Grant Park is Milwaukee County’s 2nd largest park and best known for its Seven Bridges Trail. The trail system was developed from paths originally created in the early 1900’s by the park systems first Superintendent of Horticulture, Frederic C. Wulff. In the 1930’s, the bridges that are now the park’s namesake were added, but later fell into disrepair. Several volunteer efforts were made to restore the park to its original glory over the years. However some major damage was caused by flooding in 2008 and 2010.
One of the Seven Bridges, the lakeside bridge, was completely washed out by flooding. Further erosion to the ravine and subsequent damage caused by visitors climbing down while the bridge was out of service, caused the Parks Department to take action in 2012. They brought in Stone Creek Contractors and Grunau Metals to replace the bridge.
In the Dead of Winter
Aside from the project getting underway in the dead of winter, the steep ravines around the bridge made mobilization of equipment a challenge. Plus there was a need to minimize environmental damage so Grunau took on the challenge. Working with Stone Creek, Grunau installed new, hot dip galvanized permanent steel support beams on freshly placed foundations. Stone Creek then installed the wood deck and façade, all with minimal disturbance to the surrounding environment.
The restored bridge officially reopened in the spring of 2013 to the delight of area residents. If you need expert help on a challenging project, contact Grunau Metals today!
