Originally considered a temporary fix, the structure provides passage for heavy foot traffic at the popular year-round entertainment and meeting complex.
With locations in Wisconsin, Texas, Pennsylvania and Ohio, Kalahari Resorts and Conventions are African themed “all-under-one-roof” destinations with some of America’s largest indoor and outdoor waterparks with the luxurious amenities expected at an upscale resort.
The Sandusky, Ohio location of Kalahari Resorts, has 890 guest rooms and suites and is the largest hotel in Ohio. The facility also boasts 215,000 square feet of convention space and the second-largest indoor water park in the United States, at 173,000 square feet.
When the pedestrian bridge that serves as the only entrance to the facility began to fail, it was critical to replace it as quickly as possible. The existing bridge had been in place since the opening of the resort in 2005 and had both a failing superstructure and deck. It was determined that installing a temporary bridge would be the best option to minimize patron inconvenience until a more permanent structure could be put in place later.
An Acrow modular steel bridge was selected, but the design and installation of the structure posed many challenges. In addition to requiring a tight turnaround time, it was necessary to design the new bridge to fit within the parameters of the existing substructure. After the final design was selected from several proposed by Acrow, substructure changes required additional engineering work.
About a month after the initial discussion on the project, the new 150-feet-long by 10-feet-wide wood deck bridge was open to the public. Pleased with the performance of the “temporary” bridge, after renting the structure from Acrow for eight months, Kalahari Resorts opted to purchase the bridge to keep it in place permanently.
“The quick turnaround time on this project proves that the modular design of Acrow bridges make them a perfect choice when rapid replacement is required,” said Bill Killeen, President and CEO of Acrow Bridge. “And they are an ideal solution for use as permanent structures as they have an estimated life span of 75-100 years and are virtually maintenance-free.”
