District of Muskoka eyes restoration of historic Silver Bridge rather than full replacement

While Bracebridge’s iconic Silver Bridge will remain closed indefinitely, a restoration plan is now firmly in place.

The bridge has been closed since January after a shift in its eastern truss made it unsafe for pedestrian and vehicle travel.

On Tuesday, the District of Muskoka council approved staff to spend up to $5 million in emergency expenditures, in order to complete necessary restoration work to the bridge.

James Steele, the District’s commissioner of engineering and public works, said the funding will allow for more assessments and complete work to return it to a functional state.

“We need to figure out how we’re going to support the bridge so that it includes a temporary structure that needs to go in to support the bridge,” Steele said. “Provided we don’t find anything unexpected, then we’ll continue with replacing the components that have failed and then get the bridge back into a state that’s functional.”

Early analysis went into determining whether the nearly 100-year-old structure could handle modern loads or if a complete replacement was needed.

Steele said it was determined that the bridge, which also serves as an important cultural landmark for Bracebridge, could withstand restoration.

“I’m pleased with the direction that this report is going in,” said Bracebridge mayor Rick Maloney. “I’m not naïve enough to think that things may change – but the patient is still getting assessments, and the assessments are indicating that there’s an approach that will give the patient a good quality of life going forward.”

While the report focuses on restoration, a cost analysis of what it would be to do so, versus replacing the bridge, was not made in the report.

Steele said that would be something that staff will be weighing up as the district moves into the next stage of restoration.

“The intent is to bring it back into service, restore it so that it’s in good enough condition to last for say, 20 to 25 years,” Steele added. “In about 20 years, we would undertake the environmental assessment process to look at what’s the long-term solution for that bridge.”

Staff believe the $5 million emergency expenditure spending authority will help it complete most of the restoration work during this summer’s construction season.

There is still no timeline for when the Silver Bridge might reopen.