Backbone Creek bridge opens new footpath between Marble Falls parks
A fishing boat cruises beneath the new pedestrian bridge over Backbone Creek between Johnson and Lakeside parks in Marble Falls. The bridge has about 10 feet of clearance. Staff photo by Dakota Morrissiey
In a few weeks, a pedestrian bridge spanning Backbone Creek between Johnson and Lakeside parks in Marble Falls could be open to foot traffic. The project is about a year in the making and should make for an easier walk between two of the city’s most popular parks.
The actual bridge was installed June 19, but its accompanying infrastructure still needs to be finished before its ready for use by around Aug. 7, according to Marble Falls Economic Development Corp. Executive Director Christian Fletcher.
“It will take about 45 days to complete the approaches and pour the sidewalks on the bridge itself,” he told DailyTrib.com. “They are digging footings for the approaches right now (Monday, June 23).”
The bridge links Johnson Park, 230 Avenue J South, with Lakeside Park, 305 Buena Vista Drive, crossing Backbone Creek near the Johnson Park boat ramp on the north side and the Buena Vista Drive loop on the south side.
While a foot path already extends from Avenue J to Buena Vista Drive just north of both parks, the pedestrian bridge cuts off a few hundred feet from the trek between them.
It’s about 0.28 miles from the Johnson Park playground to Lakeside Park Pavilion along the current footpath. That trip will drop to about 0.22 miles via the bridge.
Also, park-goers taking the bridge path won’t have to walk along city streets or traverse the large, stone terraces between the parks. The metal-enforced bridge will have a paved walking surface.
“I think it’s safer. Our kids love to walk on the rocks, but it will be nice to have something with guardrails,” Jared Brown, a Granite Shoals resident visiting Johnson Park, told DailyTrib.com. “I think that it has a lot of possibilities to make it a lot easier to go from one park to the next park or even help make parking easier.”
Brown said he and his family go to Johnson Park about twice a week and are looking forward to using the bridge.
According to the city, the bridge has about 10 feet of clearance from the surface of the water, allowing more than enough room for most recreational watercraft. Boats requiring higher clearance can use the Lakeshore boat ramp at 603 Lakeshore Drive, which is about a half-mile away from the Johnson Park boat ramp.
The bridge project adds up to about $500,000 of an approved $4.2 million of upgrades underway in the Marble Falls parks system, funded by the city’s EDC. The EDC gets its budget from a half-cent sales tax collected within city limits, which it can only spend on projects that attract, retain, and expand business and industry in Marble Falls.