Tennessee Riverpark to close for six months

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF)- A popular walking bridge along the Tennessee Riverpark is set to close next week in order for it to be replaced.

Hamilton County Parks Director Matt Folz explained the project’s necessity.

The walking bridge that is between the Boathouse Restaurant and UTC’s football practice field is set to be closed for six months.

Folz says that a structural engineer found issues with the bridge that necessitates all of it to be closed at once, similar in nature to the repairs ongoing to the Walnut Street Bridge.

He said, “We can’t just replace a board at a time, you’ve seen us do that, a board here or there. At this point structurally, we can’t get screws long enough to tie into those boards, and anyone who has used this boardwalk has noticed those boards rattling and jarring, that’s because we can’t get into them with boards.”

The $1.2 million dollar project will take place while the wetlands underneath are dry during the winter months.

Folz said that the project needed to move forward now because, “If we had pushed out this project further into the winter, there was no guarantee (the contractor) would honor those rates, and the prices would go up.”

This is the second section of the Riverpark undergoing work, the other section being around Erlanger Park.

Folz said on the timing, “On some level we’re trying to look at it in collaboration right? If there’s already a closure, then doing it at the same time kinda made sense to us so that people could figure out… We didn’t want to close large sections over multiple years. We want to try to get multiple sections knocked out at the same time.”

There will not be a posted detour due to a lack of safe options in that area.

Folz said, “(Riverfront Parkway) is the only pass through corridor through here, because this is very much landlocked with the businesses. So what we’re seeing is that there is no designated detour. Each person we say choose your own adventure on how you feel safe getting to different points of the park.”

The project is slated to be complete in April, around the same time the portion of Riverpark around Erlanger Park is set to reopen.

The bridge will close next Monday, October 20.