LIVE BLOG: Jericho Covered Bridge Restoration Up for Discussion

Officials from Baltimore and Harford counties held a public meeting Thursday night at to discuss a restoration plan for the Jericho Covered Bridge at Jerusalem Mill Village.

The following updates were recorded live during the meeting.

6:40 p.m.: The meeting broke from question and answer to a reviw of picture boards on display.

6:39 p.m.: "You can't fix stupid," Keenan said, "Some people are just going to ignore the signs no matter what you do."

6:38 p.m.: Joan Scovill said a few years ago Jerusalem Road was closed because of the foot bridge between Mountain Road and the closed bridge. There were about five orange signs, and despite those, there were skid marks.

6:37 p.m.: "We're going to try to keep it smart and good looking because it is an historic bridge," Keenan said.

6:36 p.m.: The sign indicating the height restriction will be removed from the bridge and placed some distance away, Keenan said.

6:34 p.m.: There is a liability issue with the "headache bar," Keith Duerling, Project Engineer with Baltimore County Public Works, said.

6:31 p.m.: Chris Scovill urged officials to consider a "headache bar" before the turn to the bridge to prevent oversized vehicles from damaging the bridge.

6:30 p.m.: The plan is to keep a posted clearance level of 12 feet, 1 inch.

6:29 p.m.: The historical plans of the bridge had some ventilation and the improvements will include that feature.

6:28 p.m.: The shingles will be shake cedar shingles.

6:26 p.m.: Keenan said the color of the siding has not been decided, but red is a pretty standard color. The other five bridges are also barn red.

6:25 p.m.: Sabolcik said the posted weight limit on the bridge will remain the same.

6:21 p.m.: In response to a question about traffic detours, Sabolcik said it will be at most as much as a year for reconstruction, but likely less.

6:19 p.m.: the improvements will include continuous surveillance cameras, and anti-graffiti and flame retardant coat over the paint.

6:18 p.m.: "We've looked into the structural integrity of the abutments, they're all in really good shape," Keenan said.

6:17 p.m.: "We're not tearing the whole thing out and rebuilding it," John Keenan, with Wallace Montgomery and Associates, said.

6:15 p.m.: The project will include remedial repairs of the bridge's siding and roof, according to Sabolcik.

6:11 p.m.: This is the only covered timber bridge in the area, Sabolcik said.

6:08 p.m.: Kevin Sabolcik Chief of Structural Design Section with Baltimore County Department of Public Works gets the meeting underway.

What are your memories of the covered bridge? Do you think it is worth preserving? Tell us in the comments.

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Officials from Baltimore and Harford counties planned to hold a public meeting Thursday night to discuss a restoration plan for the Jericho Covered Bridge at Jerusalem Mill Village.

The meeting, to be held 6-8 p.m., at is expected to focus on historic preservation guidelines, traffic detours and vandalism prevention, according to a Baltimore County announcement.

All are welcome to attend.

Built in 1865, the single-lane wooden bridge spans the between Baltimore and Harford counties.

Engineers from both counties plan to conduct the meeting. Restoration is expected to take six to 12 months to complete and could begin late 2012, according to the announcement.