Restoration for Bunker Mill Bridge continues, Catfish Keith performs

By XIOMARA LEVSEN

Washington Evening Journal

KALONA - Restoration efforts continue for the Bunker Mill Bridge but a lot has been completed on the bridge in the past year.

?In one year we?ve managed to raise funds to repair the abutment, lifted the bridge with a crane and repaired the shoes and rollers under the bridge, and repaired the approach on the south end of the bridge,? said Scott Allen, executive director for the Friends of Bunker Mill Bridge. ?We have the trusses completely restored and the bridge structure that was burned is restored.?

The local Amish community has also helped with the restoration efforts.

?They have helped us with labor,? said Doris Parks, committee member for the Friends of Bunker Mill Bridge. ?Part of that reason is because we have said once the bridge is restored they would be able to use it. We want it to be available to any suitable recreational use, which includes horse and buggies, ATVs, walking, snowmobiles and bicycles.?

The land on the north side of the bridge has also been cleaned up.

?We have a fire pit, a screened in gazebo area where people can go to get away from the bugs and for some shade and have mowed the land so people can come out here to fish or just hang out,? Allen said. ?There is also a place to launch a canoe. I call it a little piece of heaven ? it?s beautiful out here.?

To help bring people to the Bunker Mill Bridge site, the Friends of Bunker Mill Bridge has been hosting events, such as ?Almost Acoustic Tuesdays, he said.

Catfish Keith played there this past Tuesday, Allen said. There were at least 75 people on the north side of the bridge listening to him play. People were also listening to the music from the south side of the bridge sitting on their ATVs that they drove down from Richmond.

After Catfish Keith was done playing he told Allen something he?ll always remember.

?The coolest thing is when Catfish Keith was done with his concert he looked at me and said, ?There?s not place in the world like this brother,? ? he said.

There will be one more ?Almost Acoustic Tuesday? this year, Allen said.

?On Sept. 30 Alvin Geigley and the Gravel Scratchers will play,? he said. ?The concert begins at 6 p.m.?

The Friends of Bunker Mill Bridge will also have a celebration in October.

?We?re planning to have an event on Oct. 11, to celebrate a year of ownership by the Friends of Bunker Mill Bridge,? Allen said. ?The final plans haven?t been set yet but we?re working on them.?

Another item the group is working on is raising enough money to lay the planks down on the bridge, Allen said.

?We want to get the bridge to the point where people can cross the river,? he said. ?That?s our main goal right now.?

Both Allen and Parks said they wanted to help with the restoration effort because the bridge is something the community and county could enjoy.

?We are committed to the restoration of the bridge and it would be a wonderful asset to the community,? Parks said.

?It?s been a lot of hard work but worth it when you see all of the people coming out and enjoying it,? Allen said. ?It?s been fun to reconnect with the people in the community out here.?