Waterville volunteers present engineering, insurance plan to save 118‑year‑old Roche De Boof bridge; council seeks clarity on ownership and funding

City of Waterville council members heard a packed presentation from local volunteers, engineers and an insurance consultant on possible ways to preserve the town’s 118‑year‑old Roche De Boof bridge and convert it for pedestrian use, but no formal decision was reached on ownership, funding or liability.

The special meeting opened with Save the Bridge Association president Barb and marketing volunteer Janice Breda summarizing community outreach that organizers say produced an online petition signed by roughly 20% of Waterville residents in recent weeks. The group introduced two technical presenters: Rex Childers, a former local insurance‑agency owner who reviewed liability issues, and Bill Vrimas, a bridge engineer from This Old Bridge who described structural findings and a rehabilitation plan.

Childers told the council that “liability” and “risk” are distinct and that some of the legal concerns cited in the ODOT/feasibility memo focus on the motoring public, not river recreation. He said targeted mitigations — for example, rockfall netting on state abutments along South River Road — could substantially change an insurer’s assessment and reduce owner exposure. Childers said…