Faculty researchers and University of Iowa students collaborated with an Eastern Iowa regional provider, ECR, on a study to close transportation gaps for individuals with brain health/mental health needs and disabilities.

The City of Dubuque seeks to establish performance measures/metrics for their Green Alleys Reconstruction program.

Dubuque has been working to improve access to affordable housing and is poised for the next step in its process. In recent years, it has had several different kinds of housingassessments completed. It has incentivized homeowner rehabilitation and has passed incentives for developers to create nearly 800 new units. It’s also created more infill by removing dilapidated buildings. Despite considerable action in this area, Dubuque faces challenges.

Like many communities in the midwest, Dubuque has many people whose first language is not English. Local government has an obligation to ensure these residents are included in all aspects of civic life. This includes having information that enables them to participate in city activities, ranging from library programs and recycling, to elections and parks. They also need to be able to receive important information about health and safety, such as immunization programs and extreme weather notices.

A community is built on its history and work needs to be done to maintain the stories and objects related to its past. As Bondurant grows and evolves, there is a desire to retain and safe-keep the history of those who have deep roots to the area and its traditions.

As part of its ambitious sustainability plans, Dubuque seeks to reduce vehicle dependency and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and create/promote accessible and equitable transportation alternatives.

The City of Bondurant seeks a new Parks & Recreation Master Plan that provides comprehensive vision for the local park system, recreation facilities, natural resources, and other public open spaces. The most recent plan was completed in 2013, and Bondurant’s 2022 Comprehensive Plan provides a strong foundation for updating the Master Plan. The Plan will identify strategies to enhance, expand, and protect features that support active lifestyles, equitable access, and a healthy community.

The City of Dubuque is exploring the idea of an electric bike and/or scooter share program. The city wants residents and visitors to have access to transportation options that are easy to access and affordable for short distances where walking may be an issue or a car is unnecessary.

Bondurant, Iowa, like other communities in Iowa, is facing a critical question:  How can the city repurpose the grain silo complex in downtown and make it a catalyst for growth and development? This is a complicated question of identity, design, law, funding, honoring the past, and envisioning the future. The City’s goal is to repurpose a 24-acre parcel of land in the middle of downtown, which has silos, grain elevators, and railroad tracks. These buildings have long been part of the fabric of the community and the city skyline.

Bondurant is a city deeply rooted in farming and agricultural traditions. It is currently experiencing rapid growth, which is shifting its identity. The city is balancing responsible growth with observance of its past.

For their capstone project in Civil and Environmental Engineering, a team of students will create a new trail system that connects to an existing county trail and moves users into downtown Bondurant. 

As a growing community, Bondurant is eager to develop recreation opportunities for local people, while also providing enticing reasons to visit the area. Combining existing trails and building new ones is a goal toward keeping Bondurant on the move!

Bondurant adopted Chapter 167 Stream Buffer Protection and Management in an effort to protect the various streams that flow through its city limits. This project will include the mapping of the streams that flow through Bondurant, applying the appropriate buffer zone to each zone, and/or applying the appropriate maintenance zone to each stream. Students in ICIGO will help Bondurant citizens as well as city staff identify undevelopable land surrounding these streams. 

Artist Drew Etienne (MFA, University of Iowa) will design and paint a mural on Bondurant's Emergency Services building. 

The capacities for Dubuque’s stormwater detention basins were established in the early 1990s. Since that time, annual rainfall has outpaced predictions and is expected to increase in the coming decades. The City and area watershed administrators are considering redesigning existing detention basins while also understanding the capacities for future ones.

As Dubuque seeks to make its streets more accessible to bikers and pedestrians, it is especially interested in ways to make several major thoroughfares safer. One of these is JFK Road, a major north-south arterial road.

A collection of metal pipes and other parts from former playground equipment will serve as the materials for Jamie Weinfurter, an MFA student in studio arts, to create a new sculpture. Weinfurter will work with the public, especially students and staff at Audubon Elementary School, to get ideas and collect additional materials for the sculpture. It will eventually be located near the school in the Bee Branch Creek Greenway. 

Libraries are the pride of many communities in the United States, offering free access to many materials, programming, access to internet and other technologies, and serving as a meeting place. They are also safe spaces for neurodivergent individuals who rely on them as a place for daytime shelter, information, and other resources.

For their senior capstone project in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, four students create plans to expand features in Sidney's central downtown park. The space is relatively small, but the City wanted to add a multipurpose court for both basketball and pickle ball; a restroom; storage; and increased car and bicycle parking. The team calculated the wastewater runoff created by the additional surfaces in the park and also added a rain garden.

On behalf of the City of North Liberty, a group of Civil and Engineering students reviewed current conditions at an intersection in the growing municipality. The team set up traffic counters and used that data to create a simulation model to investigate different traffic scenarios along both Ranshaw and Penn corridors.

Three students in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering created plans for an underpass for the City of Norther Liberty. The underpass is part of the final phase of a reconstruction of Ranshaw Way.