BRIDGE WORK WILL BEGIN IN MID-JULY

WHITEWATER -- Construction of a 200-foot bridge across the Diversion Channel west of Whitewater should start around mid-July and be complete by November or December, Associate Cape Girardeau County Commissioner Leonard Sander said Thursday.

Sander, who oversees bridges and roads for the commission, made the comment shortly after the county governing body opened eight bids for the project. The bridge will replace a worn-out, 60-year-old, steel truss bridge located on County, Road 253, about three miles west of Whitewater.

The low bid of $399,302 was about $41,000 below the engineer's estimate. The bid was submitted by Robertson Construction Co. of Poplar Bluff. The other seven bids ranged from $407,043 to $481,986, Sander said.

"We're very pleased with the low bid and the number of contractors that bid on the project," he said. "Because of a lot of delays, it has taken us seven years to get to this point. I hope by the end of November or December, we'll have a new and safer bridge open for the folks who live in that area."

Sander said the bridge is one of the largest and most expensive the county has ever replaced. He said about 80 percent of the total cost of the bridge will be recovered from federal highway funds.

"After this bridge is completed, we'll still have a few of the old, steel truss-type bridges left in the county, but none are as big as this one," he said.

Since federal off-highway money is involved, all plans for the bridge have to be approved by state and federal highway offices. In addition, bridges that have federal funding must also meet stricter specifications than those funded solely with county money.

Sander said when replacing larger bridges, Cape County seeks to use federal off-system road money to pay a share of the cost. Because of the standards that must be used in constructing bridges with federal money, it is only economical to use off-systems money on major projects, he added.

Sander said he will meet later this month with state highway officials and the contractor at a pre-construction conference.

"After everything is approved, the contractor will have 20 days to get all of his equipment in place and ready to go to work," Sander said. "After that, he will have 175 working days to complete the bridge."

While construction of the new bridge is under way, the old truss bridge and county road will remain open to traffic.

"We checked with the school district and found out five school buses use the bridge each day. If we closed the old bridge, the buses would have to cross the Diversion Channel at Allenville, then double back over Route A to Whitewater to pick up students, and go back the same way," he explained.

Sander said another bridge that is nearing completion is the $200,000 Caney Fork Bridge between Millersville and Oak Ridge. That bridge is also partially funded with federal matching funds.

"As soon as we finish the Caney Creek Bridge, we will have built or replaced 43 county bridges since I came on the commission in 1973," Sander said.