Wiley’s Road Bridge may have Alabama getaway

April 06--The hope is that the 2,143-foot giant spanning the Tennessee River would become a sort of poster child for historic preservation.

The B.B. Comer Bridge, a truss span near Scottsboro, Ala., won't have much use to vehicles after the Alabama Department of Transportation finishes constructing its replacement. But fans of the 83-year-old bridge think it could still have some merit if they can dissuade the state from demolishing it.

They want to take over the span so they can keep it open to pedestrians and bicyclists and turn it into a tourist attraction to raise the money that would be needed for ongoing maintenance and liability insurance.

And central to their plans to keep a bit of Alabama's past standing is a little bit of Berks County history. Activists working to preserve the Comer bridge want to use Wiley's Road Bridge in Ontelaunee Township to provide access to the site.

Nothing's final and the project depends on Alabama approving the plan for the Comer bridge.

But Berks officials say they're interested in the offer, which would help them preserve Wiley's without remaining financially responsible for it.

"Preliminarily we're all supportive, but obviously the devil's in the details," said Berks County Commissioner Kevin S. Barnhardt.

The idea sits well with preservation advocates who say they'd rather see the bridge stay in Berks but would rather see it go elsewhere than be destroyed. But if the span's removed, recreation advocates say something needs to replace it so the crossing remains open to pedestrians and bicyclists.

The plan

The future of Wiley's bridge, a 131-year-old rare truss span, became uncertain last year when Ontelaunee supervisors turned down a deal from the county, which owns the bridge, to fix the span in exchange for it being the township's responsibility in the future.

With that option off the table, the county made plans to demolish the bridge, alarming preservation advocates and bicycling enthusiasts.

County officials said keeping long-term costs for the bridge, which has been closed for about two years, didn't make sense because the span would be used only by a small segment of the county.

Leaving it standing without repairs would be a liability.

Julie Bowers, executive director of Workin' Bridges, the nonprofit working with activists in Alabama, said she learned about Wiley's bridge from PennDOT. She said she'd rather restore it where it is but, if there isn't local interest in that, thinks it would be perfect for the Comer project.

"This one is so rare," she said of Wiley's. "It needs to find a home where it can really be showcased."

If Alabama approves the Comer plan, which Bowers expects to know next month, and Berks commissioners agree to sell Wiley's bridge, Workin' Bridges would bid as the demolition contractor for Wiley's.

Berks County, which has budgeted about $350,000 for demolition, would have to craft the bid proposal to say that it's looking for a group to remove the bridge and preserve it elsewhere. The bridge would be removed by crane, shipped to Alabama on a flatbed truck and then re-assembled in Scottsboro.

History preserved

Wiley's would connect the Comer Bridge, which would host farmers markets and other attractions, to a bit of land that could be developed for gift shops and restaurants. Bowers said it makes sense to use one historic bridge to save another.

"That's what we do," she said. "Rather than going in and putting in a pedestrian bridge or concrete, we thought it would be great to go and adopt another historic bridge."

There would be a plaque about the history of Wiley's bridge in Berks, Bowers said. And if there's any admission charged to the attraction, Berks residents would get in for free.

Moving Wiley's bridge is not ideal because it has a lot of historical significance where it is, said Berks County historian George M. Meiser IX. But, he said, it's a lot better than the alternative.

"Given a choice between having it scrapped and having it sent to Alabama, I'd rather see it sent to Alabama," he said.

Meiser pointed to the old carousel from Carsonia Park as an example of how Berks history can live on elsewhere. The carousel is now at the State Fair of Texas, where it remains a popular attraction.

But he lamented the loss of historic attractions in Berks that are important to people here and that tourists come into the region to see.

"It's very short-sighted on our part," Meiser said. "We're losing more and more."

Missing connection

Whether it's Wiley's or another bridge, there needs to be a way for pedestrians and bicyclists to cross the creek without contending with high-speed traffic on Route 73, recreation enthusiasts said. The crossing provides access to popular bike routes around Lake Ontelaunee.

"From the standpoint of off-road cycling, it would definitely be a loss unless there was a way to guarantee in some way that the bridge is going to be replaced," said Fred Moreadith, director of the Berks Area Mountain Biking Association.

The organization is attempting to win Berks an international designation as a hub for mountain biking. The move, Moreadith said, would draw bicyclists to the area.

But a big part of that process is maintaining safe routes between recreation areas and population centers.

"You don't want to see a step backwards in an area that involves connectivity," Moreadith said.

Hiking, biking and other forms of outdoor recreation are part of what draw tourists to Berks, said Crystal Seitz, president of the Greater Reading Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"They're all big in this area because of all the outside attributes in this area," she said.

Maintaining a crossing where Wiley's is would be an important part of keeping those visitors coming and building Berks' brand as a destination for outdoor recreation, Seitz said.

The county has looked into options for putting a trestle bridge for pedestrians and bicycles in place of Wiley's, Barnhardt said. The span would likely cost $300,000 to $400,000 to install.

The county may be open to paying for the replacement span, he said, but wouldn't want to assume future responsibility for it. The county would likely look for the township or a community group to step up to take on long-term care of the bridge.

While there wasn't much interest in preserving Wiley's in the past, keeping a pedestrian bridge standing is likely a much less daunting task, Barnhardt said.

"Maybe the long-term maintenance on a trestle bridge isn't really to the tune of: Gee, you have to renovate Wiley's for $1 million in 15 years," he said.

Contact Liam Migdail-Smith: 610-371-5022 or [email protected].

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