Bastrop, Tx–The city might be half responsible for any repair or replacement cost of a bridge across Piney Creek on Riverwood Drive. The structure, essentially washed out by rains the weekend before Thanksgiving, has been closed to traffic for three to four months.
Piney Creek forms part of the north and west boundary of the city, and records suggest hat roughly half of the Riverwood Drive crossing lies inside Bastrop, according a Dec.c 1 memo to the mayor and city council from City Manager Michael Talbot. Most likely the bridge must be replaced, an opinion shared by county officials, said Talbot.
The city manager called any replacement effort “a very expensive cost to the City.” He asked the council to suggest at its Dec. 8 meeting how he should proceed. Talbot did not estimate bridge replacement costs.
One official familiar with the situation suggested that replacement cost for the structure could be at least $200,000 or more. The present ruined structure was built as a joint effort by the city and Bastrop County Pct. 1 about 20 years ago, according to former Pct. 1 commissioner Johnny Sanders.
Pct. 1 Commissioner Willie Pina said recently he also hopes to raise any new crossing four to six feet above the present road level.
But neither the city nor county budget for road repair or improvement this year includes funds for a new creek crossing.
Riverwood Drive, sometimes still called River Road, extends west from Carter Street in Bastrop roughly three miles across the creek into Bastrop County, mostly between the Union Pacific Railroad and the Colorado River. Some 50-odd homes rely on Riverwood for access to other areas, including the City of Bastrop. For now residents have access to the city by way of Reid Bend Road which also connects to Carter Street via another Piney Creek bridge.