New Chippewa Creek pedestrian bridge re-connects waterfront to North Bay trails

A new 28-metre pedestrian bridge located over Chippewa Creek at Oak Street has been installed as part of the creek’s remediation project.

The new bridge means pedestrians and cyclists alike will have easier access to North Bay’s waterfront.

The local conservation authority told CTV News that they identified the need for creek repairs after a 2015 study – repeated flooding and excessive erosion were causing instability of the creek banks.

North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority has done a lot of work in the area since the study. Since 2019, an old railway bridge and old pedestrian bridge that connected Kate Pace Way and the Chippewa Creek EcoPath were removed, a small building was demolished, the creek channel was widened, the creek banks resloped, armour stone was installed to protect underground pipes and native shrubs were planted along the banks.

The new bridge completed the planned remediation efforts.

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A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held this week with mayor Peter Chirico, former city councillor Bill Vrebosch and chair of the North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority Dave Britton officially opening the bridge.

“It’s a collaboration and an understanding of the importance of the conservation authority and why we need to continue to support these people,” said Britton.

“The cost of the operation is about $442,000 for Chippewa Creek rehabilitation and $413,000 for the bridge.”

Conservation authorities said with extreme weather and climate change happening this type of project is the future of conservation authorities.

Funding for the erosion repair work was provided by both the city and the province.