Bridge to Green in Shawmont

Earlier this season, an enthusiastic group of community volunteers including Poulson and Associates, an engineering firm, gathered to build a small pedestrian bridge which at first glance would seem to lead to nowhere.

The bridge will allow access to a section of land along the river that was once an old farmstead. With the buildings long since gone and the site overgrown and largely forgotten, it became increasingly important that steps be taken to preserve this bit of green in Shawmont. Community leaders, with funding from the Schuylkill Project, decided to hire the Natural Lands Trust to undertake a conservation study which will look at wetlands, soil and native plants. The ultimate goal is to restore and preserve this tract as a natural area; a habitat for native plants and animals, and a healthy component of the watershed.

The City would not allow consultants to cross over to the property in Shawmont without a proper bridge. Now that the bridge has been built, the conservation site plan can get underway.