Hamilton County Parks and Recreation was recently presented the Indiana Park and Recreation Association’s (IPRA) prestigious Excellence in Landscape Design award, recognizing the park department’s efforts to salvage, restore and install historic bridges over White River in northern Hamilton County.
The challenging project required the painstaking removal, transportation and restoration of two decommissioned bridges from Washington and Wayne counties and joining them with a re-created bridge from Hamilton County. The unique, three-section span now serves as a grand pedestrian walkway, connecting White River Campground to Strawtown Koteewi Park and its 800 acres of recreational and educational adventures.
Award-winning Historic Bridges spanning White River. (Photo illustration provided)
Director of Parks Al Patterson noted, “Hamilton County, the State of Indiana, Washington and Wayne counties and our project contractors joined forces and resources to accomplish this innovative engineering feat. The completed span, 15 years in the making, not only enhances accessibility and safety for its users, it also preserves key pieces of Indiana transportation history.”
The Historic Bridges Project has been nominated to receive additional recognition from other professional organizations, as well.
To learn more about Hamilton County Parks and its mission, visit MyHamiltonCountyParks.com. Details regarding IPRA can be found at inpra.org.