While senior design projects often lead to solutions for clients, they don’t always have such a direct financial benefit. The students – Emma Oelmann and Blake Misfeldt – not only addressed a critical safety issue but also earned the city a $60,000 credit from its consulting firm, Bolton & Menk.

“The students’ work reduced the scope and cost of what future engineering or consulting firms will need to do,” said Gregg Mandsager, city administrator of West Burlington, a city of 3,200 people 75 miles southeast of Iowa City. "It’s been a high-impact, low-cost collaboration that’s helping move West Burlington forward.”

Mandsager said the students “gave us professional-level planning, design, and research that will directly inform future projects.”

The student team collaborated with West Burlington officials. They conducted a site visit, gathered on-site elevation data, and developed a comprehensive design that included horizontal and vertical alignments, trail cross-sections, pedestrian crosswalk layout, adjustments to traffic light timing, material quantities, and cost estimates, according to an overview of the project. Their final product – a preliminary design – included a trail along the north side of Agency Street with pedestrian-friendly intersections and connections to existing trails.

“It pays off to do your due diligence and research,” said Oelmann, the project lead and liaison to city staff. “Understanding the site and the client’s needs really strengthens the design process.”

Oelmann, a fall 2024 graduate from Williamsburg, Iowa, with a degree in civil and environmental engineering, now works for Foth, a Cedar Rapids engineering firm. Misfeldt, a fall 2024 graduate from Erie, Illinois, joined the United States Army.