The King County Road Services Division will hold an open house from 6PM - 8PM, Monday, June 21st at Preston Community Center to gather input from residents on a recently completed report that outlines future options for Preston Bridge on Southeast 86th Street. Those alternatives range from permanently closing the bridge to repairing, rehabilitating or replacing the aging structure.

It's been 42 years since the Preston Bridge spanning the Raging River was reconstructed. Now that it's reaching the end of its useful life, the county must determine what should be done with the steel and timber structure, which is narrow and has a load limit prohibiting large trucks. The bridge, serving the town of Preston, links Preston-Fall City Road and Upper Preston Road.

The county study identifies four general options for the bridge. Those alternatives include:

• Closing and leaving the bridge in place, or demolishing it. If the bridge was left in place, it could remain open to pedestrians and bicyclists. In the event of closure, motorists would use a bridge on Upper Preston Road about one-half mile south of the Preston Bridge. Currently, the bridge handles about 250 vehicles daily.
• Repairing the bridge to correct structural deficiencies while maintaining load limit restrictions.
• More extensive rehabilitation which would include widening and bringing the bridge up to current standards.
• Complete replacement of the bridge. Construction of a new bridge would cost $3 million -$4 million and could involve significant environmental challenges.

During the open house, residents will have an opportunity to learn more about the various options and share their opinions. Those comments will help guide the selection of a final alternative, which is expected to be made this summer. If the county moves forward with plans to repair or rehabilitate the bridge, work will likely occur next summer.

Preston Community Center is located at 5625 310th Avenue Southeast. For more information about the open house, contact Mary Coltrane at (206) 689-3424 or by e-mail at mary.coltrane@metrokc.gov. For information about the Preston Bridge study, contact Matt Maling at (206) 205-5202 or by e-mail at matt.maling@metrokc.gov.