DELAWARE TOWNSHIP, NJ (Hunterdon County) – Commissioner Shaun Van Doren announced at the June 6 Board meeting that the rehabilitation of the Historic Covered Bridge in Delaware Township will begin this month. Repairs are expected to last a couple of months, with an anticipated completion in early fall of 2023.
Commissioner Van Doren, who serves as liaison to the Department of Public Works and Engineering said, “The Delaware Township Covered Bridge is an iconic historical symbol in our community and I’m happy to see this project coming to fruition.”
The covered bridge will be closed in the upcoming days, with its sister bridge remaining open to alternating traffic until June 20th to accommodate for school traffic. On June 20th both bridges will be closed for repairs and staging purposes. A detour notification has been posted. Hahr Construction is the contractor completing the work, with a total project investment of approximately $700,000.
The scope of the Covered Bridge work includes removal and replacement of the existing red oak timber stringers and decking. The new timber stringers will be pressure treated southern yellow pine and the new decking will be white oak. The white oak components were special ordered and have been stored and air drying since October of 2021.
In-conjunction with the decking replacement, the existing timber curbs and railings will be replaced with new timbers. The bridge will be cleaned and painted, including the structural steel superstructure and timber railings, trusses, and siding. A new red cedar (hand split) shake roof will replace the existing shake roof. Additional repairs will also include replacing sections of damaged and deteriorated timber siding, repointing of the stone masonry throughout the substructure and miscellaneous structural steel repairs.
