Arnold, CA…Many have dreamed and tried to make the White Pines Pedestrian Bridge a reality over the years only to be met with futility, like myself. I envisioned a bridge, many years ago, that would complete the loop rather than forcing people down the treacherous path behind the spillway. It would also make the new bridge trail handicap accessible. Many people won’t walk around the lake, especially seniors, due to the risk of injury behind the spillway. I started doing research within the last few years and I spoke to Berha Underhill, district 3 board of directors for CCWD, and she thought it was a marvelous idea as it would increase tourism and provide additional economic stimulus to Arnold since the Meadowmont Golf Course closed. White Pines Lake has become a hidden gem in Arnold, although most people don’t utilize it other than tourists from the valley and the bay area. And isn’t Arnold heavily dependent on tourism? There was also a rumor that the Forest Service was going to build a pedestrian bridge downstream from the spillway, although it would not elevate the treacherous trail behind the spillway and force people onto the heavily traveled Forest Service road. After speaking to the Forest Service, they said they had no plans to build such a bridge.

Murphys Bridge

Sutter Creek Bridge

Proposed White Pines Bridge

I contacted the Bureau of Dams a few years ago and spoke to an engineer who said it was fine to construct a pedestrian bridge at that time, and it would span right in front of the spillway that would connect the dam to the trail. I have a background in construction and disaster damage assessments from working with the Federal Government. I looked at wooden bridges, which are quite aesthetic and give a natural look, but which would require maintenance. Then I saw the oxidized steel bridges situated at Lake Alpine and Jackson. I contacted an architect and she created a bridge model to span from the dam to the trail. I started speaking to a lot of people about the proposed bridge to see what their opinion was. Most people I spoke to were from the bay area and embraced the idea, asking how they could help. I stated that I would set up a gofundme page to pay for the bridge, and then everyone could be part of it rather than a few private donors. I said to watch out for it on thepinetree.net.

After the bridge modeling was done I incorporated it into a proposal for CCWD and took it to Joel Metzger, CCWD’s spokesman, in early December. We talked in the lobby for a few minutes; he was excited at the prospect and felt that the gofundme page would fund rather quickly. As we spoke an engineer came into the lobby. Joel showed the proposal to him and he said it looked good but might require a center support instead of an arch. The proposal included the dimensions of six feet wide and one hundred and forty-three feet long, with a proposed cost of 50k to 100k that would be 100 percent funded by the community, and would cover all costs including donated labor, materials, insurance, volunteers and permits.

It would also be fun to have an Annual 4th of July Bridge Fest 5k,10k run around the White Pines Lake, that encompasses the pedestrian bridge, as a fundraiser for the White Pine Park Association since they struggle with funding to keep the park operating.

Several weeks passed and I received a letter from Dave Eggerton, General Manager of CCWD. He thanked me for the proposal, BUT he said CCWD would have to decline the proposal due to the permitting process with state and federal bureaucracies. How interesting, I thought, but isn’t this part of the General Manager’s job description to push proposals through state and federal bureaucracies?

I came to the conclusion that it would take the communities’ backing by sending a letter to Mr. Eggerton in support of the White Pines Pedestrian Bridge, unless one of the District 3 supervisor candidates sees the need for economic stimulus in Arnold – upon which they all seem clueless based on the last debate at Blue Lake Springs – and jump on the bandwagon to get it approved rather than being sold empty promises again!