January 24, 2011
By Cathy Spaulding, Staff Writer
Muskogee Phoenix
The City of Muskogee Foundation agreed Monday to fund up to $600,000 toward repair of the Harris Road/Hyde Park bridge across the Muskogee Turnpike.
But first, the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority must decide how to repair the bridge, which leads to the Port of Muskogee and the city water treatment plant. The Oklahoma Department of Transportation and City of Muskogee also must agree to the plan.
Port Director Scott Robinson said the two-lane overpass has been in poor shape for several years. He said about 70,000 and 80,000 trucks cross the overpass each year.
Robinson said representatives with the Port, the Turnpike Authority, and the city met earlier this month and reached a “gentleman’s agreement” to reconstruct the bridge and widen the deck to four lanes. Estimated cost of the project would be $2.369 million. Robinson said the Turnpike Authority would foot approximately $1.4 million of the cost. The Oklahoma Department of Transportation would pay approximately $500,000 from its industrial access road fund, and the city would pay approximately $500,000.
City of Muskogee Foundation Board member Earnie Gilder asked the Foundation to pay for the city’s share of the project... FULL ARTICLE
Posted on
Mon, January 24, 2011
by John Cox