By MIKE FERGUSON

Of the Baker City Herald

Most people are smart enough to stay away from somebody who has a bridge to sell them.

But that’s exactly what Baker County Roadmaster Ken Helgerson has or had.

Try as they could using word of mouth and classified advertising county officials could not unload the bridge that spans Pritchard Creek on Highway 30 one mile west of Durkee. The bridge is slated to be replaced this fall, but because the 1922 structure has historical value, the law says it must be sold if possible to someone who can put it to some use.

But nobody took the county up on its offer.

Deadline for buying the old structure was Aug. 7, but there’s still a chance to buy now if you act quickly.

The contractor on the project, Bend-based Dice Construction, now becomes the owner of the bridge. So long as the bridge can be purchased and hauled away by Aug. 31 at the buyer’s expense there’s hope yet that the bridge could celebrate its 100th birthday.

The bridge has been structurally deficient for public use and has carried weight restrictions for the past decade, Helgerson said. That’s a problem because the highway is used as a detour when Interstate 84 must be closed because of an accident or bad weather.

What do you do with an old bridge nobody wants?

If you’re Bowen Valley rancher Cal Foster, you place it on the Powder River and use it to conveniently place farm equipment where it needs to be.

Years ago, Foster acquired a bridge constructed in 1914 by the Portland Bridge Company. That bridge, on Beaver Creek Road, came with a plaque on it, but Foster recently noticed that plaque was missing.

andquot;It was a pretty spendy bridge,andquot; he said, so instead of paying for it he traded land for it. The Soil and Water Conservation District helped install the bridge, and Foster uses it every day to move equipment from field to field.

Several years ago, when the SWCD placed riprap in the river, the bridge enjoyed especially heavy use with no apparent problems, he said.

andquot;There was truckload after truckload of riprap,andquot; he said. andquot;It wouldn’t work anymore for commercial use, but for a private driveway or something like that, it’s fine.andquot;

Helgerson said the twin of the bridge that was offered for sale is on Bidwell Lane just south of North Powder. That bridge is still in good shape, he said.

The Pritchard Creek bridge and another on Dixie Creek are scheduled to be replaced by the end of October.