Approximately a dozen Bristol residents approved funding $1.16 million bridge construction project with little discussion during a special town meeting Wednesday, Jan. 29 at the town office.
The approval of the project’s funding now allows CMP Construct, of Freeport, which has been hired by the town to complete the work, to order the necessary materials in time for the May start date to reconstruct Hatchtown Bridge on Lower Round Pond Road.
The $1.16 million funding for renovating and reconstructing Hatchtown Bridge on Lower Round Pond Road will take the form of a bond, to be repaid over 10 years at 5.73% interest for a total cost of $1.53 million.
Ordering the steel by the end of January sets its arrival date by the end of June or beginning of July, according to Calderwood Engineering engineer Greg McAllister.
Bristol Select Board Chair Chad Hanna said Lower Round Pond Road would be closed for five months starting in June and there are financial incentives for CMP Construct for an earlier completion of the project.
Resident Kenneth Kortemeier asked the board about the aesthetics of the bridge and if bike lanes were considered.
Hanna said there will not be a dedicated pedestrian lane, but the bridge will be significantly wider and considered full width, meaning the roadway spans the entire width of the structure, including all lanes and shoulders.
“It should be able to accommodate somebody walking across the bridge,” Hanna said.
Before 2022, the Maine Department of Transportation identified four bridges in town, including Hatchtown Bridge, as needing replacement. The department conducts inspections of all state bridges every two years, assessing their structural integrity in compliance with the National Bridge Inspection Standards and its own bridge management coding guide, according to the Maine Department of Transportation website.
The data is then reported to the Federal Highway Administration to be used to determine safe load capacities and candidates for maintenance work.
The town has already replaced Rodennet Mill Bridge and Keystone Bridge on Lower Round Pond Road in 2018 and 2019 at the cost of $147,300 and $594,517, respectively.
Hatchtown Bridge was scheduled to be replaced this year, but after back-to-back storms in January damaged the town’s coastal roads and structures, the select board elected to postpone the project to focus on more urgent repairs and cleanup.
When the Hatchtown Bridge project is finished, the town will repair the stone arch bridge on Benner Road, which would be the fourth and final bridge identified by the Maine Department of Transportation, according to Bristol Town Administrator Rachel Bizarro.
Bristol resident Mike Melville served as moderator of the special town meeting.
The next scheduled meeting for the Bristol Select Board is at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 19 at the town office.
