Group launches fundraiser for Lyme covered bridge

LYME — The National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges has started a fundraiser to help pay for repairs to Lyme’s Edgell Covered Bridge.

The nonprofit organization is seeking to raise around $150,000 to help offset the estimated $690,000 it will take to repair the bridge, which was built in 1885 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. The bridge on River Road spans Clay Brook, a tributary of the Connecticut River.

At Town Meeting in March, voters approved spending for the repairs, including $250,000 from the Bridge Capital Reserve Fund, $188,589 from the unexpended fund balance and $190,000 to be raised from taxes. The article called for raising $61,411 from donations; all donations received after raising that amount would go toward lowering the amount needed from taxpayers.

Planned repairs include replacing the bridge’s deck and roof, as well as realigning it with its abutments on the brook’s bank.

Lyme Town Administrator Dina Cutting said that the town is working on a construction plan and hopes to have the work completed before winter begins. Additional information — including any potential closures — will be posted to Lyme’s website and Listserv. 

More information about how to donate is online at coveredbridgesociety.org/edgell-donations.html.