The county’s plea for a $1.7 million bridge project did not fall
on deaf ears as state wildlife officials approved the design.
The county’s plea for a $1.7 million bridge project did not fall on deaf ears as state wildlife officials approved the design.
The project to replace the Southside Road Bridge at Tres Pinos Creek was on hold 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.
By law, the county needs Fish and Game officials to sign off on a streambed alteration agreement that would allow construction in the creekbed so pylons and other support structures can be driven into the ground in and around the creekbed.
“This was the last permit we needed,” Public Works Director Doug Koenig said. “The next step is to get Caltrans to certify the project so that we can authorize the contract and get that thing built this summer.”
The project was on hold because Fish and Game officials did not like the design of the proposed bridge.
“They said the design would result in a deep scouring of the creekbed,” Koenig said.
The concern is that scouring would result in gouges near the base of the pylons that would leave them exposed and susceptible to collapse in 30 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 is sturdy and would work as expected. However, a similar study by Fish and Game officials left the state agency with reservations about the design.
Koenig convinced Fish and Game that all they were dealing with was an honest difference of opinion between engineers and not a safety hazard.
Other completed projects by the Public Works include 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.
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.
