'Structurally deficient' Tampa bridge to get facelift

The Cass Street Bridge, one of the city's five bridges into downtown, will get a much-needed facelift starting Wednesday.

The eight-month project, which involves replacing girders and some of the drawbridge's mechanical parts, will mean periodic lane closures and a three-month span this summer when the structure is entirely shut down.

Officials say the work is needed in order to restore the "structurally deficient" span.

"This is not to put a Band Aid on it. This is a general restoration and repair of the bridge," David Vaughn, the city's contracts administrator, said.

The drawbridge was built in 1927 to accommodate commerce that thrived along the Hillsborough River. It was one of three bridges from the period, along with the Platt Street and Laurel Street bridges that opened a year earlier.

The two-lane span has undergone periodic renovations and was last overhauled in 1949, according to state records.

Last year it was listed by inspectors as "structurally deficient" and scored a state Department of Transportation health rating of 74.89, meaning the bridge is in need of repairs or replacement within six years. The bridge was last inspected in March 2008.

Officials say the bridge is not in danger of collapsing, but they concede it needs work from constant thud of tires and corrosion. About 12,000 vehicles a day cross the bridge, according to the DOT.

Vaughn the said the $1.7 million overhaul is less than the cost to replace the bridge.

Over the next eight months, workers will replace girders and some mechanical parts related to the operation of the drawbridge. They also will chip away rusted areas and repaint the entire structure.

The work will require periodic lane closures. At some point, possibly in July, workers will shut down the entire span for about three months.

The county plans also to make similar bridge repairs affecting the downtown, but that work will not start until the fall or winter. The two bridges the county plans to renovate are the Platt Street and Columbus Drive bridges.