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Replacement of a pedestrian bridge at the confluence of the Mississippi River and Coon Creek in Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park is planned this year by Anoka County, along with the reconstruction of a mile and a half of trails in the park.
The Anoka County Board April 11, on the recommendation of its Parks Committee, approved a contract in the amount of $224,824 with consultant TKDA for design, engineering and construction management services on the project.
The bridge, which is over 30 years old, was shut down last summer because the concrete abutments were eroding as a result of high-water flow causing the infrastructure to buckle, leading to safety issues, according to Parks Director Jeff Perry.
“The bridge has received heavy use because it is on the Mississippi River Regional Trail, which has one of the highest uses in the county system,” Perry said.
The county hired TKDA to conduct a feasibility study and it recommended four options, including replacing the bridge at its current location and raising the grade which was selected by the committee, he said.
Perry said the new bridge will be made of steel, but with deep-driven helical piers for long-term stability and a concrete deck, plus it will be built higher to withstand flooding.
Reconstruction (full reclamation and paving) work will take place on two trails south and east of Cenaiko Lake. The Mississippi River Regional Trail, which runs adjacent to the river on the west side of Cenaiko Lake, will be reconstructed starting south of the lake, while work on the Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park Trail, which lies east of Cenaiko Lake and links up with the Mississippi River Regional Trail south of Coon Creek, will see work done east and south of the lake.
“They are 30 years old and in need of repair,” Perry said.
Estimated project cost is $3.85 million ($2.8 million bridge and $1.05 million trails) with funding to come from the Metropolitan Council capital improvement program and the state parks and trails legacy grant, which derives its revenues from the three-eighths-cent state sales tax passed by voters in 2008.
The legacy grant will also pay the cost of the TKDA contract, Perry said.
There are bills currently before the Minnesota Legislature that include funding for this project, but if they do not pass, the county will tap into other grant sources, he said.
Construction is expected to start this fall with completion by the winter of 2024.
In tandem with the bridge replacement and trails reconstruction work, the county parks department and the Coon Creek Watershed District are partnering on a project to replace four culverts crossing Coon Creek on the Coon Rapids Regional Dam Park Trail east of Cenaiko Lake.
“The 60-inch culverts were installed in 1986 and have reached the end of their useful life,” Perry said.
Through a cooperative agreement with the county for engineering services, the watershed district is exploring three engineering options, one a bridge, the second two box culverts and the third replacement with the same size culverts.
Perry said that the estimated cost of the design work is $25,000, of which the watershed district will pay $20,000 and the county $5,000 with money from the Metropolitan Council capital improvement program.
SOURCE: Hometown Source
