Although footbridge that connects the Baker County Library in Baker City to Geiser-Pollman Park exhibits noticeable decay, as of 2020 state bridge inspectors rated its structural integrity as fair, so it remains usable.

BAKER CITY — The pedestrian bridge that spans the Powder River and connects the Baker County Library and Geiser-Pollman Park has a somewhat murky history.

And its future isn’t certain, either.

The 62-foot-long, single-span concrete footbridge shows obvious signs of aging, including exterior cracks and rust staining, according to a 2020 inspection by the Oregon Department of Transportation. The two inspectors rated the condition of the bridge’s superstructure, substructure and deck as fair, however, meaning it can continue to be used.

Among the many unknowns about the bridge are such basic matters as who owns the structure and is responsible for it, and when it was built.

Neither the city nor the county apparently has records of the bridge’s design or construction. Joyce Bornstedt, the city’s public works director, said she is researching the bridge’s ownership, but that “we are leaning toward it being owned by Baker City.”

Baker City historian Gary Dielman, a 1957 graduate of Baker High School, wrote that during his childhood the park extended west of the river, on the current site of the library, and that there was a bridge.

Ed Adamson, facilities manager for the library district, wonders whether the bridge might have been built by workers in the federal Works Progress Administration, one of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal programs designed to employ people during the Great Depression of the 1930s.

If that were the case, Adamson was concerned that the concrete might contain asbestos, a known human carcinogen.

But that’s not the case, based on four samples of concrete from the bridge that the city’s public works department sent to Atlas, a Boise testing lab. None of the samples contained asbestos fibers, according to the lab report that the city received on Thursday, July 13.

The testing cost the city $157, Bornstedt said.

How old is it?

In addition to Dielman’s account, a photograph suggests that the bridge is considerably older than the library, which was dedicated in 1971.

The library’s historic photo collection includes a sepia monochrome postcard from photographer B.C. Markham that shows the footbridge. The postcard isn’t dated, but it was mailed in 1936. The photo collection lists a possible date for the photo of 1910 to 1920. Geiser-Pollman Park is older still, turning 115 this year.

Adamson said the last time the bridge’s walking surface was repaired, the work was prompted by a baby stroller wheel becoming stuck in a crack in the asphalt.

In January 2020, Baker City’s Public Arts Commission discussed restoring the painted murals on the bridge. But then-City Manager Fred Warner Jr. told commission members that repairs might be needed, and he advised waiting.

Adamson said the painted murals could be part of the bridge’s problems, though, as paint can trap moisture and accelerate decay of the concrete.

Michael Russell, of Baker City, is looking to spur interest in a project to restore the bridge, which he referred to as the gateway to the city’s historic downtown.

2020 inspection

In an email to Baker City’s public works department following the July 2020 inspection, ODOT engineer John Ostendorff, who did the inspection along with Michael Jacobson, also of ODOT, wrote that the bridge would be on a two-year inspection schedule “for the time being, in order to be sure that deteriorating/defects are progressing at a steady, albeit slow rate.”

Ostendorff said in a phone interview on July 13, however, that the inspection interval will actually be four years, so the next inspection isn’t planned until 2024.

The 2020 inspection report notes that the city had provided ODOT with reports from inspections in 1981, 1984, 1986, 1987 and 1988.

“No other records or bridge plans were found,” according to the 2020 report.

The report states that comparing the 2020 findings with a summary of the previous inspections from the 1980s “shows a steady, but minor overall increase to deterioration/age/wear/defects over the past (approximately) 30 years.”

According to the report, renovating the bridge could be challenging “primarily due to continued ice and debris collisions” with the bottom of the span. If the bridge is replaced, it would likely have to be with a different type of bridge.