Main Street Bridge is coming down
Published 9:15 am Tuesday, October 7, 2014
A road sign warns residents that the Main Street Bridge in Niles will be closed on Oct. 13 for a multi-million dollar rehabilitation project. The bridge, which was built more than 90 years ago, is scheduled to reopen in November of 2015. Traffic will be detoured to the Broadway Bridge, which is located just south of the Main Street Bridge. (Leader photo/CRAIG HAUPERT)
Closure date announced for year-long project
The Main Street Bridge in Niles will officially close for a yearlong construction project beginning Monday, Oct. 13, according to the Michigan Department of Transportation.
The Main Street Bridge, which allows motorists and pedestrians to cross the St. Joseph River, is scheduled to reopen to traffic in the middle of November 2015.
The $10.6 million MDOT project will result in a new bridge, designed with community input to maintain historic aesthetics while improving safety for motorists and pedestrians.
In addition to wider lanes to accommodate motorized and non-motorized traffic, the new bridge will have sidewalks and lookout areas on both sides of the bridge. M-139 (Main Street) will also be realigned across the bridge to reduce the approaching curves at the bridge.
Niles Public Works Director Joe Ray said the realignment would primarily affect the west side of the bridge where the road would be moved slightly to the north, turning the “Y” intersection of North St. Joseph and Main Street into more of a “T” intersection.
“It will straighten it up a little bit,” Ray said.
Traffic will be rerouted to the Broadway Bridge, which is located just south of the Main Street Bridge. City officials estimate the average daily traffic on Broadway to more than double — from 6,300 to 14,900 — during the project.
Ray said he is hopeful that things will go smoothly.
“People are used to using certain routes, but will have to find new ones,” he said.
The bridge was originally scheduled to be replaced in the fall of 2013, but construction was delayed because bids came back higher than MDOT anticipated.
“There were issues with the project dollar amounts,” Schirripa said.
Schirripa said the bridged was slated to be replaced because MDOT was concerned about the amount of erosion seen on the pillars, or columns, that extend into the water.
The bridge was built more than 90 years ago and was last rehabilitated in 1996.
In February 2013, residents voted to have the bridge designed to closely resemble the original “bowstring” bridge that spanned the river in 1868 to 1919.
The first main street bridge was a wooden one built in 1845 by Henry Holmes for $2,000.
A second wooden bridge was built in 1854 for $2,500.
An iron “bowstring” bridge replaced the wooden bridge in 1868.
