FERRYSBURG, Mich. — The plan to repair Smith's Bridge is finally moving forward.
The City of Ferrysburg has agreed to a $14.4 million plan from MDOT to replace Smith’s Bridge, a project that has struggled to secure money and has been on hold since 2018.
WATCH: Ferrysburg's Smith Bridge repairs moving forward
"We’ve had funding, it’s been taken away, we’ve had funding, it’s been taken away. The city is very pleased that it’s moving forward," City Manager Craig Bessinger said.
The bridge was closed in 2019 after the city deemed it to be too unsafe to drive on. That decision was overturned six months after a separate engineer hired by people living nearby determined it to be safe to drive on with a weight restriction.
The upcoming project will shut down the bridge for six months, as crews replace the bridge's superstructure. The project also calls for widened sidewalks and will require the removal of trees in the area.
People that live near the bridge in Veits Landing are happy to see the project moving forward, however, they do have some concerns.
Stanley Sterk and Charles Farkas, who are on the Veits Landing Board, say they are concerned about parts of the project that call for the parking area to be moved across the street and how the project could impact trees in the area.
"It puts parking in the wrong part. It's already there. Why replace it?" Sterk said.
"We're concerned about any work that might be done on the east side that might damage the roots of our trees that are along that pathway," Farkas said.
Bessinger said he understands their concerns and is working to ensure the city's needs are met and neighbors are happy.
"Once we get the contractor awarded, we can work with the contractor to move that parking area back to the west side of the street," Bessinger said.
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