Steel beams are already driven into place along the banks of Yellow Creek in Poland, where a construction crew is building concrete forms and placing rebar for the foundation of the new Graffiti Bridge. The pedestrian span, a daily route for students walking to McKinley Middle School, has been gone since it was removed in 2025 after it started sinking and broke open a sewer line running underneath it.
The bridge settled about 18 inches, according to The Vindicator. It was removed after it started sinking and broke open a sewer line running underneath it. Mahoning County Sanitary Engineer Bernie Petro hired Rudzik Excavating to install a temporary bypass system so raw sewage would not spill into the creek while crews prepared to demolish the damaged structure, the outlet reported.
The bridge connects Poland Manor with the southern end of the athletic track and scoreboard at McKinley Middle School, per the same account.
Bedrock Footers Aim to Stop Future Sinking
Now, according to WKBN, foundation work is underway, with steel beams already in place for the new span.
A Bigger Sewer Line Buried Beneath It All
The project is doing more than replacing a walkway. As part of the rebuild, the Mahoning County Sanitary Engineer's Office is upgrading the underlying sanitary sewer line from 24 inches to 36 inches in diameter, an expansion intended to prevent manhole overflows during heavy rainfall, the outlet reported. Mahoning County officials had initially estimated the cost of replacing the bridge at approximately $900,000.
Mahoning County commissioners awarded a contract in January 2026, with work expected to take about six months.
Trail Paving Still Waiting on the Bridge
Poland Village has its own deadline riding on the bridge's completion. The village was awarded an $185,000 grant to pave a handicap-accessible connector trail toward a Poland Forest entrance, The Vindicator reported.
The creek corridor sits within Poland Municipal Forest, tying the bridge rebuild to a county utility upgrade and a village trail project.
