Historic New Harmony Bridge receives grant for restoration project
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A $150,000 federal grant is helping the New Harmony Bridge between Posey County, Indiana, and White County, Illinois move one step closer to restoration. Ellen Schanzle-Haskins with the Illinois New Harmony Bridge Authority said the money awarded by the Delta Regional Authority in March will be used to get a bridge condition report approved and make progress toward construction.
The Illinois New Harmony Bridge Authority and the Indiana New Harmony and Wabash River Bridge Authority currently co-own the bridge, which has been closed for 12 years because of a lack of funding for necessary inspections and repairs.
“[Reopening the bridge is] going to be a huge economic stimulus for both states, but particularly in southern Illinois, which is an area of persistent poverty, at least around the bridge. That’s how we got the Delta Regional Authority grant. We need to have something that will create jobs, something that will bring people to the area and something that will improve the safety of residents,” said Ellen Schanzle-Haskins, a member of the Illinois New Harmony Bridge Authority.
Since the bridge closed in 2012, communities on both sides of the Ohio River have been trying to find a way to rehabilitate and reopen the structure. Though Schanzle-Haskins lives in Springfield, Illinois, she has personal reasons for supporting the bridge’s restoration.
“The bridge just means so much to me. My great-uncle was a civil engineer in the 1920s. He built the approaches to the New Harmony Bridge in Illinois, and he used mules,” she said. “Our goal is to get this bridge repaired, restored, reopened and then probably turn it back to one of the two states.”
Bridge history
The New Harmony Bridge opened in 1930 at a time when the federal government was creating the national highway system and private companies were allowed to build bridges and charge tolls. Years later, Congress bought the bridge and appointed the White County Bridge Commission to oversee administration. By 1998, the New Harmony Bridge was the only bridge still under Congress’ control, and ownership was turned over to the commission.
“When it became private, it lost not only potential financial support from the federal government but it also lost administrative assistance,” said Schanzle-Haskins. “They could no longer apply for state or federal grants.”
The commission was able to maintain the bridge with toll money for several years. However, the bridge was shut down in 2012 with tentative plans to find money for restoration or have one of the states take over ownership. Schanzle-Haskins said the area took an economic hit following the closure.
“It was a terrible impediment to both states, but particularly to Illinois. And Illinois, at that point, not only lost businesses, they lost jobs, they lost the ability to get to jobs, they had to drive further. Businesses closed. Businesses in Indiana closed also. Illinois started losing population at that point, particularly in this area of the state,” she said.
The bridge closure affected the flow of tourism dollars into the river communities.
“When the bridge closed, that whole corridor was shut off, and a lot of the tourism went away. It impacted not only New Harmony but also southern Illinois and all these little towns that had restaurants and historic museums and things of that nature,” said Schanzle-Haskins.
Rodney Clark with the Indiana New Harmony and Wabash River Bridge Authority said the closure also impeded Illinois residents trying to access health care in Evansville.
“This was a corridor for safety and emergency services. [White County residents] have to go all the way to Grayville and come across the [I-64] bridge and then back down [to Evansville],” he said.
Recent years
In 2019, the White County Bridge Commission transferred the bridge’s ownership to the Illinois New Harmony River Bridge Authority and Indiana New Harmony and Wabash River Bridge Authority.
“When they created the two authorities, both states’ mandate to the two authorities was to at least partially get [the bridge] open to vehicular traffic because they see it as a real economic development project. They said at least partially because they also recognize the benefit of having a pedestrian element to that bridge,” said Clark.
The Illinois Department of Transportation also joined the restoration project.
“IDOT stepped up, and the Indiana authority, Illinois Authority and IDOT signed a memorandum of understanding that IDOT would provide the expertise, the engineering expertise, and the procurement expertise for us so that we don’t run afoul of any state laws or any procurement laws, and that they would guide us in this process,” said Schanzle-Haskins.
A $350,000 grant from the state of Indiana got the ball rolling for an assessment to determine whether the bridge could be repaired or should be torn down.
“We realized we could reasonably restore this bridge to its original design and do it as a great cost savings to the people of both states because they would have a bridge that would last for another 40 to 50 years,” Schanzle-Haskins said.
A cost-benefit analysis conducted by an Indianapolis firm showed the benefits of repairing the bridge would be six times the amount of money spent on the work.
“Since that time, we have been working diligently to get ourselves positioned for grants and things which will help us either A: move the project along, or B: provide a capital grant, which was probably going to have to come from the federal government to rehabilitate the whole bridge,” Clark said.
Next steps
Schanzle-Haskins said the Illinois and Indiana authorities continue to apply for grants to fund the New Harmony Bridge project.
“We’re applying for up to $25 million. I think the cost estimates are less than that now. But we have to include contingencies. If the price of steel goes up, if we have to replace some of the steel more than we initially thought, you have to have contingencies in there,” she said.
Restoration plans include laying down a new deck to increase the strength of the bridge and its longevity. Another suggestion is making one wider lane for vehicles, alternating traffic flow and adding a pedestrian/bicycle lane.
“The $150,000 allows us to go back to an engineering firm and move the process along. They have to do things like critical stress fracture studies where they measure the width of the steel over the entire bridge. Go much deeper than a precursory study. These funds will allow us to go to the next step, which gets us ever closer to being shovel-ready,” Clark said.
Engineers said the bridge could reopen in 2028 or 2029, but Clark and Schanzle-Haskins agree the timeline heavily depends on the availability of funding.
“The environmental assessments/certifications are underway with assistance from state and federal agencies and direction from the Illinois and Indiana authorities and the Illinois Department of Transportation,” said Schanzle-Haskins. “Time is of the essence for this project. We need to get it funded, and we need to get it done, because the longer it sits there, the worse off it is.”