The San Benito County Board of Supervisors approved a $444,000
contract for engineering services needed to replace bridges on Lone
Tree and Cienega roads.
The San Benito County Board of Supervisors approved a $444,000 contract for engineering services needed to replace bridges on Lone Tree and Cienega roads.
The unanimous vote provided the county Public Works Department the authority to move ahead with the planned replacement of two bridges that have been classified as structurally deficient and functionally obsolete.
One bridge is located on Lone Tree Road at the Dos Picachos Creek crossing, and the other is located on Cienega Road at the Pescadero Creek crossing.
By approving the contract with Quincy Engineering, a Sacramento-based firm, the company will administer the construction of both bridges that includes completing the preliminary engineering and the environmental services needed to receiver permits for construction of both projects. The company is also currently managing the county’s historical park project near Bolado Park,
Public Works Director Doug Koenig said, in a written statement, that the two bridges and one in New Idria are the only bridges remaining in the county that have not been upgraded to current standards or made structurally sound.
The bridges were both earmarked for replacement about a year ago. However, funding for the projects from the Federal Highway Administration’s Bridge Repair and Replacement program was not available until recently.
Funding for the projects will run through September 2005, when the bridges are expected to be completed, Koenig said.
The bridges are part of an overall series of bridge repairs, replacements and retrofittings the county is currently taking part in.
Similar projects included a $584,000 reshaping of the intersections on Fairview Road at Santa Ana and McCloskey roads, a $536,618 Fairview Road bridge replacement at Dos Picachos Creek and the $1.5 million replacement of two San Juan Highway bridges.
There is currently a $1.7 million bridge project underway to replace the Southside Road Bridge at Tres Pinos Creek. The project was delayed until county officials recently received a letter from officials with the California Department of Fish and Game stating that the department has removed its previous objections to the project.
The concern was that scouring would result in gouges near the base of the pylons that would leave them exposed and susceptible to collapse in 30 years or 40 years, Koenig said.
Koenig said construction consultants who helped design the bridge and engineers from Caltrans who reviewed the plan said the design was sturdy and would work as expected.
Many of the projects under review are being built with the help of state and federal funding.
There are also plans for an estimated $3 million project to replace the Nash Road Bridge.
