Allan Appel Photo
A storybook pedestrian bridge across the West River just upstream from the Blake Street crossing has seen no pedestrians or wide-eyed kids in strollers in a long time.
That’s because it’s so deteriorated, with the hand rails separating from the deck, that the city has had to close it. It is hidden under brush near a playground just off the road.
The City Plan Commission last week voted to have the city tear down the entire structure. The pre-cast concrete deck will be replaced and the existing abutments and piers in the river will also be removed.
The plan is to span the water with a new prefabricated steel truss structure with wood decking.
The new bridge will increase the overall length of the span from 46 feet to 60, and the approaches in the park on both sides will also be repaved. Funding comes out of the city capital budget.
City Engineer Dick Miller praised the project design because it not only adds length to the span, by removal of the piers it also increases the flow in the waterway below.
“Removing obstacles in a river is a good thing, removes the dam-ing effect,” he said.
The removal of the piers that are currently in the river also creates an additional 90 square feet of wetland, he added.
The new railings will be kid-safe, with a maximum opening between elements of only 4 inches.
The work is scheduled to begin in the fall and to be completed within two months.
The vote of the commissioners — technically for approval of a Class B Wetlands Application — was unanimous.
Thanks for covering this, Allan. There has been a lot of planning and conversation about improvements to the West River lately - from both the environmental and access for people perspectives - so I imagine more news about this important resource will be generated in the coming months.