Berks County has turned over ownership of the recently replaced Ebling Memorial Bridge to Muhlenberg Township.
The move is part of an ongoing effort by the county to repair and replace about two dozen deteriorating bridges. Those bridges are then turned over to the respective municipality and the municipality takes over responsibility for maintenance.
The program is supported in part through extra funds generated by a $5 fee that was tacked onto vehicle registrations in the county starting in 2017. Officials argued when the fee was enacted that it was necessary as the county struggled to stretch its transportation dollars to keep up with all the needed repairs.
The latest of the bridges to be turned over is Ebling Memorial Bridge, which carries Spring Valley Road over Bernhart Creek. It had been deemed structurally deficient by PennDOT, which led to a rebuilding project that was completed last fall.
Work on the $3.77 million project to replace the entire 65-year-old bridge got underway in spring 2023 but was slowed by some complications relocating utilities that run under the bridge deck.
The county commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to transfer ownership of the bridge to Muhlenberg Township during their weekly board meeting.
The Ebling Memorial Bridge is the fourth to be repaired and transferred as part of the county’s program.
The three other bridges that have been repaired and turned over to the respective municipalities are Althouse Mill Bridge in Exeter Township, Blandon Bridge in Maidencreek Township and Zettlemoyer’s Bridge in Greenwich Township.
Also at the meeting, the commissioners unanimously passed an emergency declaration to repair chillers in the HVAC system at the Berks County Courthouse in Reading.
The declaration will waive all requirements of procurement law related to the repairs, which officials said are necessary to maintain required building temperatures.
Source: Berkshire mont
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