“Dick loved covered bridges, raised his family just south of the structure in “The Vale” (a small group of homes near the Hyde Road Bridge) and was instrumental in the funding and design of the bikeway the bridge crosses,” said Greene County Engineer Robert Geyer.
The new covered bridge will replace an uncovered deteriorated steel bridge that’s been closed for a year.
The new structure is a 77-foot span Howe Truss, which was a popular design in the mid-to-late 1800s. The project was designed by Smolen Engineering of Ashtabula and was built by R.G. Zachrich Construction of Defiance at a cost of $480,000, Geyer said.
The new bridge is designed to carry legal loads, widths and heights, he added. Half of the project was funded by the Ohio Public Works Commission and the other half by the County Bridge Levy.
Anyone planning to attend the 10 a.m. ribbon cutting should access the site from Corry Street or from U.S. Route 68.
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