Construction to Begin on Pedestrian Bridge
Northland Constructors of Duluth plans to begin construction on the Roseau River Pedestrian Bridge on September 22, 2025. The bridge, which will span the Roseau River near the Roseau Dam, will consist of a 12' wide and 200' long prefabricated steel truss superstructure placed on four supporting concrete piers located within the riverbanks. Construction activities this fall will involve the placement of the four concrete supporting piers on top of bridge pilings. The placement of the bridge pilings into the ground will be very loud and residents close to the construction site may even feel ground vibration from the work. The piling installation phase is expected to take 1-2 days on each side of the river and will occur in the first two weeks of construction. Once the pilings are in place the contractors will begin the process of building out the concrete bridge piers which will run throughout the fall. The bridge superstructure will be fabricated off-site and be delivered sometime this winter for placement by large cranes. In the spring, contractors will complete the project by pouring the concrete bridge deck and connecting pedestrian trails. The bridge will connect Main Avenue N with 3rd Avenue NE at what would be 6th Street extended.
Two elements of the pedestrian bridge project that were eliminated due to budget constraints were an additional connecting trail from 3rd Avenue NE to 4th Avenue NE and lighting for the bridge. Both deleted elements are planned to be submitted for future funding from the Northwest Area Transportation Partnership's Transportation Enhancement Program. The next solicitation for these funds is anticipated in October, with potential funding available for 2029-30.
All construction activities will take place on public lands and rights-of-way around the Roseau Dam site; however, construction activities will likely cause disruptions throughout the northern portion of the city as large vehicles and concrete trucks will be frequent during construction.