DES MOINES, Iowa —

West Des Moines is getting ready to revamp the business area near First Street and Grand Avenue.

The city shut down Grand Avenue between First Street and Fourth Street at 6 a.m. April 19 to rebuild the road.

Plans call for installing another turn lane and a median to help stop traffic jams that occur here.

But it’s more than a road project.

The city of West Des Moines and businesses in the area have been working for years to rejuvenate the long-time commercial hub.

“We knew that a lot of dominoes would have to fall for this all to work. So far they have,” West Des Moines city engineer Brian Hemesath said.

Hemesath said many businesses are either closing or moving, or both.

For example, on the north side of Grand Avenue, Rassy’s Bike Shop will be torn down to make way for road improvements. It’s moving around the corner to a new building next to Val Lanes.

The Wendy’s will be demolished and move near the old bike shop location.

On the south side, a new Hy-Vee Fast and Fresh will go in on the site of the old Burger King restaurant.

“We are ready to deal with it,” said Todd Treese, who has been the manager at True Value Hardware for nearly 40 years.

Treese said dealing with the Grand Avenue closure will be inconvenient, but said he’s excited about the renovations and new businesses. Treese said loyal customers will figure it out.

“As a community store, I just have faith in my customers. They will find a way to get to us,” Treese said.

City leaders agree and said they want travelers to use Ashworth Road to detour around the closed Grand Avenue.

“We can’t thank the property owners enough for all the cooperation we’ve had. It’s taken a while but when you have to do as many things as we did it just takes a long time to get it all straightened out,” Hemesath said.

The city will also install new storm sewers to stop frequent flooding along Grand Avenue in what they call the “bathtub.” Grand Avenue should reopen by November.

  Updated: 12:48 PM CDT Apr 19, 2021