Dayton Footbridge
The Footbridge was built in 1980 to relocate the City’s water and sewer mainlines from under the Yamhill River. The water mainline brings spring water into town and the sewer mainline takes wastewater out of town to the City's sewer ponds. It also provides access for pedestrians to Alderman Park and the Vintages RV Resort. In June of 2018, the City hired OBEC Consulting Engineers to perform a routine inspection and load rating test on the bridge. It was determined that due to woodpecker damage and decay in the timber towers that the bridge needed to be closed to pedestrian traffic for safety reasons.
City Council reviewed several alternative options reports to determine the most cost-effective solution. The City Council has approved replacing the midspan of the bridge (the area between the two A frames) with a prefabricated steel truss. The water and sewer lines will also be upgraded. Estimated cost on this project is $3.5 million with an additional estimate of $1 million for liquefaction mitigation. These costs will be finalized as the project design is completed.
Financing has been secured for the bridge and the utility line upgrades through DEQ and Business Oregon. We are currently in the design phase and due to permitting required to work in a water way, it is estimated that construction will start in the summer of 2022 with a 9-12-month construction period. It is anticipated that the Footbridge could reopen in the Summer of 2023.