THUNDER BAY – Work to replace the Marina Park pedestrian overpass will close Water Street for approximately three weeks beginning Monday, July 19.
That tentatively puts the reopening date around August 9.
The street will be fully closed between Red River Road and Van Norman Street as workers restore the pedestrian bridge, said contractor Tom Jones Corporation.
Detours are planned via Park Avenue, Court Street, Van Norman Street, and Cumberland Street North, the company said.
Pedestrian access will also be closed on Water Street between Red River Road and Van Norman Street.
During the period of the road closure, the overpass will be hoisted into place in three sections, glass installed on two sections, and concrete decks poured, the city said.
Water Street was closed only partially during much of the work to remove the structure for repairs last August. Brian Arnold, health, safety, and environmental manager with Tom Jones, said the full closure was considered a safer option.
The company is targeting July 27 to begin placing the structure itself back on its footings, with work in the meantime expected to include the application of protective coatings to inhibit steel corrosion and the installation of steel decking to form the base for its concrete deck.
The overpass was originally scheduled to be back in place before the winter of 2020, but discovery of worse-than-expected corrosion to the bridge's steel structure set the work back.
It also led the project to exceed its original $1.3 million budget by an estimated $500,000. The project is on track for completion within that expanded budget, the city recently confirmed.
