Can Downtown Chatham get by with just one bridge?
That's one of the questions that municipal staff will be asking Chatham-Kent council Monday night.
A report that's going to council says the Fifth St. Bridge and the Third St. Bridge both need to be repaired in the near future, with a combined estimated cost of around $13-million.
Instead of going ahead with that work -- and eventually replacing both of the bridges when repairs and maintenance won't be enough -- municipal staff are recommending that council consider closing down one of those bridges and replacing it with one new structure.
Staff say having one bridge in place instead of maintaining two will be more cost-effective in the long-run for the municipality, because it would cost less to fix up one bridge than it does to keep fixing two of them.
There are several options for where the new bridge would be built, including one that would keep the Fifth St. Bridge open and only close the span on Third St.
Another option would include constructing a brand new bridge that would link St. Clair St. to Queen St.
At this point, council isn't being asked to make a concrete decision about the long-term future of the downtown area.
Staff are only asking for council to approve an environmental assessment (EA) and to put the Fifth St. Bridge replacement on hold until that EA is completed.
That EA would give municipal officials a better idea of which long-term option council should move ahead with.
Chatham-Kent Council was scheduled to address this issue on Monday night, but due to time constraints it has since been pushed to the December 5 meeting.
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