Wallace residents view proposed bridge plans
Courtesy image This image shows the proposed plans for the Alternative 3 reconstruction of the Sixth Street bridge. This option will cost an estimated $1.53 million.
WALLACE — A recent open house gave Wallace residents a chance to see the process behind the selection of the new Sixth Street bridge.
The open meeting was held at Wallace Jr./Sr. High School and was co-hosted by HMH Engineering and the Local Highway Technical Assistance Council and focused on explaining the options that had been presented to the Wallace City Council.
“HMH Engineering had designed three alternatives to replacing our current structurally deficient Sixth Street bridge with a structurally sound bridge,” said Michele Bisconer, Wallace city councilwoman. “The purpose was to provide the public with information about all three alternatives accompanied by illustrations of each, and to answer any questions the citizens may have had about the bridge.”
As Bisconer pointed out, HMH had presented three plans, named Alternative 1, Alternative 2 and Alternative 3, each came with its own pros and cons, but the city ultimately landed on Alternative 3, which was the cheapest option at $1.53 million.
Roughly 35 people attended the open meeting, as well as Jim Roletto (Wallace city engineer), Mayor Lynn Mogeson and other Wallace City Councilmembers.
With their chosen alternative, the city will be able to avoid the need for two culverts where Nine Mile Creek and Printer’s Creek converge into the South Fork of the Coeur d’Alene River.
According to GE Siegford, HMH’s project manager for this project, the expected funding is being administered through LHTAC in accordance with the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program.
Once they do begin physical construction, it should take roughly three months for the project to be completed.
In the interim, the current setup with the temporary bridge for larger loads, as well as the adjacent two lanes for traveling up and down Nine Mile Road will continue to be in use.