New footbridge in Houlton scheduled to open in June

HOULTON – Despite the fact that the town’s new footbridge has been tantalizing people to walk on it since very early in the spring, town officials do not anticipate opening the 187-foot overpass to traffic until mid-to-late June.

The structure, which stretches from the North Street Bridge across the Meduxnekeag River, has been in place for months. It arrived late last year after being constructed by a company in the western United States.

Barricades prevent people from walking across it, however, while construction workers put the finishing touches on the trestle.

Town councilors opted last year to designate $25,000 toward the lighting of the footbridge. Code enforcement officer Wade Hanson said Thursday that officials still need time to install the lampposts that are going to light the platform.

“Right now, the workers are running electrical conduits so that the lights can be lit,” Hanson explained, adding that paving and other work also remains unfinished.

The footbridge, which has been five years in the making, is designed to give walkers easy access to historic downtown Market Square and to the trails alongside the river.

Officials hope to furnish the nearby park with picnic tables, restrooms and other amenities and to groom adjacent walkways and paths.

Last week, more than 25 students and community members worked to clean up the littered grounds that will eventually be designated as the park area.

The bridge project has been financed mostly through grants and private donations. More than $1 million has been raised to fund the initiative thus far.