TARPON SPRINGS — After years of delays, Pinellas County expects to begin replacing the century-old Beckett Bridge in spring 2027, a two-year project to rebuild the aging span that carries Riverside Drive over Whitcomb Bayou.
The current bridge has been deemed functionally obsolete and is load posted, barring heavier vehicles — including some large trucks and school buses — from crossing because of its deteriorating condition, according to a county assessment. The report cited the bridge’s narrow width as a central problem.
“There are no shoulders, or bicycle lanes, and the sidewalks are very narrow, about two feet wide,” the assessment said. “In addition, there are other characteristics of the bridge that don’t meet the current design safety standards required for new bridges.”
The county plans to spend an estimated $33 million, drawn from Penny for Pinellas one-cent sales tax revenue and multimodal impact fees, to replace the structure with a two-lane, single-leaf, rolling-lift movable bridge that meets modern safety and clearance standards. How an upcoming property tax referendum might affect city and county funding remains unclear.
The new drawbridge will echo the historic look of the original but stretch about 19 feet wider, county officials said. It will carry two 10-foot travel lanes, 6.5-foot shoulders that could accommodate future bicycle lanes, and 6.5-foot sidewalks on both sides. Vertical clearance for boats will rise to 7.8 feet from 6 feet, with unlimited clearance when the bridge is open. The span is named for E.H. Beckett, a former Pinellas County commissioner and prominent early citrus grower.
The new sidewalks will continue along the north side of Riverside Drive and North Spring Boulevard from Pampas Avenue to Chesapeake Drive, with an additional walkway on the south side of North Spring Boulevard from the bridge to Venetian Court.
The project is in its design and utility-relocation phase, with design work expected to be finished this summer, Pinellas County Public Works reported. Tarpon Springs is responsible for relocating utilities on the bridge, a job the city estimates will take nine to 10 months.
“All easements and environmental permits are in place and ready for the project construction to start when needed,” a city spokesperson said. “Pinellas County’s project manager has recently indicated to the city that construction could start as early as June 2027.”
The replacement leans heavily on federal money. After the U.S. Department of Transportation rejected a March 2024 request tied to utility and pipeline relocation, the county submitted a revised application May 22, seeking $26.5 million through the department’s Bridge Investment Program — up from the $21.3 million it first sought. The request again folds in Tarpon Springs’ share of the work, and a decision is expected Aug. 13. If awarded, the grant would cover 80% of construction costs, including the city’s utility work, cutting the city’s share to $1,089,750 from $5,448,750.
The Beckett Bridge opened in 1924 as a timber structure with a steel movable span, according to the county assessment. Its timber portions were replaced with concrete in 1956, and the span underwent major repairs in 1979, 1998 and 2011 — work the county described as costly and disruptive to traffic. Bridges of that era were typically built to last about 50 years, the report noted, making additional expensive repairs likely.
Pinellas County Public Works weighed whether to remove, rehabilitate or replace the bridge in a Project Development and Environment study conducted under the National Environmental Policy Act. The Federal Highway Administration approved the project’s location and design Jan. 25, 2016, signing off on the site and the concept for a two-lane, single-leaf, rolling-lift bridge modeled on the original, county officials said.
During the review, the state historic preservation officer found the bridge eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. A resulting memorandum of agreement, signed Feb. 2, 2015, laid out steps to offset the loss of the historic span, which will be demolished; those measures are now part of the project. The new bridge will be built within the county’s existing right-of-way.