County has decision to make on Sutliff Bridge

It's almost like a game show.

Johnson County can take more than $1.7 million in state and federal funds and restore the historic Sutliff Bridge, which was damaged in last year's flood.

Or it can take $1.4 million of that and spend it pretty much how it pleases, although what's left of the structure would have to be removed.

The county's Board of Supervisors, which has the final say on what to do, heard on Thursday the latter option for the first time. It elicited a “whoa” from Supervisor Sally Stutsman.

“This makes this decision even harder,” she said.

The flood swept away one-third of Sutliff Bridge, which is over the Cedar River in the northeast corner of the county. It opened in 1898 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. It was closed to vehicular traffic in 1981 but remained a popular tourist spot.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the state have said they will pay to restore the bridge. There are several design options, but the one that has gotten the most attention is building a new span similar to what was washed away for an estimated $1.7 million.

The county also could remove the remainder of the bridge for $200,000.

About 30 county, state and federal officials met Thursday to discuss the bridge. That's when the county was told it also could have $1.4 million instead and spend it on other items.

These alternate projects do not have to be related to Sutliff Bridge. It could be roadwork on the opposite side of the county, repairing trails or building a county facility.

If the county did that, about $200,000 would have to go toward tearing down the rest of the bridge.

A majority of the board has said they'd like to see the bridge restored to how it looked before the flood, but money is a consideration. Even before they knew of the “alternate projects” option, the supervisors were concerned about the estimated $335,000 the county would have to cover to bring the bridge up to code if it's rebuilt.

Grants and fundraisers could help with that cost, officials said.

A decision is expected before Thanksgiving.