Installation Of Trails System Bridges Coming Soon

Two pedestrian bridges that are major components of a proposed trail system in Glenwood are expected to be installed in the next few months.

A bridge over Keg Creek will link a proposed trailhead at the site of the former Glenwood Native American Earth Lodge with the Glenwood Community School District’s Athletic Complex, while the second bridge will replace a structure that crosses Fallon’s Creek near the horseshoe pits at Glenwood Lake Park.

Crews have been seen doing work with the bridge at the trailhead site in recent days. The 165-foot bridge was purchased by the Mills County Trails Board in 2020 from an Omaha recycling firm. The bridge had previously served as a pedestrian walkway over the Keystone Trail in Omaha near College of St. Mary and the Ak-Sar-Ben Village. Components of the bridge have been sitting at the proposed trailhead site since December 2020.

“I’m not sure where they (bridge contractor) are right now. I know they were going to assemble it and I think they still have an abutment that needed to be placed,” Glenwood City Administrator Amber Farnan said. “ I think they’re planning to have it in place this spring. Once they have both abutments in, then they can just lower the bridge, put it in place and get it attached.

So, it’s moving forward.”

The second bridge will replace the so-called “scary bridge” over Fallon’s Creek near the horseshoe pits at Glenwood Lake Park. The new bridge is made from a 90-foot, 46,000-pound flatbed railcar donated by Union Pacific Railroad.

The bridge will be equipped with handrails and meet ADA (Americans With Disabilities) requirements.

The bridge projects required studies, input and approval from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency. The projects were delayed in 2023 when bids for placement of the bridges came in higher than expected.