MILANVILLE, PA — Amid safety concerns, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) plans to "temporarily" tear down the historic Skinners Falls-Milanville Bridge and store pieces for later restoration. The plan has area residents worried that, if the bridge goes down, it might not go back up. 

Earlier this year, PennDOT removed a metal brace that had come loose and threatened boaters passing beneath it. At the time, the department said it would return to conduct a full inspection. 

That inspection revealed the bridge "must be dismantled" for the safety of river-goers beneath it, according to PennDOT. 

PennDOT Community Relations Coordinator Jessica Ruddy said that, as of this time, there are no decisions made about replacing the bridge. "The bridge will be stored at one of our locations for possible use in the future," Ruddy said. 

However, local advocates are concerned that this dismantling of the bridge may become permanent. 

"Once that comes down, you're never going to see it come back up," said Al Henry, the Berlin Township representative with the Upper Delaware Council, speaking at a council meeting on November 7. 

"That's what leads to this concern, our concern," agreed Lindsey Kurnath, National Park Service superintendent for the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River. 

The Skinners Falls Bridge was built in 1902 and is a rare extant example of a particular type of bridge construction, called multiple span Baltimore truss. The bridge has been shut down since 2019 due to safety concerns. 

PennDOT has been studying the bridge and preparing plans for next steps since it was shut down. According to Barbara Arrindell, director of Damascus Citizens for Sustainability, the department has done nothing in the intervening six years to repair it, "Of course it's suffering," she told the River Reporter. 

The community around the bridge has consistently advocated for the bridge's repair, rather than its replacement. 

The department plans to save, categorize and store the pieces of the bridge so it could later be restored, according to Laurie Ramie, the executive director of the Upper Delaware Council, who spoke to the department to clarify the release. 

The fear is that the bridge in its current condition would collapse into the river before it could be rehabilitated, said Ramie.

PennDOT's plan is to receive all the needed approvals to start work by December 1, said Kurnath. She added that the NPS only found out about the plan this week and she doesn't know specifics. 

Kurnath expressed skepticism that PennDOT will have all its ducks in a row by its projected start date. The department has "a lot of big questions to try and answer ahead of December 1," she said. 

The bridge is labeled an "outstanding remarkable value" under the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, said Kurnath. While other historical preservation laws might allow PennDOT to take down the bridge and put up a plaque to commemorate the bridge's existence in exchange, "You cannot do that under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. You can't degrade or replace one value with another."

She said a main concern is that PennDOT "wants to proceed with this as just temporary," without considering the overall plan for the bridge. "That doesn't work with the National Environmental Protection Act process," which requires projects like this to be evaluated in whole, she said. 

"You can't wait five years doing absolutely nothing then say, 'Well, we have to take it down.' This is the heart of the community," Arindell said about the current situation.

An informational meeting on Thursday, November 14 at 2 p.m. will provide more details; visit bit.ly/SkinnersMeeting for the link to that session. 

Ramie said that PennDOT may also be planning an in-person meeting on the 18th; Ruddy said she was not aware of any such meeting. 

Other coverage:

https://riverreporter.com/stories/udc-protect-river-users-from-rotting-bridge,158674

https://riverreporter.com/stories/udc-strongly-supports-traditional-bridge-rehab,149413

https://riverreporter.com/stories/preserve-history-say-skinners-bridge-advocates,145376