The pedestrian bridge planned in Gulf Shores over the Intracoastal Waterway at East Second Street is still in the design phase, Mayor Robert Craft said following a regular council meeting on May 13.

Ryan Shamburger, general manager of Big Beach Brewing and a resident of the neighborhood framed by East Second Street and Canal Road, said several of the residents approached him with questions about the bridge. He asked for an update on the construction.

“We’re working with the engineers to design the pedestals that the bridge will sit on,” Craft said. “This is a prefab bridge that will be put together so it supports itself. It only has to be 300 feet long to get over everything without having any extended supports like the other bridges had to go out another 200 feet almost on each side to balance it out and stabilize it. Because it’s supported with the overhead and the tied arch, it is self-supporting.”

Like several other city projects, officials had to redesign and reevaluate priorities because of rising material costs.

“All we have to do now is build the support towers that have the elevators and the stairs on each side,” Craft. “It will allow ramps to be added later. It doesn’t fit in the budget right now. This is the only thing that really fits within the budget of the money we have and allows some additional monies for parking.”

The project is still in the design phase and Craft said once designed and bid out it would take about a year, likely less, to complete the project.

“I think we have a bridge now that, we think, can work and can work and be done quickly and effectively because of the way it’s produced,” Craft said. “We’re determined we’ve got to get the bridge built and make sure we don’t have people trying to walk across the third lane on that bridge because there’s no walking area to get across the 59 bridge. We’ve got to get them across somehow. This is a high priority, this was the most effective from a cost standpoint and the quickest way it can get it done.”

During the meeting, the council also:

• Approved $8.8 million in expense vouchers including $4.8 million for construction on the new high school, $2.7 million for capital projects including the Waterway East Boulevard extension, the Justice Center retrofit at the old Sacred Heart building and the beach walking district project.
• Declared May 20-27 as National Beach Safety Week.
• Authorized the mayor to execute an agreement with Gulf Shores Utilities for reimbursement of $3.5 million for relocation of utilities on the west side of State Route 59 from the bridge north to County Road 6 for the ongoing widening project adding a third southbound lane on the roadway. The total project will cost $4.5 million and the extra million is for upgrades Gulf Shores Utilities wants to make to existing infrastructure along the relocation route.
• Hired Engineering Design Group for $23,600 for survey and platting services for the city’s new justice center at the old Sacred Heart Medical building south of Cotton Creek Drive or County Road 4 and east of State Route 59.
• Accepted a proposal from Neel-Shaffer for design services for improvements to County Road 6 or Oak Road West for $140,954. The entire project is $4.2 million and will include widening of the County Road 6 intersection with State Route 59 and a sidewalk. The project will be funded in part by a federal BUILD grant or Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development.
• Awarded the bid for the heating and air units for Fire Station No. 1 to Coastal Construction for $680,961. The city previously paid $43,270 for design services for the system to Dell Consulting and in February bought $240,227 worth of equipment from Trane to replace the current systems.
• Awarded a bid for City Store merchandise to Empire Printing for various apparel items.