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$14 million to rebuild I-680 following Missouri River flooding

I-680 in Council Bluffs was destroyed by Missouri River flooding.
Photo courtesy Iowa DOT
I-680 in Council Bluffs was destroyed by Missouri River flooding.

By Katie Schubert

Omaha, NE – It'll cost almost $14 million to rebuild a 3.1 mile stretch of Interstate 680 near Council Bluffs.

The Iowa Department of Transportation awarded a contract Friday to Peterson Contractors Inc. of Reinbeck and Reilly Construction of Ossian, who'll work together on the rebuilding of I-680. The three-mile stretch was destroyed by this summer's Missouri River flooding.

Bob Younie, State Maintenance Engineer for Iowa DOT, says the contractors' job is to return I-680 to the condition it was in before the flood. He says the contract includes incentives for finishing the work ahead of schedule, bringing the cost to $19.2 million.

IDOT hopes to have I-680 reopen this year.

As for Interstate 29 south of Council Bluffs, Younie says there's no timeline yet for awarding a contract for that rebuild.