The Star Mine Suspension Bridge, that crosses the Red Deer River in Rosedale, has been closed to the public since May 2020. An inspection of the bridge revealed that the support on the North-East end was in very poor condition, making it unsafe for use.
“Up until 2023, if you walked across the bridge and stepped onto soil, it used to be an old railway right-of-way, which was never supposed to be sold to private land. The landowner wanted an agreement to make permanent access for us to have it. We ended up buying the land,’’ explains Drumheller’s Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Darryl Drohomerski, “We did an inspection, incidentally during Covid, but because of flood-mitigation, of all the bridge structures in the valley. The Suspension Bridge is held up by four posts, one of which was rotted. This deemed it unsafe for visitors.”
In June of last year, the Town of Drumheller received the land and the work started in November. “Now that the work is complete, it will be open this January,” says CAO Drohomerski.
The total cost of repairs was $383,000. That included the acquisition of the land needed, plus engineering and construction. $200,000 of these costs came from the province, as the province actually owns the bridge but the town is responsible for the care and upkeep of it.
“I think from our standpoint,” says CAO Drohomerski, “it’s been a long time coming with the Suspension Bridge, and we appreciate people’s patience on it. I think the challenge that no one realized is this land ownership dilemma that we had to go through so we were happy that it all got resolved. We’re happy to have one more space for the public to go to. It’s been four long years since this bridge has been closed.”
There will be seasonal paid parking for tourists looking to use the bridge, and will be open for pedestrians by February.