Deltaville span linking sections of trail less costly than county once thought

by Larry Chowning – 

During an update on a proposed Deltaville multi-purpose path project on Aug. 4, the Middlesex County Board of Supervisors was told the cost of a walking/bicycle bridge across Mill Creek, off of Jackson Creek, will cost “less than $300,000.”

At earlier talks, the cost of the bridge was estimated at $1 million, which would consume all funds available in a federal grant the county has applied for to fund the entire first phase of the project. Due to expense, supervisors had pretty much ruled out the bridge as a possibility.

Middlesex County Administrator Matt Walker informed the board that his office has found a pre-engineered fabricated bridge that will cut out engineering costs and reduce the overall price of the bridge.

The county owns the Deltaville Maritime Museum (DMM) property. Before any further bridge planning, DMM officials will need to be brought into the planning scheme, he said.

The $1 million proposed matching grant would build 10- to 12-feet wide paths from Stingray Point Marina to the Lower Middlesex Volunteer Fire Department…