MILANVILLE – In a letter to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) on January 21, the Superintendent of the National Park Service (NPS) Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River, Lindsey Kurnath, called on PennDOT to replace the Skinners Falls Bridge. 

The bridge, which spanned Milanville, PA and Cochecton, NY, had been closed to traffic since 2019 and was dismantled in April 2025 after PennDOT determined it to be unsafe.

“The extended closure and subsequent removal of the bridge in early 2025, while necessary to protect public safety, has created a significant gap in regional infrastructure that affects both the local communities and visitors to the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River,” wrote Kurnath. 

She goes on to say that legal obligations established through the New York-Pennsylvania Joint Interstate Bridge Commission require a bridge at this location. 

“The Skinners Falls-Milanville crossing has served both communities since 1902,” Kurnath said. “The emergency removal does not eliminate the fundamental need for the crossing or the responsibility to provide one.”

The nearest bridges to Skinners Falls are the Cochecton-Damascus Bridge, which is approximately three miles away, and the Narrowsburg-Darbytown Bridge, which is approximately six miles away.

Further, the NPS letter states that removing the Skinners Falls Bridge, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, “significantly impacted” the scenic requirements in the Wild and Scenic Rivers Acts, known as Outstandingly Remarkable Values (ORV). 

“The removal of the 1902 Baltimore Through Truss bridge significantly impacted the scenic ORV,” Kurnath said. “The historic bridge contributed to the scenic character through its architectural significance and aesthetic appeal as a rare example of early 20th century engineering.” 

The Upper Delaware Council (UDC) suggested mitigation efforts to make up for the removal of the bridge, including a historic preservation grants program.

Laurie Ramie, Executive Director of the UDC, said in a letter to PennDOT that this would have “an impactful public benefit” that would “respect the significant role the bridge had on the Upper Delaware River Valley’s special character.” 

A plan has also been suggested to turn the Pennsylvania abutment (the land on the Milanville side where the bridge connected to the road) into a scenic overlook.  

But plans for the overlook have been paused, and it’s possible may be removed altogether. According to a memo from PennDOT, the project “is currently on hold until the potential effects of the possible PA abutment removal are reviewed by the Cultural Resource Professionals.”

After PennDOT conducted a Planning and Environmental Linkages study, Ramie was left with questions.

In a letter, she said it was revealed that the scenic overlook would be demolished even as a decorative railing was being fabricated. 

There’s also the question of funding. In its study, PennDOT outlined that it did not have enough funding to build a new bridge, which is estimated at $13-28.5 million. 

As the overlook seems to be squashed and funding remains tight, “We’re just waiting to see how it plays out,” Ramie said.