swinging-bridge

A historical site in Columbus Junction will be seeing improvements ahead of its centennial.  The famous Lovers Leap swinging bridge was originally built in 1886 by a man named Josiah Stewart to provide access from Fourth Street to Third Street allowing community members to cross the deep ravine. The bridge we know today was created in 1922, with designs made by University of Iowa professor of structural engineering Byron Lambert. Columbus Junction Parks and Rec Commission Chair Beverly Nielsen says the current project of transforming the swinging bridge into an official city park has been ongoing since 2014 and is currently on track to be completed in 2022, the centennial anniversary of the bridge. Phase three is currently ongoing, which will see shelter upgrades, landscaping, steel artwork, water fountains, and more installed at the location and will cost around $55,000 to complete. A final phase of the project will fix erosion problems around the bridge before opening to the public. The city also has an ongoing fundraiser where individuals can honor loved ones with an engraved brick laid at the site. To this day, this fundraiser has contributed $22,300 to the project. Donations of $100 or more are eligible for a brick.