From SAVE THE BRIDGE ASSOCIATION
The community is invited to gather to commemorate the landmark Roche de Boeuf Interurban bridge and Waterville’s vision for the future of the bridge. An open house will be held on Friday, June 26, from 11 a.m. – 7 p.m., that will include displays on the history of the bridge, its engineering story, upcoming conservation plans, and future adaptive reuse as a walking and biking trail.
The event will culminate with a press conference at 3:30 p.m. with city officials, including Mayor Tim Pedro, and project partners to update the public on the Roche de Boeuf preservation project, set to kick off after the July 4th holiday. From 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., Waterville artist Teri Utz Bersée will paint the Roche de Boeuf bridge en plein air before its transformation.
The event will take place at the Roche de Boeuf shelter house at Farnsworth Metropark.
“For more than 100 years, our beloved Roche de Boeuf bridge has stood strong,” said Barb Bruno, president of Save the Bridge Association. “With the upcoming preservation project, this beautiful bridge will get a much-deserved makeover during phase I – revealing the Roche de Boeuf’s ‘good bones’ – the foundational strength of its massive ice-breaker piers and classical arches – designed to carry incredible weight by early 20th century concrete bridge pioneer Daniel Luten.”
With phase I of the preservation project for the bridge to kick off in early July, this is an opportunity for the community to learn about plans for the Roche de Boeuf bridge transformation and gather to celebrate its longstanding role an iconic site in Waterville.
