Parke County Commissioners receive bid for Melcher Bridge project

The plans to reopen the bridge have been a long time coming and the project has seen its fair share of delays and issues. 

There may be light at the end of the tunnel for a Parke County bridge that was to have opened last year.

At Monday's meeting, the Parke County Commissioners opened the lone bid for repairs to the historic bridge, which is located on Strawberry Road. The plans to reopen the bridge have been a long time coming and the project has seen its fair share of delays and issues. 

Commissioner Jim Meece told those in attendance the county had to completely redo the process surrounding the bridge, complete with rebidding it and getting new permits again. 

"We had all this done before. About a year ago, we were in the process of having it back up and running by spring, but they began the process of drilling into the abutments and there was nothing behind it to hold the structure. It is like an old house, you wouldn't know until you take a wall down what's not there. So we basically had to start the process over. Now we are back to where we were a year and a half ago," Meece said. 

The lone bid came from Collum Excavating, LLC for $329,988 and included all the bid bonds. 

County attorney Nick Sauter said typically the bids are reviewed by the county highway staff. 

"You might want to have the engineer look at that," Sauter said. 

Meece welcomed that, saying the commissioners would be ready to vote on the matter at the next meeting on March 17.

"It has been a process," Meece said.