Carol Stream pedestrian bridge to reopen soon

A 34-year-old pedestrian bridge connecting the Carol Stream Public Library with Armstrong Park is undergoing repairs and should be open after the new year, officials said.

The bridge has been closed since March when a concrete slab fell off and into Klein Creek, which passes about five feet below.

Crews began repairing the bridge last week, which included pouring new concrete forms, park district spokeswoman Julie Vogl said.

After the holidays, crews are expected to come back to put down cold patch on the park district’s side of the bridge that has dropped about 5 inches below the surface of the bridge, Vogl said.

It is too cold to lay asphalt there, she said.

Barricades have blocked the entrances to the bridge since March, though in June the driver of a Jeep broke through two wooden sheets of plywood in an attempt to get from the library parking lot to the park.

Vogl did not have an official cost estimate for the repair work, but said the park district’s insurance will pay for it. The park district — and not the library or village — is responsible for the repair costs since the bridge is on its property. The village did help pay for a bridge consultant to evaluate the structure in April.

The bridge is expected to reopen in January.