“It’s a thousand foot boardwalk that’s 12 feet wide,” said Jeff Perry of Anoka County Parks. “It’s an amazing super structure. We’re building it for the future.”
The old boardwalk at this popular park was in bad shape. The new one will have much better curb appeal and is expected to be ready by Memorial Day.
According to Perry, the boardwalk’s $2 million tab is going to be money well spent.
“It’s for public use,” Perry said. “It crosses the very edge of Bunker Lake here in Bunker Hills Regional Park and it is built for the test of time. It’s gonna last for 30 to 50 years. It stands on helical piers that are driven anywhere from 20 to 50 feet into subsurface through the wetland.”
When seen from the air, the scope of the project comes into focus. The boardwalk slices through a scenic wetland and will be able to hold up to 8,000 pounds.
“There’s plenty of room for pedestrian traffic, bike traffic, etc,” Perry said. “Then in the center of the boardwalk – out in the middle of the wetland – is a wildlife observation area, so it’s a bump out area. We’re gonna place a couple benches out there. We can get people out there to view Bunker Lake and all the various wildlife that will use it.”
Connecting people to the wetland
Anyone using the new boardwalk has a chance of seeing a variety of birds.
“This particular marsh type wetland is frequented by sandhill cranes, trumpeter swans, various bird species,” Perry said. “It truly is going to connect people with the surrounding wetland habitat.”
Construction crews have been building the boardwalk all winter. When finished Bunker will have a better boardwalk that will need little upkeep.
“The structure of this one compared to the old floating boardwalk is significantly more stable,” Perry said. “This essential bridge or boardwalk will not move. If you’re on a bike or pushing a baby stroller it’s literally like crossing a bridge.”
The funding source for the boardwalk is coming from the state regional transportation sales tax program.
