Anyone can buy a bridge, including government agencies and organizations, as well as individuals.
“Usually they’re unique, the bridges that MoDOT attempts to give to other people,” Grandview City Engineer Jackie White told the news agency, adding that the older bridges have more aesthetic value than new bridges. “They don’t make them like that anymore.”
MoDOT’s Historic Preservation Manager Mike Meinkoth told the news agency that it’s more common for people to buy smaller bridges because they are easier to move. “Farmers use them for a field road for a crossing. Parks or golf courses have taken them to use in their areas. Usually the smaller the bridge, the easier it is for relocation.”
The Bourbeuse River bridge is just one of several bridges listed for sale on the MoDOT website. Meinkoth told the news agency that the department is changing its approach to selling the bridges. “We’ve actually been working at changing our marketing plans to try to give people more time and more information on how to do this,” he said.
The bridges are offered free of charge, so buyers need only pay to have them moved. Plus, up to 80 percent of the money that would have been used to demolish the bridge is available for reimbursement to the buyer if they move the bridge themselves.
The Bourbeuse River Bridge will be available until March 30, 2017.
