Sanborn Bridge Rehab Estimated At $1.3M

Grants Would Cover Bulk Of Project Costs

Paul Hayes phayes@littletonrecord.com Staff Writer
Dec 23, 2021 Updated Dec 23, 2021

LYNDON - It will cost around $1.3 million to rehab the Sanborn Covered Bridge, according to a recent Preservation Trust of Vermont report.

It might sound expensive, but Planning Director Nicole Gratton told the Select Board on Monday that the price is manageable.

That’s because grant funding — from sources such as Northern Borders Regional Commission, USDA Rural Development, and state and national covered bridge societies — is expected to cover most project costs, she said.

She was hopeful that a $100,000 Bruhn Revitalization Grant application would be approved later this month, setting the table for other investors.

To supplement grant funding, the town hopes to partner with a non-profit and launch a community fundraiser to cover remaining project costs. The town also maintains a bridge restoration fund, which could be used for grant match purposes.

“We have a way to make that money happen,” Gratton told the Select Board.

Gratton said the $1.3 million cost estimate includes the structural rebuild of the bridge and abutments and was in line with similar projects elsewhere.

“[The price] is pretty typical for bridges of a historic nature,” she said.

The Select Board last month expressed interest in acquiring the Sanborn Bridge.

It would support a grassroots initiative, launched by Gratton and chamber of commerce president Sarah Lafferty, to turn Lyndon’s five covered bridges into tourist attractions and cultural hubs.

The Sanborn Bridge is key to those plans. Located downtown and closed to traffic, it could be paired with parking, retail, tourism info and pedestrian amenities.

In addition to being noteworthy — it’s one of the last Paddleford truss bridges in the Twin States — it can be accessed through municipal land. The town owns .86 acres to the south of the bridge.

The Sanborn Bridge is the only one of the town’s five covered bridges that is privately owned, and the town is moving to purchase it from owners Arthur and Jeannie Elliott. Terms of sale are being worked out.

The deal could include additional land to the south of the bridge, believed to be 2.5 acres. A title search is being done to determine the exact acreage of the land that could be acquired.

The matter will be brought to the Select Board at a later date.

“We have some excitement around the project and we can make it happen,” she said.

Gratton also provided two other project updates.

First, she said, a 25-foot right of way exists on the north side of the bridge. She suggested the town approach the landowner about extending the right of way to Route 122 as a contingency, to ensure there would always be bridge access from the north, in the event something happens with the land to the south.

Second, she added, the town received four price quotes for the removal of a tree located upstream from the bridge, which threatens both the bridge and the riverbank. She said the quotes were in the $6,000 to $7,000 range, and that she would contact the Lyndonville Electric Department and Lyndon Highway Department to see if they could handle the job in-house to save expense. She said it was necessary work.

“There really is a threat there. If we were to lose the bank, we would lose the bridge. If that tree falls, the bridge is gone,” she said.