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OTTUMWA, IOWA -- It has been more than a year since the Eisenhower Pedestrian Bridge was damaged by a semi, and now because of the Ottumwa City Council, it is finally going to be repaired.

At Tuesday's city council meeting, members approved having the bridge repaired by Iowa Bridge and Culvert of Washington, Iowa.

The cost to repair the damaged structure, $161,000.

According to Councilmember J.R. Richards, the city is going to pay that cost out of pocket.

Richards says that the city's attorney is in the process of filing paperwork to go after the insurance companies responsible for holding up the repairs.

Richards says he expects construction to start fairly quickly, and that once the bridge is repaired, students will be able to use it to get to and from school, rather than having to wait for a school bus.