View Aquatic Center
6) Contact Us
7) GIS and Maps
8) Raccoon River Park
9) Parks Facilities and Matrix
10) Directory of Parks