Regardless, Department of Transportation representative Alan Kerr said he believed it was a unanimous decision from the public that residents want their covered bridge repaired.
Money wasn't the only thing on the table, the value of the covered bridge as a tourist attraction to Charlotte County is a key component.
Local Resident Annabelle Juneau tells Tide News besides fixing the bridge, we need to start spending some tourism dollars on signage to better promote the covered bridges throughout the province. "At the end of the day, this is something, especially with the new highway being there, that we need to promote those covered bridges. Get the signs out, and I'm hoping we'll see the Department of Tourism step up to the plate as well."
Juneau says New Brunswick is known for covered bridges, "I think if we reach out to other people in New Brunswick that they will probably feel as we do. That we have to keep these covered bridges, there aren't many left."
Some members of St. Stephen Town Council were also present. Councillor Jim Maxwell spoke on stage making his opinion quite clear to DOT representatives. He told them, "We know you're not here to tell us you're tearing down that bridge."
Councillor Allan MacEachern tells Tide News even looking at the financial side of things, repairing the bridge makes sense. "I'm in favor of the covered bridge because it is return, and I'm all about return on investment. It just makes sense to get money out of tourism later, it makes it worth more as a covered bridge."
Before LSD President Vern Faulkner closed the meeting, he handed out parting gifts to each of the DOT representatives -- bags of Covered Bridge potato chips.
