Here is when the Arroyo Park bridge will be repaired
Repairs on the bridge in Arroyo Park are scheduled to be completed by Sept. 22. The bridge has been closed for more than two years, when a tree fell on it in Jan. 2021, damaging the supports.
When the tree hit the bridge, it broke several wooden stringers, making the bridge unsafe for pedestrians to cross. The city plans to remove and replace these stringers with steel girders and have the bridge re-decked, and new handrails will be installed with a standard wire mesh panel on the handrail, James Weppler, Bellingham parks project manager, told The Bellingham Herald in an interview.
Repairs are scheduled to start during the first couple weeks of August.
“We are kinda right at the cusp of kicking this off. It has been a long process getting to this point for a couple of factors,” Steven Janiszewski, Bellingham park operations manager, told The Herald in an interview. “One (factor) was permitting, and an additional hydraulic study we were required to do by the WDFW (Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife).”
The additional study was to determine if the center pier of the bridge that was in the creek was creating any issues for fish, as the creek is a popular spawning path for salmon reds. Weppler said people should remember to keep their dogs out of the creek on their walks.
“It’s one of the best places to see spawning salmon in this area; naturally occurring salmon run,” Janiszewski said.
The city is still on the schedule that was set last year to have the repairs completed over the 2023 summer.
“We are super excited to get the bridge back open. We know we have got a lot of hikers, equestrians, joggers, dog walkers that have been waiting to get to the other side of Arroyo Creek and explore all the trails that connect up into the Chuckanut. We are super excited to get this done finally.”
During the repairs, the site and the surrounding area will be closed to the public to make room for crews.
The cost of the repairs is estimated at $198,000.
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