BIDDEFORD — By October, walking between the Biddeford and Saco mill districts will become much easier. That’s when a pedestrian bridge connecting the two cities is scheduled to be completed.

Scott Construction Corp., of Falmouth, was recently selected as the company to construct the pedestrian bridge over the Saco River. None of the four companies that bid on the contract were from the Biddeford-Saco area, said Biddeford Planning Engineer Jennie Franceschi.

The bridge will be a “significant amenity,” said Biddeford Planner Greg Tansley last year, when the Maine Department of Transportation announced it would fund most of the project.

It will help attract people to both cities’ mill districts and downtowns, said Saco Planner Bob Hamblen, at that time.

“I think any successful downtown includes a number of reasons why visitors want to come,” he said, “something as striking as this pedestrian bridge is going to be reason enough.”

Next week, representatives from both cities’ planning departments will meet with Scott Construction staff to discuss the project, including a timeline. The longest portion of time will be for fabricating the bridge, which will be assembled on site.

The fabrication process could take two to three months, said Franceschi.

The cost of the project is nearly $600,000; each city will pay 10 percent of the cost and the Maine Department of Transportation will pay the remaining 80 percent, she said.

Both cities will use Tax Increment Financing District funds to pay for their shares. TIF district funds are special pools of money made up of the some of the taxes assessed from new value in designated areas of a municipality, which can pay for items like infrastructure improvements.

A previous grant from the DOT was awarded to the twin cities to hire a consultant to prepare the project design.

The 134-foot steel truss bridge with a concrete deck will connect between property at Biddeford’s North Dam Mill and Saco Island. Easements from property owners were acquired to allow for the projects to move forward.

The bridge will replace an existing steam pipe, said Franceschi.

That structure “will be removed and this new bridge will go in the exact same spot,” she said.

For Biddeford, this will be the second phase of the riverwalk. The first phase, begun in 2011, begins at Mechanics Park, located at the intersection of Main and Water streets, crosses Main Street into the mill district and ends at an overlook on the North Dam Mill property, said Franceschi.

A 400-foot concrete sidewalk between the existing and new portions will be constructed under a separate contract, she said, which will also utilize TIF funds.

The Saco riverwalk was started about 20 years ago, said Hamblen.

It begins in Pepperell Square and continues to Front Street and along the river, passes the Saco Yacht Club and the city’s sewer treatment plant, and continues to Hall Avenue and then Main Street.

Much of that 3,500-foot area “feels like wilderness,” said Hamblen.

The walk continues on the west side of Main Street, pass the railroad tracks, to a brick walkway located before the bridge that connects to Biddeford. The walkway delivers people to the riverwalk and the pedestrian bridge, which is elevated on the Saco side. Unlike the Biddeford side, there is an existing constructed abutment next to the pedestrian bridge, which requires some aesthetic work, said Hamblen.

Both cities have plans to make further additions to their respective riverwalks, but for now “we will get this section in and done and then start looking for grant opportunities” for additional phases, said Franceschi.

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324 or [email protected].