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INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis Department of Public Works says the historic 16th Street Bridge is expected to close down for restoration beginning on or after Monday, June 1.
The closure is expected to last until winter of 2029.
The agency says the $17.6 million restoration project is needed for the concrete arch bridge that opened in 1948, and has deteroriated from water damage over the decades, but has never been fully rehabbed.
The impending shutdown is causing some concern for nearby business owners, like Robby Smith of Long’s Bakery, who says his business heavily depends on traffic that crosses the bridge.
“We just hope people can find us and then don’t forget about us,” Smith said. “They say two years. We can only hope that that’s what it is… because the 30th Street Bridge took four years.”
Smith estimated the shutdown could cause him to lose 20% of his current business.
“And if you take a 20% hit daily, that’s a pretty tough hit,” he said. “The 30th Street Bridge was closed for four years and the Iron Skillet was open for 70 years and they ended up closing down.”
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