- Narrow the roadway to one lane and place a five-foot wide sidewalk along its south side.
- Built a new walkway at the roadway level outside the south wall of the bridge.
- Repair the existing walkway on top of the south wall of the bridge.
Fate of Hanapepe 1911 Bridge
SUBHEAD: County Council meeting Wednesday 11/19 to decide fate of historic bridge. Westsiders need to weigh in on this subject.
Image above: The west approach to the Hanapepe 1911 Bridge showing it closure after storm is February 2008. Note stair leading up to walkway is at right. All photos by Juan Wilson.
By Juan Wilson on 17 October 2011 for Island Breath -
(http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2011/10/fate-of-hanapepe-1911-bridge.html)
WHAT:
County Council Meeting to discuss plan for repairing Hanapepe 1911 Bridge.
WHERE:
County Council Chambers
Historic County Building
4396 Rice Street, Suite 201
Lihue, Kauai, Hawai'i 96766
WHEN:
Wednesday, 19th October 2011 at approximately 1:30pm
Image above: Photo 10/17/11 of West end of bridge after repainting for 100th birthday.
I've lived in Hanapepe Valley for a decade and use the 1911 Bridge over the Hanapepe River daily. I am an architect and planner and in my opinion the county has a bad plan to renovate the bridge. If implemented it will diminish the bridge's usefulness to the Westside community.
In 2007 an inspection of the 1911 Bridge revealed that the structural had several problems due to metal corrosion and concrete spalding. This included cracks in concrete and erosion of steel knee-braces that supported the raised pedestrian walkway on top of the south wall of the bridge.
Shortly afterwards the County put up barriers of wooden pallets and locked gates to restrict access to the walkway. They placed soft plastic bollards in a line to mark a walkway. This clumsy attempt to make the bridge less of a danger was certainly a result of some bean counters risk manager's calculations with help from the county attorney. These two steps have actually made the bridge more dangerous to the drivers and fishermen who use the bridge. But a least the County won't be sued successfully.
The County made proposals for fixing the bridge. They will make structural repairs, replace roadway and then provide a walkway. They presented three alternative plans for the walkway.
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