The restoration of a historic iron bridge that collapsed Christmas Day in Paoli will cost almost $750,000. The damage occurred when a truck driver carrying close to 30 tons ignored weight limit signs and drove over the bridge built in 1880.
Orange County Commissioner Don Crockett says Vincennes-based CLR Construction and the Indiana-owned VS Engineering were awarded the contract for the project.
"I guess we pretty well made a deal with a construction company and an engineering company to fix the bridge, going directly with the insurance company," Crockett says.
Construction for the project will cost $679,875 and engineering will cost $69,000.
Crockett says VS Engineering was specifically chosen for the company's experience in restoring older structures. He adds construction should begin later this year with plans to open the bridge sometime in 2017.
From January 2, 2016: The fate of the historic bridge has been undecided for almost a year.