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3C THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, APRIL 17, 2015 BRIDGES OF PACIFIC COUNTY A century-long legacy of linking communities together By NATALIE ST. JOHN EO Media Group PACIFIC COUNTY, Wash. — In 1916, French and German troops waged the longest battle of the Great War. In Russia, no- bles poisoned, then shot, then beat, and then drowned Grigory Rasputin, a notoriously wicked Russian “Holy-man” and ad- viser to the royal family who proved to be surprisingly dif- ¿FXOWWRPXUGHU$KDOIDZRUOG away, Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa fought U.S. sol- diers for control of modern-day New Mexico. ,Q TXLHW 3DFL¿F &RXQW\ LW was also a momentous year, but in a very different way: It was WKH \HDU ZRUNHUV EXLOW WKH ¿UVW of the 60 bridges that still serve FRQWHPSRUDU\ 3DFL¿F &RXQW\ residents. In a state known for its many waterways, bridges play an essential, if unsung role in the economy. They connect iso- lated local communities to one another, and to the rest of the state. They bring resources and opportunity to locals by making modern commerce possible. But they also demand a lot of re- sources: Local and state public ZRUNV RI¿FLDOV PXVW FDUHIXOO\ monitor aging infrastructure to prevent calamities like the May 2013 Skagit River Bridge col- lapse. There is never enough mon- ey or manpower to do major repairs or replacements, so of- ¿FLDOVHQJDJHLQDQHYHUHQGLQJ balancing-act, trying to keep all Damian Mulinix — EO Media Group 60 bridges maintained, so they South Nemah River Bridge, located on Lynn Point Road, built in 1959, rated 50. In theory, anything below an 80 qualifies never need to be replaced. for county-owned bridges is about 82. “That’s really good. I’d stack our state up against anybody in the 50 states. I think ZH GR D YHU\ ¿QH MRE´ 2OVHQ said. Recently, FHWA changed its recommendations, saying that more older bridges should have load-limits than previously thought. That led the county to recently add new weight-limit signs to a number of local bridg- es. But that’s not a sign that the bridges are deteriorating, Col- lins said. It’s just a precautionary measure. ‘Remarkably good shape’ 2OVHQVD\V3DFL¿F&RXQW\¶V bridges are in “remarkably good shape.” Currently, only a small SRUWLRQKDYHDVXI¿FLHQF\UDWLQJ below 75. That’s partly because during the 1990s, the county rebuilt a large number of aging timber and steel bridges that were mostly built in the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s. “We really pushed hard to replace a lot of those struc- tures. That put us in pretty good shape,” Collins said. Collins said inspectors look for wear and tear on the deck — the part you drive on — and sometimes decide to resurface cracked or chipping surface materials. They also look at the arches, spanners foundations. Some bridges need to be seis- PLFDOO\ ¿WWHG RU UHLQIRUFHG WR prevent sagging or collapse. If the foundation of a bridge is crumbling, or has been scoured away by the constant motion of debris in rushing wa- for repairs, and anything below a 40 “bears some careful watching.” ter, “There’s not a lot you can Era of stout bridges do,” Olsen said. During a two-year period settlements that were only ac- according to Walt Olsen, and which local authorities use to bridges. A bridge that is “Func- The feds will generally only from 1916 to 1917, workers cessible by boat, or long over- engineer with the County Roads rate bridges, during required tionally Obsolete” is usually too pay to replace bridges, not to poured four concrete “Luten land routes. Communities that Advisory Board, a state agency LQVSHFWLRQV&ROOLQVVDLG3DFL¿F narrow to meet modern stan- repair them. CRAB has very Arch” bridges, spanning the FRXOGQ¶W HI¿FLHQWO\ JHW JRRGV that oversees management of County DPW workers inspect dards. It might have only one limited money for certain types Willapa River, Fern Creek, in or out sometimes got left county-owned infrastructure. most bridges once every two land, or it might have just been of repairs and maintenance, but Green Creek and the slough behind of the growing nation- Olsen and his colleagues pro- years, but they look at the sev- built before the advent of F-350s most money has to come from on modern-day Heckard Road. al economy. For citizens of vide support to public works en remaining timber bridges and Hummer. But it’s not neces- local taxes. That means Collins and his crew must carefully pri- With graceful, curving span- the time, the bridge-building staff, including Collins. They every year, because they are the sarily dangerous, Olsen said. ners, those bridges were a boom of 1916 and 1917 must also publish yearly reports, least structurally-sound. They A bridge that is “Struc- oritize state and locally-funded bellwether of the era’s rapid- have seemed like a sign that 65 evaluating the quality of coun- also inspect bridges as-needed WXUDOO\ 'H¿FLHQW´ LVQ¶W EXLOW maintenance projects, to be sure ly evolving technologies and years after it was founded, the ty-owned bridges, roads and after major weather events like to modern weight standards. the bridges stay in good working culture. An Indiana engineer county was becoming more es- culverts. Compliance with the ÀRRGV ³7KHEULGJHLVLQ¿QHVKDSHDV condition. and professor named Daniel tablished. But Collins says decid- long as you don’t overload it. CRAB standards ensures that Grading old structures Load is a very key issue here ing to repair an old bridge can B. Luten had designed and pat- The Luten bridges have counties will continue to qual- At CRAB, each bridge re- — that’s what causes collapses sometimes be “a double-edged ented a new type of concrete proven to be both lovely and ify for state fuel tax revenues bridge with a curving arch and stout — they may be old, but — a vital source of funding for FHLYHV D ³VXI¿FLHQF\ UDWLQJ´ and failures,” Olsen said. Those sword.” Some aging bridges ÀDW XSSHU GHFN /XWHQ$UFK they’ve held up better than some public works projects. between zero and 100, based bridges often need to be posted don’t meet modern needs, but bridges were popular because newer bridges made from other “That’s a lot of money to a on data from the county bridge with weight-limits, but as long are so sturdy they’ll probably they were easier to replicate, materials, according to Pacif- lot of counties, so everybody inspections. A higher rating as people obey the load limits, never qualify for replacement. used a widely available mate- ic County Director of Public pretty much toes the mark on all means a bridge complies with they’re safe, Olsen said. If the county makes repairs that rial, and could accommodate Works Mike Collins. He’s the of these standards,” Olsen said modern design standards. In He cautions that neither the LPSURYH WKH VXI¿FLHQF\ UDWLQJ the increasing use of motor man in charge of inspecting in a phone interview. theory, anything below an 80 age of the bridge or those labels for a bridge that would other- vehicles. Luten claimed that by county bridges, and making sure Guidelines about how to TXDOL¿HV IRU UHSDLUV DQG DQ\- can determine which bridges wise qualify for federal replace- 1919, he had designed about that each is maintained to state manage bridges are heavily in- thing below a 40 “bears some are vulnerable on their own. ment money, it could get stuck 17,000 bridges, which could and federal standards. ÀXHQFHG E\ WKH 8QLWHG 6WDWHV FDUHIXOZDWFKLQJ´DQGTXDOL¿HV For example, the Skagit River with an inadequate bridge that be found in all but three states, “Those are structurally Department of Transportation, for replacement, Olsen said. In %ULGJHZDVQ¶WVWUXFWXUDOO\GH¿- will always need expensive according to Purdue University sound. They look like heck and and Federal Highway Adminis- reality, shrinking budgets mean cient — it just wasn’t designed maintenance. records. “He’s got to look at that they’re narrow and such, but tration, which sets safety stan- a rating alone will not guar- to withstand the impact of a gi- According to the U.S. Cen- they’re just so stout because of dards, and also decides which antee a project gets funded, ant semi crashing into the over- and make his best judgment to sus Bureau, about a quarter of the way that they’re built,” Col- bridge-related projects get fed- and the process is increasingly head structures — few bridges his board about which bridge should be put forward for fund- 3DFL¿F &RXQW\¶V VTXDUH lins said. competitive. are. eral money. miles are under water. In the There are two other desig- Statewide, there are about In Washington, Olsen said ing,” Olsen said. “It’s a compet- FWHA has devised a com- early days, there were local 3,300 county-owned bridges, plex safety-rating system, nations for aging or poorly-built WKH DYHUDJH VXI¿FLHQF\ UDWLQJ itive thing.” Damian Mulinix — EO Media Group Damian Mulinix — EO Media Group Damian Mulinix — EO Media Group The South Fork Naselle River Bridge, located on South Valley Road, built in 1965, rated a 60. The Church Bridge, located on Trask Road, built in 1992, rated an 80. The Davis Creek bridge on Knappton Road in Naselle, built in 1963, is rated a 50. FREE PUBLISHED THE FIRST FRIDAY OF EACH MONTH January 2015 ess in the Chronicling the Joy of Busin n Columbia-Pacific Regio striverbusinessjournal crbizjournal.com • facebook.com/coa Volume 10 • Issue 1 stry spo allenges Inside: Indu copes with ch Shellfish farm an conditions oce nging s optimistic despite cha tlight: Taylor remain Available at a newsstand near you NEWS County makes a splash PacifIc in the pot biz page 10 NEWS Seaside Muffler and Off-Road 21 revs up its reputation page BOAT OF THE MONTH The Sadie out of South Bend, Wash. page 24 crbizjou rn a l.com
