The Assiniboine Park footbridge has been the gateway to the popular green space for almost a century, the scene of countless walks, chats and selfies, and now the iconic structure is in need of some tender loving care.
The City of Winnipeg is looking to hire a professional consultant to assess the condition of the bridge, which spans the Assiniboine River to connect the park with St. James, as well as determine how much weight it can carry as the preliminary plan to rehabilitate it is developed.
Susan and Jim Barchyn, who have lived near the Deer Lodge Centre for decades, have walked across the bridge almost every single day during that time.
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Susan and Jim Barchyn walk over the footbridge several times a week and love the connection it allows them to the river.
“We used to have dogs and we would walk them across every day,” said Susan Barchyn on Wednesday.
“We walk year-round. I like to see it when the river ice breaks up. If the water is high when the ice hits the bridge there is a ‘thud’. It shakes the whole bridge.
“I just love it. It would be a huge loss if there was no bridge.”
Jim Barchyn said there’s no question the city has to repair the concrete cantilever structure, which measures 157 metres long and 3.6 metres wide. It was built between late 1931 and early 1932 at a cost of $57,000. It was officially opened on May 21, 1932, by the mayor at the time, Ralph Webb.
ARCHIVES OF MANITOBA, L.B. FOOTE FONDS
Every summer between 1912 and the existing bridge’s opening in 1932, the city built and removed a pontoon bridge to provide access to Assiniboine Park from Portage Avenue.
“A lot of people enter the park coming over this bridge,” he said. “You take this away and there is really no access across the park from the north side.”
The Winnipeg Architecture Foundation says the bridge was constructed as a Depression relief project to replace a temporary pontoon bridge that was built and removed annually at a cost of $1,400 per year. Wooden piers can still be seen in the river bed when the water level is low.
In 2004, concrete piles were added to the footbridge retaining wall on the north side. Five years later, deck was resurfaced with asphalt. Underwater inspections were conducted in 2006, 2012, and 2022.
The city’s request for qualification, or RFQ, says recent inspections have found “major leaking of deck throughout the soffit” as well as “full height cracks at multiple locations through supporting main girders.”
Inspectors found exposed rebar on the deck soffit and “extensive cracking and disintegration of pier caps.”
“I just love it. It would be a huge loss if there was no bridge.”–Susan Barchyn
“The existing pedestrian bridge is aging and experiencing signs of deterioration and needs to be assessed to determine its existing condition,” the RFQ says. It says a load rating must be calculated to determine how heavy a maintenance vehicle can be to go onto the footbridge.
Lynn Dusesoy, owner of Sargent Sundae on Portage Avenue, which is across from the bridge, said she hopes the city repairs it.
“If not, we will have to find some boats for everyone,” she said laughing.
“If it closed, definitely there would be a little bit of an impact on us. People love the park and they love to walk across to us. I would definitely like to see it fixed.”
“It’s an absolute necessity to have the bridge there.”–St. James Coun. Shawn Dobson
St. James Coun. Shawn Dobson, who is a member of the city’s historical buildings and resources committee, said it recently looked at the possibility of granting the footbridge heritage status.
“It’s an absolute necessity to have the bridge there,” said Dobson.
“It’s the No. 1 access way to get to the zoo for St. James residents. We need to rehabilitate it and maintain this structure and its appearance.
“It has been there forever and it needs to stay there.”
Heritage Winnipeg executive director Cindy Tugwell said the bridge must be repaired because “it’s not just an Assiniboine Park gem, it is an entire city gem.”
RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS
Recent inspections have found “major leaking of deck throughout the soffit” as well as “full height cracks at multiple locations through supporting main girders.”
City spokeswoman Julie Horbal Dooley called it “a standard, service-life rehabilitation project.”
“Our goal is to do maintenance on the bridge now to prevent safety issues in the future. We do regular inspections, which told us now is the time to do some major maintenance.
She said inspectors didn’t say repairs require imminent closure.
Assiniboine Park Conservancy spokeswoman Laura Capak said it can’t comment on the city looking at hiring a consultant for the bridge until the documents are reviewed.
She said the bridge is the city’s responsibility.
But Capak said the footbridge is “an important point of access for park visitors.”
kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca
Kevin Rollason
Reporter
Kevin Rollason is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He graduated from Western University with a Masters of Journalism in 1985 and worked at the Winnipeg Sun until 1988, when he joined the Free Press. He has served as the Free Press’s city hall and law courts reporter and has won several awards, including a National Newspaper Award. Read more about Kevin.
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