Saxonburg advertises bid for Roebling workshop restoration project
SAXONBURG — Borough council approved a motion to put the bid for restoration work at John Roebling’s original wire rope workshop out for advertisement during its monthly meeting on Tuesday night, April 21.
The workshop, where borough founder John Roebling pioneered the wire rope used to build suspension bridges, has been structurally unsound for over a decade. Repairs to the building are estimated to cost between $250,000 and $300,000.
According to borough manager Steven May, the borough has nearly $250,000 in the bank for the restoration project. This includes the $150,000 it was awarded through a Local Share Account grant in December 2025 and $95,000 in donations from the community.
At last month’s meeting, the borough also made an application for $7,500 in funding from an Experience Butler County Tourism grant in conjunction with the Friends of the Saxonburg Museum. The museum operates next door to the wire rope workshop at Roebling Park.
“This could potentially be another $7,000-plus in funding to be used toward the engineering and architectural fees for the wire rope workshop,” May said.
According to May, the results of the bid cannot be announced at next month’s borough council meeting on May 19 because the state requires 30-day period for bids to come in, but a special meeting to address bids is planned to be held later in the month.
A motion to advertise the wire rope workshop restoration bid was previously on the agenda for the borough council meeting held March 17, but was tabled.
