By James Windell
The South Haven City Council approved a quote from Davis Construction, Inc. to repair the Dyckman Avenue Bridge.
Although it has been known for several years that the Dyckman Avenue Bridge over the Black River needed repairs, the project has been delayed because of the expense. Bids were received on the project in 2023, but because the bids were over-estimate, the project was placed on hold to be reevaluated later. Last year, South Haven contracted with OHM Advisors bridge group to review the original design. OHM Advisors determined the original construction scope could be reduced to still achieve the desired repairs. In a new bidding process, Davis Construction, Inc. was low bidder with an estimate of $283,568.00.
Acknowledging the approval for the bridge project, Dana Burd, Department of Public Works Director, told the City Council that there is work going on at the bridge already. “We will have contractors doing various work at the bridge preparing for inspections this spring,” Burd said.
As part of the National Bridge Inventory system, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) requires all bridges over a water body with vehicular traffic to have an underwater inspection performed every five years. In 2020, South Haven contracted with Great Lakes Engineering Group to perform the underwater inspection for the Dyckman Avenue Bridge. During this inspection conditions were identified that require scour countermeasures. Scour is an erosive process of the riverbed around bridge foundations.
The scour project schedule will be adjusted to coincide with non-operational times of the bridge instead of the June-July timeframe originally planned. The current schedule calls for the work by Davis Construction to begin this spring and end before the summer tourist season. Documents prepared by Bella Haberski, Civil Engineer with the city, indicate that the current work schedule will minimize the inconvenience to boat traffic during construction and the scour project will occur during the March to May time period.
