LA PORTE CITY — Area cycling enthusiasts are asking Black Hawk County to backpedal on plans to remove the Cedar Valley Nature Trail bridge over Wolf Creek.
The group led by state Sen. Bill Dotzler and Waterloo City Councilman Pat Morrissey have voiced concerns to county officials, who are working instead on a plan to reroute the trail through downtown La Porte City.
“We believe there is another option that is more cost effective,” Morrissey said. “We believe it’s safer. We believe there’s less (future) maintenance cost.”
The trail bridge on the northern edge of La Porte City was closed in September when it was deemed structurally unsafe. Engineering estimates put the cost of repairing or replacing the bridge at $1.3 million and $2.5 million, respectively.
County conservation officials have been working on an alternate $600,000 project to remove the bridge and reroute the trail through town and across an existing bridge.
But Dotzler said the proposed trail, which crosses the Iowa Northern Railroad twice and U.S. Highway 218, is unsafe, and its off-the-beaten-path route will lead many cyclists to ride along the highway instead.
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