Supervisors oppose designating bridges as historic
12-28-04 - North America — , Mississippi
Hinds County supervisors fear designating two bridges as historic landmarks could delay repairs and upgrades.
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Supervisors President Doug Anderson said he will attend the Jan. 20 meeting of the Mississippi Historic Preservation Professional Review Board to present a resolution opposing the plan to have the R.H. Henry Bridge over the Big Black River on Old U.S. 80 in Hinds and Warren counties included on the National Register of Historic Places.
U.S. 80, one of the first major corridors linking the east and west coasts, also has served as a vital artery when I-20 has had to be closed, they said.
Warren County has sent a letter to the commission opposing the historic designation.
The supervisors' resolution also opposes naming the single-lane bridge on Rosemary Road in Terry as historic. It crosses the Pearl River connecting Hinds and Rankin counties. District 5 Supervisor George Smith wants it expanded to two lanes.
Anderson said Hinds and Warren counties spent about $1.4 million to reopen R.H. Henry Bridge eight or nine years ago. He fears that once on the registry, any needed repairs would be stymied by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.
Supervisors say replacing that bridge to meet historic standards could prolong any repair or replacement efforts if such work were ever needed, and cost more. The bridge is in good shape, Anderson said.
"My biggest concern is if (it's closed and) we needed it for an emergency from I-20," said District 4 Supervisor Ronnie Chappell. "We've had to use it to divert traffic before."
In addition, commuters use that highway instead of the interstate, Chappell said.
Supervisors point to the historic Woodrow Wilson Bridge, which crosses the Pearl River at Flowood and Jackson, as their example of what the county could go through.
That bridge was closed in January 2000 after it was found to be unsafe. Because it was a historic bridge, it was replaced with a replica of the original. Supervisors said that doubled the cost to $4.8 million. It reopened Dec. 15, 2003.
The federal government provided $2.8 million for that project.
The Woodrow Wilson Bridge is an exception, said Richard Cawthon, chief architectural historian for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.
"The Woodrow Wilson Bridge was an exception to a lot of rules because the decision was made to take down and replicate the structure," Cawthon said.
Normally, there is no such requirement to "replicate" a historic bridge if it has to be repaired or removed, he said. "
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