Springdale seeks federal aid to replace bridge

SPRINGDALE — City leaders want to use federal money to replace a bridge washed away by flash floods in late April and early May.

A City Council committee unanimously recommended Monday that federal emergency relief funds, which are administered by the Arkansas Department of Transportation, be used to replace the bridge over Spring Creek on Pump Station Road.

It will cost form $700,000 to 800,000 to replace the bridge, according to Mayor Doug Sprouse.

The cost will be split with federal funds paying 80 percent and the city paying 20 percent, said Melissa Reeves, the city’s public relations director.

The City Council will vote Oct. 10 to officially determine whether to pursue the federal aid and thereby split the cost. If the council approves the resolution, the city will then make a deposit for 2 percent of the estimated construction costs up to a $15,000 maximum to the Department of Transportation. The city will maintain the bridge once it’s built as part of the agreement to use federal money, according to the resolution in the City Council Committee’s agenda packet.

The one-lane concrete bridge was about 11 feet wide, 100 feet long and located near Lake Springdale, according to Sam Goade, city public works director.

Goade said the bridge was “totally irreparable.”

Sprouse said the bridge will come back as a two-lane and will be designed by the Highway Department.