Moundsville City Council members discussed the need for better walking detour options for residents once the Parrs Camp Bridge is closed for a bridge replacement during Tuesday’s meeting.

The bridge closure on U.S. 250 (Jefferson Extension) was set to begin on Monday, but was delayed due to inclement weather. According to a release issued by the West Virginia Department of Transportation on Jan. 3, once the bridge is closed for the replacement, it will remain closed through the summer.

The WVDOT advises motorists to follow detour signs and use the alternate U.S. 250 Truck Route (Seventh Street). Moundsville City Manager Rick Healy said that, while the replacement may inconvenience motorists, it was “great news.”

Healy said his main concern for the project was the detour options given by the WVDOT for pedestrians once the bridge is closed. Healy said he was informed by the WVDOT that a temporary walkway for pedestrians was not included in the project plans and that the addition of a walkway would “delay the project considerably.”

Healy informed council members that he calculated the length of the three pedestrian detour options provided to him by the WVDOT, with each of them totaling a distance of over a mile.

“I don’t consider any of the detours good options,” Healy said. “I think the amount of pedestrian usage the bridge sees is immense. We see a lot of kids walking to school, mainly Moundsville Middle School and Central Elementary School. The detour options, in my opinion, are not fair or even adequate.”

Healy said he was “following up” on whether temporary footbridges could be used during the closure, but noted that the city would likely run into “permitting issues” since the bridge goes over water.

“They [temporary footbridges] are very expensive, and I’m concerned that it’s not going to be a good option either,” Healy said. “I don’t know where we go from here. I’m going to continue to work with the state.”

Council member Denny Hall asked Healy whether he had contacted the West Virginia National Guard regarding creating a pedestrian walkway. Healy responded he had only contacted the state, but had a contact with the WV National Guard that he could follow up with.

“Maybe they [the National Guard] could dance around the permitting too,” Healy said. “It’s worth a try.”

Council members Randy Chamberlain questioned whether the replacement bridge would contain a pedestrian walkway isolated from traffic lanes, which Healy confirmed.

“The pedestrian walkway will go to nothing because it goes into a parking lot, but part of the bridge will have a sidewalk,” Healy said.

Healy also gave a construction update for the new Moundsville City Building project as the project’s contractor, Great Lakes Restoration, was required to give the city a substantial completion date based on the city’s feedback by Monday, Jan. 6.

The contractor gave the substantial completion date of Oct. 31., which added nine days to the tentative substantial completion date originally proposed by Great Lakes Restoration. Healy said the city’s consultants were “comfortable” with the date, as it was “fair” for most of the project to be completed by that date.

Healy said the subcontractor creating the four garage doors in the city building was on site on Tuesday and would remain on site until the doors are completed in the “next couple of weeks.” He added that a second temporary electric line is currently being installed to power temporary furnaces in the building, and scaffolding was delivered to the building, which will be set up soon.

“One section of the exterior wall needs to be placed before any steel can go up, so that will be started weather pending as soon as possible,” Healy said.