Officials to dedicate Port of Entry and Madawaska-Edmundston International Bridge

photo / Courtesy, Deschaine Digital In the foreground, the new Madawaska Land Port of Entry marks the entrance to the new Madawaska-Edmundston International Bridge. The old bridge is in the background.

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By Peter Van Allen

A ribbon cutting is planned on Thursday for the new Madawaska Land Port of Entry and Madawaska-Edmundston International Bridge.

Officials from the U.S. General Services Administration, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and Maine Department of Transportation, as well as from Maine's congressional delegation, will take part in the ceremony. It is closed to the public.

The Land Port of Entry project consisted of design and construction of a new port on 10.7 acres of U.S. land, replacing an obsolete facility that dated to 1959.

The work was done in coordination with construction of the new Madawaska-Edmundston International Bridge, commissioned by the MaineDOT and the New Brunswick Department of Transportation and Infrastructure. The former bridge was a century old.

Woolwich-based Reed & Reed managed construction of the new bridge, while J&J Contractors Inc., which based in North Billerica, Mass., managed construction of the entry site.

Simultaneous construction of the two projects was aimed at minimizing their long-term impact. The bridge opened for traffic on June 6.

The bridge and entry complex are viewed as a vital link for travel and commerce between the U.S. and Canada.