A public hearing on the location for a new bridge at Louisiana is tentatively scheduled for June.

A date has not been set, but the hearing will take place after the state announces May 11th whether money for the project is part of its proposed five-year construction plan. A final decision on funding will be made in July.

The 60 million dollar crossing would be built just to the south of the 88-year-old Champ Clark Bridge. An environmental study for the new structure has been completed and approved by the Federal Highway Administration. A cost-saving construction method called design-and-build will be used.

The Champ Clark is the oldest vehicle crossing still in use on the upper Mississippi River north of St. Louis, and was the scene of a deadly 2011 accident that prompted a federal lawsuit. It has needed significant repairs in the last five years.