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Falling concrete in downtown Moline is creating safety problems, says downtown alehouse

One local alehouse says a large chunk of concrete fell from the 16th Street bridge, creating a safety hazard for their customers and staff.

MOLINE, Ill. — Update 8/12:

The morning after this report aired on News 8 at 10, Moline crews were seen inspecting the bridge in question in downtown Moline. Workers were spotted as early as 8 a.m. and seen moving patio furniture and setting up caution tape.

Original Story 8/11:

Following News 8's report on concrete falling from a downtown Moline bridge, city crews were seen inspecting the structure the morning after. Workers were spotted at 8 a.m. and seen moving patio furniture. 

Falling concrete, seemingly from the 16th Street Bridge leading from Moline to the Arsenal, is creating a safety hazard for nearby businesses. 

The Galena Brewing Company Moline Ale House says nearly two months ago, a large chunk of concrete fell from the bottom of the bridge and shattered on the parking lot just a few feet from a group of cars. Since then, the ale house says they've tried to contact the city, but have been unable to get any response. 

Employees were inside the ale house when the concrete fell, and said large sections broke off into almost frisbee-sized pieces. Staff have also found what appears to be a rebar tie, fallen off of the bridge. While no one was hurt at the time, staff now are worried that could still happen. 

Credit: Galena Brewing Company Moline Ale House
Fallen concrete outside of Galena Brewing Company Moline Ale House

"It would have probably broken a windshield out. I mean, if it hit a person, they probably would have ended up with a concussion, if not worse," said Amanda Spengler, manager of the ale house. She says if anyone would have been struck by the debris - from a fall around 20 ft - it could have easily caused some serious damage. 

While no more concrete has fallen yet this summer, Spengler doesn't want to wait and find out if it'll happen again... and who might be underneath it next time. 

"I think that's part of the issue that we're a little concerned about is you don't really know when it's going to happen," she said. "If it's a matter of a big truck going across the bridge and just enough of a vibration shakes it loose. But if you go out and look, there's a lot of sections under the bridge where you can see the rebar where the concrete has already fallen away." 

Directly out from the ale house, nearly every section of the bridge's underside has spots of missing concrete and exposed rebar lines. Old pieces of plywood indicate the problem has been addressed - in spots - in the past. 

Credit: Galena Brewing Company Moline Ale House
Apparent rebar tie

After seeing the concrete crumbled outside of her business, Spengler said she tried to get in contact with Moline to fix it. 

"The lady that I spoke to at Public Works said that she had had another call and she had forwarded it on to the appropriate person," recalled Spengler. "She said she would do a secondary follow up email about my call. And that's all I've heard since." 

So far, the ale house hasn't heard anything else back from the city over the past two months. 

When we asked Mayor Sangeetha Rayapati about it, she said she hadn't heard of the issue before. 

"I have not gotten any, any inquiries about that issue, or any any contact about that issue from the public," she said. "I know that our staff is dedicated to following up on inquiries. So I’ll be sure to share the fact that, you know, there's been a few inquiries." 

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Mayor Rayapati added that staffing vacancies at City Hall played a part in this situation, especially as Moline operates without a Public Works Director at the moment. 

"Lots of things come back to staffing is because when staff is asked to wear multiple hats, you know, there still is only eight hours in a day," she said. 

Spengler says she understands city officials are busy, but wishes there was more of an urgency to take care of the problem before someone is seriously hurt. 

"Because, you know, the last thing that anybody wants is to see somebody get hurt, because that's not going to be good for anybody," she commented. 

The 16th Street Bridge is partially maintained by the city of Moline and partially by the Arsenal. When we called the Public Works Division on the Arsenal, we were told crews would go inspect their half of the bridge. The findings were no damage on that half. 

Now, the ale house has moved their outdoor patio in closer to the building, out from underneath the bridge. While the move was originally planned to cut down on the amount of bird droppings on customers, Spengler says the falling concrete was also a concern. 

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"It was a very big eye opener that we don't want somebody to be sitting on our patio, and then possibly a chunk of concrete falls on them," she said. 

But the parking lot under the bridge isn't just used by the ale house. Spengler says it's a parking hub and popular walkway for many downtown businesses. And after a tough year and a half, thanks to the pandemic, she's afraid a safety hazard such as the bridge could scare away customers the downtown area desperately needs. 

"The last thing we want is for people to not want to come down here because they're concerned about the bridge falling on their car on their person," she said. 

News 8 has made multiple attempts to contact Moline's interim Public Works Director, Joe Kuhlenbeck, but has not heard anything back. 

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