The Doc Sargent Road bridge is slated for some major surgery this summer.
The bridge, over LaBarque Creek in the Pacific area in northwest Jefferson County, will be closed for much of the summer while it is replaced.
The bridge was due to reopen today (July 9) after being closed since Monday while crews determined how much material is needed for the project and how deep the bedrock is in the creek. Construction work will begin in four to six weeks.
Public Works Director Jason Jonas said the relatively young age of the bridge – it’s about 35 years old – makes its replacement noteworthy.
“This bridge is a little unique in that it’s a box-girder bridge, with two adjacent box girders,” Jonas said. “It should have lasted longer than 35 years, but the industry standard back then was not to put a membrane between the concrete box girders and the deck, so over the years, water has gotten under the deck and eroded the girders.”
He said seven other bridges in the county were built similarly.
“We’ve been able to take off the deck (on some of the other bridges) and put down an epoxy sealant membrane, which preserves the girders, and then replace the deck,” Jonas said. “Unfortunately, this one was too far gone and it needs a total replacement.”
The new bridge will be 27 feet longer (from 53 feet to 70 feet) and wider (25 feet to 30 feet).
Gershenson Construction Co. in Eureka was the lowest of four bidders for the construction work at $654,242. The federal government will foot 80 percent of the cost, with the county providing its 20 percent match from its share of a countywide 1/2-cent sales tax for road and bridge improvements.