Demolition of the 114-year-old Rock Island Swing Bridge that once linked Washington and Dakota counties could begin as early as January because of a portion that collapsed.

"Because the bridge is in such poor condition it really needs to be removed quickly," Wayne Sandberg, Washington County, MN assistant engineer, told the County Board on Tuesday. "Nature has taken its toll. It's time to remove it."

Sandberg said the state engineer would be ordering its removal soon. The cost, estimated at $2 million to $3 million, would be paid with state emergency funds, he said.

A buckled beam caused the collapse of about a 200-foot span, Sandberg said.

A National Park Service superintendent, Paul Labovitz, wanted to preserve part of the bridge for a greenway corridor on the river. But Sandberg and his supervisor, Don Theisen, now think the bridge, built in 1894, is too far gone to salvage.

The Washington County Sheriff's Office draped police tape Monday around the east portion, Sandberg said. On the Dakota County side, workers removed planks.