The state will lay out its options for the Donora-Webster Bridge during an open house Wednesday at the Donora Borough Building.
But those options may be put on hold without funding for construction. Estimates for the project range from $2.5 million to demolish the bridge to roughly $25 million to rebuild it.
The Donora-Webster Bridge was closed in July 2009 after a routine inspection and structural analysis revealed that several main support beams had deteriorated. Its last previous inspection had been in 2008.
Typically, PennDOT inspects every state-owned bridge once every two years. The Donora-Monessen Bridge was inspected annually because officials were monitoring its condition. It had a 3-ton weight limit since reopening in 1986.
At the open house, PennDOT will lay out three options - rehabilitate the bridge, remove it and build a new span, or remove it without replacing it, project manager Gary Barber said.
If rehabilitated, it could be returned to a condition to handle traffic of 3 tons or less, or it could be rehabilitated to handle heavier traffic, Barber said.
The open house will begin at 5:30 p.m. Various plans will be displayed for the public, Barber said. A brief presentation by officials from the Coast Guard, PennDOT and engineering consultant Michael Baker Jr. Inc. of Moon will begin at 6 p.m.
PennDOT is preparing everything so that work can begin once funding is identified for the project, PennDOT District 12 spokeswoman Valerie Petersen said.
The state has funding to advance the project through the Section 106 process only. That section of the National Historic Preservation Act requires federal agencies to take into account the effects their federally funded activities and programs have on "significant historic properties," those that are included in, or eligible for, the National Register of Historic Places.
The Donora-Webster Bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The state began consultations with on the matter in September, said Sue Zacher, historic preservation specialist for the Bureau for Historic Preservation of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.
"We would support preservation ... ," Zacher said. "That's our role -- to save historic resources in the state."
Rep. Tim Solobay, D-Canonsburg, said the bridge will be placed on PennDOT's 12-year plan, which prioritizes transportation projects statewide for funding.
"I don't know how you just eliminate that bridge," said Solobay, the senator-elect to the 46th District to replace retiring Sen. J. Barry Stout. "It's needed for the convenience and safety of the people and the commerce that is being lost as it remains closed. We'll find funding for it. It's just a matter of when and where."
The Legislature passed a bill renaming the Donora-Webster Bridge for former Lt. Gov. Ernest Kline, a Webster native. It was signed by the governor in late October.
