Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
ROSALIA — Repair work is scheduled for the Rosalia trestle in March.
Whitman County Public Works Director Mark Storey gave a report to county commissioners Monday.
Storey attended a pre-construction meeting last week, which set a date of March 15 to start the project. It’s expected to last two to three weeks.
During construction, one road lane will be closed under the trestle leading from US 195 to Rosalia.
The project includes removal of loose concrete, debris and temporary sediment containment and securing exposed steel.
The project started after incidents of small pieces of concrete falling to the Old State Highway 271/Rosalia Road below in recent years. Concrete pieces of half-inch to to two inches have been seen on the road.
The 1915 trestle, a former railroad bridge owned by state parks as part of the Palouse-to-Cascades Trail, formerly John Wayne Trail, was the subject of a 2017 letter sent to them by Storey. Phone calls followed between the two parties.
Later, at a Battle Days celebration in Rosalia, county commissioner Art Swannack mentioned the trestle matter to State Rep. Joe Schmick – R, Colfax. Schmick, in turn, put in a state legislative request for more information, noting that rebar was showing on a trestle arch.
State parks later issued a report that led to the new project.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
Reader Comments(0)