Georgetown Edition | January 2026

Transportation

BY GRACIE WARHURST

After receiving news of cost increases, George- town City Council decided to redesign the Austin Avenue pedestrian bridges at a Dec. 9 meeting. What happened The estimated cost of the project jumped from $14.6 million to $23.4 million during the nal stages of design, Woolery said. Design rm Freese and Nichols attributed the increase to an error in calculating the quantity of steel needed. Because of the error, the design rm restructured the internal team working on the project, oered a partial refund of design fees and came up with three alternative bridge design options, Assistant City Manager Nick Woolery said. City advances new design for Austin Avenue bridges

RENDERING COURTESY CITY OF GEORGETOWN The original concept for the pedestrian bridges, which was made from steel, has been replaced with a concrete alternative.

“We want to do everything we can to make it right with the city,” Freese and Nichols CEO Brian Coltharp said at the meeting. The options After considering the options, council members selected a durable concrete bridge due to its lower maintenance and cost. The estimated construction cost for this option is $14.7 million. Georgetown has a remaining budget of about $17.8 million, with $16.3 million available for construction, Woolery said.

“Basically it will look almost exactly like the steel bridge, except the beams below the deck would be concrete

instead of steel.” JOHN NEW, FREESE AND NICHOLS VICE PRESIDENT

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