Responding to a request from The Paper, David Uchiyama, western communications manager for the N.C. DOT, provided an update on where the project, which has been in discussion for years, now stands.
Highlights of the N.C. DOT update include:
• The project (R-3430B) is currently listed as being in the Property Acquisition and Permitting Processes.
• The new bridge will be built on a new location to the west of the current bridge and will include two 12-foot travel lanes plus a 10-foot multiuse (walk and bike) path, separated from the travel lanes by a barrier.
• Building the new bridge is expected to have minimal impact on traffic because drivers will utilize the existing bridge during construction.
• When the new bridge is completed and in use, the existing bridge will be removed.
• The current schedule is for right-of-way acquisition and utility relocation to be completed by May or June of next year, with the project scheduled to go out for bidding on July 15, 2025.
• The project will be state-funded with a budget of approximately $23 million.
Told about the new information from N.C. DOT prior to Monday night’s meeting of the Rutherford College Town Council, Mayor Yates Jensen said he is “pleased to see some progress,” but added he has lots of questions about the specifics of the project.
Jensen said that at one point the state was considering four-laning Malcolm Boulevard from U.S. 70 to the bridge and added that a three-lane project (two travel lanes and a turning lane) had also been discussed.
Both Jensen and Town Manager Jessica Bargsley said at one time the state had also considered four-laning the Caldwell County side of the highway, where it is named Connelly Springs Road.
If the new bridge is west of the current bridge, it would impact the future development of Castle Bridge Marina on the Caldwell County side, owned by Larry Davis, and satellite annexed into Rutherford College.
Davis confirmed to The Paper that he is in negotiations with the state over property adjacent to the highway but said his attorney has advised him not to go into detail.
Davis had earlier told The Paper that he would like to build a restaurant and brewery on his property, as well as develop a miniature golf course, but that those plans are on hold until he is certain how much property the state is going to take.
On the Burke County side, a new bridge would likely impact property in the Lake Vistas housing development, located west of Malcolm Boulevard.
At one time, the state had considered closing the bridge entirely while it was either repaired or a new bridge was constructed, raising concerns from UNC Health Blue Ridge about how emergency vehicles and patients from Caldwell County could access the Valdese campus.
“With the old bridge remaining in place until the new one is built, we anticipate little to no impact to our patients coming from Caldwell County,” said UNC Health Blue Ridge President and CEO Kathy Bailey.
Connelly Springs Road/Malcolm Boulevard is utilized by many southern Caldwell County residents as the quickest route to Interstate 40. Many central Burke County residents use the road to access Ingle’s Supermarket in Baton.
