Caltrans’ so-called Navarro Ridge Safety Project will severely deform the beautiful environment surrounding the Navarro Point Preserve south of Albion. This video, which we produced for our appeal to the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors, shows the project area and speaks to the inappropriateness of this project.
Author: jimheid
Photo Exhibit Honors the Historic Albion River Bridge
In celebration of the Albion River Bridge, Albion Bridge Stewards proudly present an exhibit of photographs by Rita Crane at the Albion post office through the end of January.
Rita Crane is the daughter of LIFE photographer Ralph Crane, whose photos were published in the magazine from 1936 to 1972, during the Golden Age of Photojournalism. Her work can be seen locally at Prentice Gallery on Main Street in Mendocino, or at her website.
“This has been a fun project,” Crane said, “photographing the bridge in its many moods, from different angles.”
In 2017, the historic Albion River Bridge was listed in the National Register of Historic Places and the California Register of Historical Resources.
To learn more about the Albion River Bridge and keep tabs on efforts to preserve it, bookmark this website and “like” this page on Facebook.
Albion to Caltrans: Not So Fast
Caltrans plans to put a two-lane expressway through Albion. The agency needs to change those plans.
Most people have already heard about Caltrans’ desire to replace the historic Albion River Bridge as well as the recently seismically retrofitted Salmon Creek Bridge — and along the way, nearly doubling the width of Highway 1 in the vicinity of those two bridges.
These are bad ideas. But it gets even worse.
Caltrans has now announced plans to widen Highway 1 starting at the Navarro Point Preserve and continuing north of Navarro Ridge Road.
The result would be a Highway 1 that’s up to twice as wide, stretching from the Navarro Point Preserve to the Albion River Inn. All so drivers can fly through Albion—and then slam on the brakes at the Navarro Grade or Dark Gulch.
Caltrans is proposing four overlapping projects that will cost at least $160 million and involve years of construction, lane and highway closures, significant grading and wetlands damage, destruction of sensitive plant and animal habitat, and huge impacts to visitor-serving facilities at Albion Flats, the Albion River Inn, and Navarro Point Preserve.
The projects also involve the addition of rumble strips that will destroy the tranquil soundscape of the Navarro Point Preserve, and ugly “Midwest guardrail systems” that have no place in this highly scenic part of Highway 1.
Make no mistake: Highway 1 needs drainage and safety improvements in the Navarro Ridge area. But an expressway and years of construction are not the answer—just as huge new bridges are not the answer at Salmon Creek and Albion River.
With proper maintenance, better planning, and simple measures like reduced speed limits, Highway 1 and its Albion bridges can serve the public safely for decades—and with no environmental degradation and far fewer taxpayer dollars.
Caltrans is hosting a public meeting on Thursday, September 19 at the new Albion School, 30400 Albion Ridge Road, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm.
Attend this meeting and tell Caltrans that its plans for Albion are too much, too expensive, and completely unnecessary—that improved safety and drainage can be accomplished for a fraction of the cost. And demand that Caltrans produce an environmental impact report and environmental impact statement that takes into account all four projects as a whole, rather than attempting to piecemeal the projects, a practice that is prohibited under the California Environmental Quality Act.
Save Highway 1 through Albion. Tell Caltrans, “not so fast.”
On June 9, celebrate the Albion River Bridge’s 75th anniversary
June marks the 75th anniversary of the opening of the historic Albion River Bridge, the only remaining timber trestle bridge on California’s scenic Highway 1 and most likely the only significant timber trestle highway bridge in use in the United States.
Albion Bridge Stewards invite everyone to celebrate the 75th anniversary of this iconic bridge on Sunday, June 9 from 12:30 pm to 3:30pm at the Albion River Inn.
Come enjoy the beautiful views of the historic timber bridge from the restaurant and grounds of the inn. Featured will be local musicians extraordinaire Karl Schoen, Lynn Kiesewetter, Mark Gauche, Martha Smith and Miguel Elac.
Two short films will also be shown: Bridging the Gap, by Laurie York and Carmen Goodyear; and Albion Flight, by Jim Heid.
There will be a no-host bar. Please carpool as there is limited parking. For more information visit our Facebook page or send email to Albion Bridge Stewards.
Businesses Suffer When Caltrans Closes Bridges and Highways
Lynn Derrick is the owner and chef at Queenie’s Roadhouse Cafe in Elk, about five miles south of Albion, where Caltrans is working to replace two bridges, one of which is an historic landmark.
In this short video from Beth Bosk of Albion, Lynn describes the impact Caltrans traffic delays have had on her business—and will have, if Caltrans conducts a planned geotechnical investigation at the historic Albion River Bridge.
In the news: lawsuit over Albion River Bridge “Geotechnical investigation” development
The Santa Rosa Press Democrat ran a front-page article about the lawsuit that has been filed to stop the geotechnical investigation development that Caltrans is planning at the historic Albion River Bridge. An excerpt is below. Here’s the entire article.
Lawsuit filed in bridge dispute
Defenders of the historic Albion River Bridge are looking to a San Francisco judge to block upcoming Caltrans operations that they argue threaten the local environment and the centerpiece of their coastal village.
Drilling and geotechnical studies recently were authorized by the California Coastal Commission despite an outcry from the tiny hamlet’s residents, many who fear the work will interrupt bridge travel and inevitably lead to the replacement of the picturesque span at the river mouth.
Residents also object to the disruptive equipment, scheduled grading and removal of eucalyptus groves that will allow for placement of drilling platforms on the bluffs at either end of the bridge, in part through the use of helicopters.
A 20-page lawsuit was lodged by Peter Wells and Flurry Healy, co-owners of the Albion River Inn, and a Los Angeles investment banker, John Danhakl, who owns a large horse ranch just outside town called Whitesboro Farm. The suit, filed the day the Coastal Commission cast its support for Caltrans’ studies, challenges the commission’s jurisdiction over the issue and asserts the project violates coastal protections. It also argues the work would cause lasting damage to the scenic landscape and, thus, the local tourist economy.
Opponents distrust Caltrans’ motives, believing the agency already has decided to replace the well-known structure and will use the upcoming work to lay the groundwork.
Video of September 20, 2018 Caltrans Public Scoping Meeting: Salmon Creek Bridge Replacement Project
Here’s the video of a Caltrans public scoping meeting held at the Albion School on September 11, 2018 for a proposed replacement of the Salmon Creek Bridge.
(Caltrans held two scoping meetings for this project because members of the local Jewish community expressed concern that the September 11 meeting had been scheduled for the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah.)
Video of September 11, 2018 Caltrans Public Scoping Meeting: Salmon Creek Bridge Replacement Project
Here’s the video of a Caltrans public scoping meeting held at the Albion School on September 11, 2018 for a proposed replacement of the Salmon Creek Bridge.
“Safe for continued use” and “in remarkably good condition”—Read the Independent Engineers’ Report
Submitted by Albion Bridge Stewards, a working group of ACAB
Two independent professional engineers—world-class experts in timber bridges—have prepared a report on the condition of the Albion River Bridge.
We strongly recommend anyone interested in this bridge download and read their report. To do so, click this link: Albion River Bridge Engineering Report.
Some key highlights:
The bridge is not in need of immediate or near-term replacement. The bridge is in remarkably good condition, thanks to its well-conceived structural design, high-quality timber materials, and effective connection detailing. While there certainly are locations on the bridge that require maintenance and repair, overall the bridge appears structurally sound and safe for continued use, as per the “Safe Load Capacity and Ratings” reflected in Caltrans’ January 5, 2018 Bridge Inspection Report.
The Albion River Bridge is in remarkably good condition, and is not posted with any load capacity/weight limits. The design of the bridge involves a highly redundant structural system with multiple load paths. Features of the design that lead to its robust and resilient character include the following:
- The timber members are of uniformly high-quality Douglas fir salt-treated by the Wolman method.
- The timber trusses of the superstructure and support trestles consist of members primarily subjected to axial compression forces, for which heavy timber members are well suited.
- The dimensional integrity of the bents in the trestles is impressive. Column lines are straight (to the eye) and the bents are planar. (Figure 1 below.)
- The battered columns provide a base that is wider than the bridge deck, thus enhancing the ability of the bridge to resist lateral loads, such as those from wind.
- In August 2002, a loaded logging truck plunged down the side of a trestle, destroying the cross-bracing members between bents. The fact that the trestle did not collapse due to the loss of bracing is an indication of the resilient and redundant nature of the trestles and demonstrates how the internal shear connectors might be revealed for inspection (as discussed later in this report) without endangering the structural integrity or safety of the bridge.
- There is little or no audible rattle below the bridge deck when traffic passes overhead. This observation suggests that connections are tight and members are sound.
- Generally, access to the connections within the trestles is good, which will enhance the efficiency of inspection, maintenance, and repair activities. Removing bracing members temporarily to inspect the inner connection hardware could be performed relatively easily without requiring closure of the bridge to traffic.
- Each of the outer-most columns of each bent is heavily bolstered at its base to help distribute compressive load into side-grain bearing on the lower sill plates. The next, inboard line of columns is lightly bolstered, because those columns carry less compression under lateral load. The bolsters appear to be effective in controlling overstress of the sill plates, as we observed no indications of localized crushing due to compression perpendicular to grain.
- Many of the large timber members have checks – radial cracks on the surface of the timber. The checks tend to be aligned with the longitudinal axes of the members, which suggests that the members have remarkably straight grain, another indication of high- quality material. Checks are not generally regarded as strength-reducing defects and do not require repair. Checks on the sides or bottoms of horizontal members and on any face over vertical or diagonally oriented members are able to drain freely when subjected to rain water.
- The bridge deck consists of two crossing diagonal layers of timber planks. The upper layer uses tongue and groove planks that lock together and provide uniform support for the asphalt pavement. The lower layer has planks that are spaced to minimize trapping any water that might migrate through the asphalt wearing course and the upper layer. The two layers of planks, properly coupled to the longitudinal stringers along the edges of the deck, have the potential to form an effective diaphragm (a deep, flat beam) to resist out-of-plane loading. With proper drainage detailing, the bridge deck also acts as a roof to protect the superstructure and trestle towers from stormwater runoff.
- Concrete piers supporting the timber trestles are in good condition. We observed no spalling or cracking. The piers provide uniform bearing support for the sill beams of the trestles.
Action Alert: Email the Coastal Commission Before 5 pm Friday, September 7
Submitted by the Albion Bridge Stewards, a working group of ACAB
At its Wednesday, September 12 meeting in Fort Bragg, the California Coastal Commission will hear comment regarding Caltrans’ proposed geotechnical investigation development—the first destructive step toward tearing down the historic Albion River Bridge. We urge everyone concerned about Caltrans’ expensive, destructive, and unnecessary plans to email the coastal commission before 5 pm on Friday, September 7.
To comment on the plan, visit the Coastal Commission’s agenda page, and locate Item 10a. It’s called “Application No. 1-16-0899 (California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), Mendocino Co.)”.
At the end of the short description, you’ll find a “Submit Comment” link. This will create a new, blank email with the proper address and subject already filled out.
Or, simply send an email to: NorthCoast@coastal.ca.gov
With this subject:
Public Comment on September 2018 Agenda Item Wednesday 10a – Application No. 1-16-0899 (California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), Mendocino Co.)
Not sure what to say? Feel free to use the template below as a starting point. Cut and paste portions of it, or simply put things in your own words—even just a short, “Please deny this unnecessary application and help preserve the Albion River Bridge, not destroy it.”
I urge you to deny the Caltrans application to start on the slippery slope of replacing, for $91 million, the existing sound timber bridge with a wider and straighter concrete one just so the 2,100 cars per day that use it can go faster.
This “geotechnical investigation” development project is a Caltrans work program that is neither needed nor appropriate. As a result of the latest revisions, the project is only in the County’s Local Coastal Program permit jurisdiction, but Caltrans can’t meet the LCP’s standards and wants you to now side-step them.
Caltrans headquarters staff told the Albion community in a public meeting last November that the bridge is “safe” and, contrary to what District 1 staff has represented to you, that it is not “structurally deficient” or “functionally obsolete.” In the same vein, the photographs that Caltrans contributed to your staff report do not show any rigorous analysis of any “exponential decay” of the bridge, but rather splendidly make the community’s and the independent national timber experts recommendation that Caltrans needs to carry out a responsible and publicly transparent bridge maintenance program, with repairs as needed and the seismic retrofit completed.
The project is an exemplar of why we have a Coastal Act to protect this coast, its natural and human-made resources, and the workers in our coastal economy. To summarize the project is to list its blatant direct and cumulative Coastal Act inconsistencies.
The project:
- Blocks public and worker access on Highway 1 to and along the coast and its many small visitor-serving establishments, to public Albion Cove beach, and to the recreational opportunities on and along the wild-and-scenic Albion River.
- Preempts the County road for visitor-serving and local boating, lower cost camping, and fishing access at and from Albion Flat, to Albion Cove, the Pacific Ocean, and up the river.
Removes not only hundreds of trees in the Coastal Commission certified blue heron rookery Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area at the northwest end of the bridge, but also their entire root system, with foreseeable destruction of the high and fragile bluffs that face Albion Cove and Albion River. - Proposes 70- to 125-foot deep drilling into the fractured and unstable earth and rocks on steep to very steep bluff slopes, most of which can only be reached by helicopter. One drilling location is a cultural site of pre-European peoples. and several drill sites are so close to the existing bridge timber towers, the Coastal Act priority visitor serving uses, Highway 1, the beach, and Albion village that Caltrans has to get an impossible approval from the Federal Aviation Administration, since – as you know – its action needs to be consistent with the federally approved Coastal Act and County LCP.
- The project is clearly inconsistent with many of the mandatory Coastal Act standards, and hasn’t been properly presented to you for geographic jurisdictional reasons. The question, Commissioners, is whether you will uphold the Coastal Act and direct Caltrans to follow the rules, starting with doing an EIR and applying to the County.
Please do the only right thing: deny this coastal permit application. Thank you, for the coast.
Albion Bridge Stewards 