HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1988-12-07, Page 22PAGE 22. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7, 1988.
150 attend E Wawanosh 10th line bridge opening
The historic opening of the $1.2
million 10th line bridge across the
Maitland River in East Wawanosh
was witnessed by 150 people in a
ceremony Friday at the bridge
northwest of Belgrave and at a
ceremony at the township municipal
building at Belgrave.
Three busloads of spectators were
taken from the municipal building to
the east end of the new bridge to
witness the ceremonies to cut the
ribbon and unveil a plaque bearing
the names of the council which
oversaw the bridge’s construction as
well as the contractor and engineer.
Those taking part in the ceremony
were able to look down on the 1911
wrought-iron bridge that the new
bridge replaces.
After the official ribbon cutting
with Jack Riddell, M.P.P. for Huron
doing the ribbon cutting, the
spectators got back on the buses and
were the first people to cross the new
bridge after it was officially opened.
The crowd filled the chairs set up
in the township garage and many
stood at the back of the room to watch
the official dedication ceremonies
chaired by Reeve Ernie Snell. Mr.
Riddell said the bridge was a good
example of what can happen when a
municipality and a provincial repre
sentative work together. He recalled
the meeting of East Wawanosh
councillors with Ed Fulton, Minister
of Transport this spring that eventu
ally led to the approval of $485,000
for the bridge’s construction follow
ed by another $450,000 grant this
fall. “I’m just darned glad we got
this bridge built now,’’ Mr. Riddell
said, referring to that fact that with
federal transfer payments being cut
back for such projects, the pro
vince’s money must now be stretch
ed thinner.
Bob Bell, Huron County Warden
said he was impressed by the size of
the bridge since there weren’t many
bridges of the magnitude in the
southern part of the county (he
comes from Tuckersmith).
Bob Van Veen, District Municipal
Engineer with the Ministry of
Transport recalled the thick file that
had been built up about the bridge
over the many years when the
township had been seeking provin
cial support for the project. “Ken
Dunn’s (engineer from B.M. Ross
and Associates) slides were wearing
thin,” he said.
Mr. Dunn paid tribute to the team
that built the bridge including
township road superintendent
Ralph Campbell and the contractor
McLean-Taylor Construction of St.
Marys.
Glenn Finnie of McLean-Taylor
also praised the many people who
had worked on the bridge’s con
struction.
Rev. John Roberts of Belgrave
talked of the importance of building
bridges in his remarks before
making the official dedication.
Eva Snell gave a history of the old
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