Eldred Township supervisors agreed Wednesday night that demolishing the old Stone Arch Bridge is something they don’t want to do, but the cost to fix it is a factor.

“There is not a single one of us up here who want to demolish that bridge. I think that needs to be clear,” said Supervisor Scott Clark.

“But it has to be financially within our ability to do it,” Chairman Gary Hoffman added.

The Stone Arch Bridge has been a part of the community for more than a century. Township secretary Ann Velopolcek said she found a deed that referenced it as far back as 1865.

The bridge is no longer open to vehicle traffic, but is open to pedestrians. It was closed and turned over to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation after a new bridge was built nearby.

Still, PennDOT does inspect it, said Supervisor Blaine Silfies. According to a PennDOT report online about bridge conditions, the condition of its superstructure is listed as “imminent failure.”

The supervisors received about a dozen letters and emails recently from residents expressing their concern about the old bridge being torn down. At the supervisors meeting in June, Hoffman mentioned that the township’s engineer, Hanover Engineering, was looking for someone specialized in old masonry bridge repair.

The Stone Arch Bridge is located near the Eldred Township Historical Society, and is pictured on the township’s website. It also is featured in a large painting that hangs behind the supervisors’ desk in the meeting room. The painting was created by Silfies’ brother-in-law.

“I’m not in favor of demolishing it,” Silfies said. “I’ve lived here all my life. As far as I’m concerned, I’m in favor of saving the Stone Bridge, but again we need to get our ducks in a row.”

Hoffman said Hanover Engineering located a mason in Quakertown who specializes in old bridge repairs. For $500, the mason can do an estimate for the cost to repair it. He said he doesn’t know the name of the person, but he wants to go that route.

Velopolcek, who is also the president of the Parks and Recreation Committee, found an engineering firm, Borton-Lawson in Wilkes-Barre, that will handle getting the permits, environmental studies and additional documentation needed to fix the bridge, as well site evaluation, determine repairs, develop construction and engineering costs and bid estimate and more for $20,900.

“It’s pretty much right in line with what MCCD (Monroe County Conservation District) told me these costs would be,” Velopolcek said. “Once we have this information, we can apply for a grant.”

Borton-Lawson can also do the repairs to the bridge, Velopolcek said. The township would need to pursue getting a grant, but it would be for both the initial $20,900, as well as for the bridge repairs.

“What Ann said is very important. We never said we are tearing down the bridge,” Hoffman said. “We need to look at options. We need to do our due diligence. That is bringing in somebody who is approved to do this kind of work.”

Hoffman said he prefers to go with the mason that Hanover Engineering found, because it costs less and he thinks would do a fine job.

Velopolcek said that what the two companies are offering is not the same, because Borton-Lawson is offering more services than the mason.

Hoffman said, “Before we know what permits we need, we need to know what work needs to be done on the bridge. We need to know if the bridge can be repaired within reasonable costs. This can’t be at whatever cost it takes. We have to be reasonable and look at what’s realistic as far as funding.”

Hoffman’s statements didn’t relieve some of the residents’ concerns that he might opt to demolish the bridge instead.

“You say you didn’t agree to demolish it, but there’s also something called demolition by neglect, where you just don’t act,” said former supervisor Mary Anne Clausen.

Clausen said she is concerned that an estimate for $500 from the mason in Quakertown will not be complete enough to apply for the amount truly needed for the project.

The supervisors approved getting the estimate from the mason.