The Centre Street bridge in Newtown Borough is set to close for two weeks later this month for a restoration project, according to Borough Manager Craig Totaro’s announcement at last week’s council meeting.
“We’ll have a more exact timeline soon, but it will definitely be finished before Thanksgiving,” Totaro said.
The project involves a PennDOT contractor carefully removing and replacing each stone of the bridge structure, the manager said.
“They’ll be taking out all the stones, going down until they reach solid, unaffected parts of the bridge,” Totaro explained. “They’re also replacing the pathway.”
Totaro pointed out that PennDOT is approaching this as a repair project, not a full bridge replacement.
“They’re not treating this as a complete bridge replacement, which would be very disruptive and make it impossible to keep the structure’s original character,” he said.
The borough manager stated that PennDOT has said they will properly restore the bridge. He also mentioned that a PennDOT cultural resources expert is overseeing the historical aspects of the project.
The Centre Avenue bridge’s south wall was damaged earlier this year after a car hit it and caused damage, but the damage was not enough to make the bridge unsafe.
The bridge dates back to 1796 and crosses the Newtown Creek.
