There's a bridge just northeast of New Bloomfield available to the highest bidder - or at least to the one with the best proposal for its relocation and re-use.
Scheduled by the Missouri Department of Transportation for replacement in spring 2015, the Hillers Creek Bridge can be obtained by government entities, historical or civic groups or private citizens, free of charge - so long as they pay for its removal and transportation.
According to a press release, the Hillers Creek Bridge is eligible for MoDOT's Free Bridge program because of its historical significance - as determined by the Missouri State Historic Preservation Office.
"This is one of the first bridges built by the Department of Transportation in the 1920s, and its one of the oldest in the state," said Dustin Berry with Shafer, Kline and Warren, Inc., which is handling the potential "sale" of the bridge.
According to the release, the thru-truss bridge, located on Old U.S. Highway 54, was built in 1922 and is 101 feet long and 20 feet wide, and carries two lanes of one-way traffic. More information about the bridge can be viewed online at www.modot.org/freebridges.
Berry said the bridge itself is free, but whomever obtains it would be responsible for taking it down and moving it. According to the Free Bridges website, up to 80 percent of the demolition costs is potentially available to recipients.
He said bridges have previously been used on walking and biking trails.
Proposals for the relocation and re-use of the bridge must be submitted to Shafer, Kline and Warren in Columbia by Jan. 15.
According to a proposal checklist - available online at the Free Bridges website - a proposal to obtain the list should include:
•Map(s) showing the proposed new location of the bridge or elements;
•Images of the site where the bridge is to be relocated, including general photos of the area and specific views of the location for the new substructure and surrounding area;
•The route for moving the bridge or its components to the new site;
•How the bridge will be re-used;
•A plan for dismantling/relocating the bridge, including how it will be dismantled, the name of the contractor, how the various components will be coded for reassembly and what rehabilitation work will be performed;
•A cost estimate for moving and rehabilitating the bridge.
Proposals also must include a statement indicating the interested party's willingness to accept ownership of the bridge and assume all legal and financial responsibility for the bridge or components, abide by preservation covenants and to hold MoDOT harmless in any liability action.
For more information, contact Berry at Shafer, Kline and Warren at (573) 234-2632.