$6.9 million Myakka River Bridge repair to proceed this week

Beginning this week, construction will begin on the Myakka River Bridge.

The bridge, located on Myakka Road about 2 miles south of Fruitville, was built in 1954 and lies just west of the Sarasota-Manatee county line. The project is a part of Sarasota County’s ongoing bridge replacement and rehabilitation program. Construction is projected to last through spring 2017, as the county builds a new, 330-foot bridge in place of the old. The new bridge will be completed in two phases, and the bridge will operate one-lane for traffic throughout the project during work hours— 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Sunday. Two lanes will be open during off-work hours.

The project design cost $525,989, and was completed last summer. However, the construction bid was more expensive than the original project budget, causing delay in the project. The construction contract, with ZEP Construction, is $5,919,136. The county is paying an additional $487,429 to Stanley Consultants for engineering.

Art Powell, project construction manager for the county, said the cost related to the bridge is typical because the bridge’s trajectory is curved to follow the path of Myakka Road.

“It’s a unique bridge because it’s not straight,” he said. “It’s at the end of its life expectancy.”

The new bridge will have about a 70-year life, Powell said.