More than a half-dozen alternatives, including fixing, replacing, or even relocating the Healdsburg Memorial Bridge will be unveiled Thursday at a workshop to help determine the future of the vintage span.
The open house at the Healdsburg Senior Center is the second to help determine the fate of the 89-year-old bridge over the Russian River.
"There will be seven or eight alternatives presented," said City Manager Marjie Pettus.
Those include leaving the bridge as it is, or leaving it as is but eliminating vehicular traffic.
Other options are to rehabilitate the bridge, replace it with a similar structure, or replace it with a more functional, but less aesthetically-pleasing concrete span.
Additional scenarios include moving it up or down the river.
"Some people might say that's ridiculous," Pettus said, but he noted that consultants want to get reactions to a wide range of possibilities.
What to do with the 1921 bridge has been a periodic subject of discussion for years in Healdsburg.
A 1979 Caltrans report gave the bridge the poorest rating of any in the county. But that was revised two years ago after it was discovered the agency made a calculation error involving the location of the pins on the truss connections.
Caltrans then decided the bridge can bear all legal loads, including up to four 36-ton, semi-truck trailers at once. But the bridge does not meet current width or height requirements.
Doubts also have been raised about the bridge's ability to withstand floods and earthquakes.
There is a contingent of Healdsburg residents who want to save the historic structure. More than 300 people so far have signed an on-line petition to preserve it, including about 180 Healdsburg citizens, according to Mel Amato, an electrical engineer instrumental in getting the state agency to re-evaluate the bridge's rating.
Preservationists have created a website, healdsburgmemorialbridge.com.
The latest evaluation of the bridge, including a new engineering study, was launched by the City Council earlier this year when it approved a three-phase, $2.8 million contract with Omni Means Ltd. of Roseville. The transportation and civil engineering firm will help determine what should be done with the bridge.
Consultants are expected to identify environmental impacts and funding for the preferred alternative. Updates on that process can be found on the city website, healdsburgbridge.com.
The meeting today, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the senior center, 133 Matheson St., is intended to allow the public to see the various alternatives for the bridge, submit comments,or ask questions.
Cost estimates for the alternatives are not expected to be known for another month to six weeks, according to Pettus.
On May 11, a hearing will be held at City Hall to take take testimony from the public on the various options, followed by a similar meeting in July. The City Council is expected to choose a preferred alternative by mid-August.
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