OTISFIELD — Two communities that share ownership of a bridge across the Crooked River are looking to update estimates on how much it would cost to repair the span.

Hal Ferguson, chairman of the Otisfield Board of Selectmen, said officials from Harrison and Otisfield recently met with an engineer from the Maine Department of Transportation to discuss the status of the Scribner’s Mill bridge. The bridge connects Scribner’s Mill Road in Harrison with Jesse Mill Road in Otisfield.

Earlier this year, concerns over the condition of the bridge were brought before the two towns. Parts of the span are deteriorating, bearings need to be cleaned and painted, and some areas of the open grate steel deck are not welded down.

Harrison Town Manager Brad Plante said he had received an estimate of $85,000 to repair the bridge in October 2008, but the two towns will see if that price has changed since last year.

“They’re not threatening to close it or anything at this point, but they are concerned that we’ll need to address it pretty soon,”  Plante said.

Ferguson said the state will continue to inspect the bridge, but that maintenance remains the responsibility of the two towns. He said the Scribner’s Mill Bridge is not the sole means of access to an area, and so repairs are not the responsibility of the state.

“Even though it’s not convenient, you can still get around it and go back and forth between Harrison and Otisfield,” he said.

Plante said the state will do an inspection next year, bumping up one that was scheduled for 2011, and will also install a meter on the bridge to measure the traffic flow across it. Plante said the span is currently classified as low usage, but that the state could take it over if there is a “significant increase” in traffic.

The bridge, which is next to a historic sawmill, was built in 1936 and is posted for six tons. Due to the concerns about its condition, additional signs reading “Pass at own risk” have been added at either end. Plante said Harrison has also added a sign at the end of Scribner’s Mill Road banning through trucking on the road.

Harrison has also requested $68,000 in federal funding through the Surface Transportation Authorization Act. Willy Ritch, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, said the bridge’s condition could lead to a 5-mile detour and longer emergency response times if the bridge were to be closed.

Ritch said the act is usually updated every five years, and that a version that expired in September has been extended to the end of 2009. He said the new bill is in committee, and that Pingree is hopeful that it will be considered by the end of the month.

[email protected]

Warning signs have been placed at the Scribner’s Mill bridge between Harrison and Otisfield because concerns were raised about the condition of the span.

The Scribner’s Mill bridge crosses the Crooked River, which marks the boundary between Harrison and Otisfield. The historic sawmill for which the bridge is named is in the background.