The new bridge over the Cataraqui River will have a new design and United States President Donald Trump has something to do with the change.

In May of last year, Trump announced a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian steel and a 10 per cent tariff on aluminum. In response, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau added the same tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum products.

The moves have changed the budgeting for the $180-million bridge, which is supposed to be completed sometime in 2022 or 2023.

“This bridge also changes the mix between steel and concrete,” Paterson said at a chamber of commerce breakfast Tuesday morning. “In the last year, we’ve had the imposition of tariffs on steel, which has made steel a little bit more expensive and, of course, we’re committed to the goal of bringing this bridge in on time and on budget.”

The bridge will have less steel and more concrete, which allows the city to have the bridge built closer to its budgeted cost.

The bridge will be paid for by $60-million investments from the city, the province and the federal government.

The original design that many people have seen includes a steel span over the middle portion of the bridge, but the new design has eliminated the span. Paterson also showed a new design photo of the bridge at the breakfast.

“We’re now in the final stages of the design,” Paterson said. “It’s not just city staff, but it’s also Kiewit, the contractor who is going to be building this bridge. Also, Parks Canada is around the table as well,” he said. “One of the things we’ve been discussing is creating a design that is a little bit more minimalist in nature to really highlight the natural beauty of the Rideau Canal that’s surrounding it.”

“The original bridge design had an over-arch, but now will have an under-arch as well as different pockets of the bridge where people can get a good view of the area.”

Paterson said the No. 1 question he got during the election campaign was when the bridge will be built.

“You’re going to see lots of activity on the shorelines starting this spring with the goal of having in-water work at the beginning of July,” he said.

In an interview Tuesday afternoon, Mark Van Buren, the director of engineering for the City of Kingston, said the design change was also part of the improvements the design team is making to the bridge, “so that we can continue to improve upon the design so that we can have a bridge that is light and blends into the natural environment as best we can.”

The changes have been made to also deliver the bridge on schedule and on budget, Van Buren said.

“Steel is one of the factors that the team is giving some consideration to,” he said. “It does have an impact in terms of the overall cost for the project.”

Van Buren said the actual cost saving is yet to be determined. They’ll know once they get final design improvements, he said.

Those numbers and some of the design changes will be unveiled to the public in early March, Van Buren said.

The bridge will still have the walking and bike paths, Van Buren said.

“The multi-use pathway is an integral part of the overall project and the design to make sure that we can have the opportunity for as much pedestrian and cyclist opportunities as we can on the bridge.”

imacalpine@postmedia.com

twitter.com/IanMacAlpine