Cultural resources review planned at Winship Bridge
Ross town officials will conduct a cultural resources review hoping to move along its stalled Winship Bridge project.
The Town Council unanimously approved a $24,911 contract amendment with the engineering firm Consor at a meeting on Feb. 15. The resolution appropriated the money from a town fund intended for drainage.
Recent field surveys at the site have revealed evidence that Native Americans “lived and thrived” in the vicinity of the bridge and Winship Park, a staff report said. The discovery amplified the need for further
research to confirm the town's compliance with cultural resource reporting requirements.
Mayor Elizabeth Brekhus said the town was compliant with environmental law in its collaboration with local tribes.
“Ross takes that obligation seriously,” Brekhus said. “I imagine we are not unique in wanting to cooperate with tribes and act in compliance with the law.”
The 98-year-old bridge crosses San Anselmo Creek on Winship Avenue between Garden Road and Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.
The bridge integrity scored a 54.6 score on a scale of 100 in 2020, according to Caltrans. The bridge also does not provide proper flow in the creek because
of a center pier supporting the bridge and tight waterways.
The project aims to upgrade the crossing to current safety and design standards with a more hydraulically sufficient bridge.
The bridge would be replaced with a precast concrete slab bridge that has an approximately 20-foot-wide road and a 4.5-foot walkway on the north side. The road would be raised 4 feet to meet flood requirements.
The Ross Valley Sanitary District also will update a sewer line within the bridge to relieve hydraulic deficiencies.
Ross Town Manager Christa Johnson said cultural resources surveys were performed in the