Supporters hope historic Sutliff Bridge is rebuilt

SUTLIFF — A lot of people have Sutliff Bridge stories — grand Memorial Day celebrations, weddings, having a drink on its wood planks.

Whether the bridge will be around to inspire new stories is unknown.

Last year’s flood washed away one-third of the bridge, which opened in 1898 over the Cedar River in the northeast corner of Johnson County. Now the county’s supervisors are considering whether it’s worth spending an estimated $1.4 million to restore it.

The bridge may have little functional use — it was closed to vehicles in 1981 — but supporters tout its historical and sentimental value. Before the flood, it was 827 feet long and one of the few Parker truss bridges left in Iowa.

“I don’t cry very easily, but tears did come to my eyes because I know it meant so much to the people (who) lived in that area because it was a treasure, you might say,” Janice Hunter, 86, said of hearing about the flood damage to the bridge.

She lives in Iowa City but grew up a few miles from the bridge. She remembers movies occasionally being shown near it, and the scare her children got when its planks rattled under the family car.

The structure also has some good stories of its own. Consider:

• In 1999, a ceremony was held in honor of the bridge being placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The thing is, it was put on the register the year before, unbeknown to local people.
• In 1984, to keep the bridge from possibly being torn down, the non-profit Sutliff Bridge Authority signed a long-term lease with the county for $1 to assume oversight of the bridge.
• For 20 years, Sutliff Bridge was the centerpiece of a beloved 5K run that Runner’s World magazine, at the race director’s prodding, had once dubbed the “worst road race in America.”

Johnson County has resumed control of the bridge to get funding for it. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has said it will pay 90 percent of the estimated $1.4 million in flood-related damage. The state would pick up the rest of the tab.

It’s not yet known what would happen to the remaining bridge structure if the county decides not to restore it. An evaluation under way will consider all options, from restoration to demolition, county Engineer Greg Parker said.

Supervisors say they have heard from a lot of people who want Sutliff Bridge rebuilt, but they’ve also heard from some who question spending that much taxpayer money on it.

“I think people are very conscious of (federal) spending and the deficit,” Supervisor Sally Stutsman said.

Supervisor Larry Meyers, who sits on a county committee studying the Sutliff issue, said he’d like to see it rebuilt, but he has a threshold for what’s worth it. The FEMA estimate, he said, is just about that number.

Supervisor Rod Sullivan has no doubt he wants it restored. He grew up a mile east of the bridge and said it felt like a death in the family when the floodwaters washed part of it away.

“It does mean something for the people of Johnson County,” he said.

The bridge now looks like someone took a giant saw and clumsily cut off its eastern third, with the planks and the railing on the remaining span bent just before dropping 20 feet to the now-calm Cedar River.

It’s a sight that, a year later, still bothers Randy Howell every morning when he opens Baxa’s Sutliff Store & Tavern, the business he runs on the east side of the bridge.

“You sit there, and it’s gone now and it has been, and it rips your heart out,” said Howell, 45.

Bridge advocates say they understand that repairs may be expensive but note that there are pots of recovery dollars available for such work. For example, FEMA is expected to pay most of the $25 million needed to restore the Paramount Theatre in Cedar Rapids.

Having the bridge back would be a big boost to the area, said Randy Brannaman, 56. He’s president of the Sutliff Bridge Authority and has lived near the structure his entire life.

“It is not an eyesore, but it’s sure a hole in all our hearts,” he said.

His group has nearly $30,000 in an account for the bridge. He said others have said they’d donate money to help get it rebuilt.

A report from an engineering firm evaluating Sutliff Bridge is expected soon. The county will see what it says and go from there, Meyers said.

The State Historic Preservation Office will provide technical assistance if the bridge is rebuilt, spokesman Jeff Morgan said.

FEMA spokesman Vince Clark said via e-mail that, after the engineering assessment, the county will submit a plan to FEMA for review. The agency will “seek ways to avoid, minimize or mitigate adverse effects” on the historic integrity of the bridge, he said.