As the City of Cedar Rapids continues the lengthy process of building flood protection against the Cedar River, traffic will be impacted for about the next year due to the closure of one end of a downtown bridge.

The city has announced that work is slated to begin on the 3rd Avenue Floodgate on Monday, September 21.

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During the construction, crews will be installing the foundation and vertical columns of a downtown floodwall that will fully cross 3rd Avenue, when needed. The construction is expected to stretch for nearly a year, with completion expected next summer. Throughout the construction, 3rd Avenue SE will be closed from 1st Street East to the Cedar River for all traffic... vehicles, cyclists, or pedestrians. The CRST/Bankers Trust driveway will still be accessible from 1st Street SE. The 3rd Avenue Bridge, and parking on it, will remain available but will have to be accessed from the west side of the river.

When the floodgate is done, it will be put into use when the river is expected to reach 22-feet or more. The floodgate is designed to protect the area to the Cedar Rapids 2008 flood level of 31 feet. The gate will have stackable panels that are slid into permanent columns. When the flood threat subsides, the stackable panels are removed.

The artist rendering below shows the flood gate, when open.

The city's first floodwall, a roller gate on the east side of the river at 16th Avenue, is expected to be completed this fall. The 3rd Avenue floodwall will be the city's second. Work on the third, a roller gate on the west side of the river at 16th Avenue, is expected to begin in 2022. You can see flood protection projects currently underway HERE.

City of Cedar Rapids
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