County weighs the theft factor in fencing decision
Friday, September 14, 2007 7:07 AM PDT
By Tony Lystra
Printable version
E-mail this articleA spate of metal thefts has prompted the county's public works department to delay installation of safety fencing on the new Lexington Bridge.
County officials planned to put up the aluminum barrier earlier in the summer, said Ken Stone, the county's public works director. But it occurred to them the fence would probably disappear, he said.
Some materials had already arrived for the $20,000 safety barrier, Stone said. Officials decided to hold off and order steel fencing, which, Stone said, is more difficult to remove, crush and sell.
It would be "much better to replace it now ... than lose it and have to replace it later," he said.
County Commissioner George Raiter said the county can "probably recover" the money it paid for the unused aluminum fencing.
Stone said he did not know how much the steel fencing will cost or when it will be installed. He assumed the steel barrier would be more expensive.
The fencing, about 2 feet high, will be mounted atop the bridge's concrete walls and run the length of both sides of the bridge. Stone called it "an extra margin of safety" for walkers and bicyclists using the span, which crosses the Cowlitz River.
Law enforcement officials say some drug users snatch metal for quick cash, and Stone said thieves have been swiping aluminum from county's bridges for roughly the past five years.
The Legislature passed a bill earlier this year requiring metal dealers to collect more information from people who bring them scrap metal.
The $15 million Lexington Bridge, which connects Sparks Drive at West Side Highway to the Ostrander interchange of Interstate 5, opened to traffic last week.
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