GENEVA — Call it short and sweet — the Liberty Street Covered Bridge will be dedicated Saturday as an official state span, City Manager Jim Pearson said.

The ceremony, which will include the traditional “cutting of the log,” will be dedicated in at 2 p.m.

“It is going to be a beautiful day — 72 degrees and sunny,” Pearson said. “The perfect day to dedicate a bridge.”

The Rev. Robert Cunningham will give the invocation and speakers Covered Bridge Festival public relations chairwoman Betty Morrison, Pearson, Geneva Council President Bill Buskirk, director of the Ohio Public Works Commission Mike Miller, engineer John Smolen; State Sen. Capri Cafaro, D-Hubbard; State Rep. Casey Kozlowski, R-Pierpont; and Ashtabula County Commissioner Peggy Carlo will attend.

The idea for the bridge, which at 18 feet long is the shortest covered bridge in America, came to life in 2008 when the West Liberty Street bridge over Cowles Creek was cited as “deficient.”

“At the time, Ashtabula County was experiencing international notoriety as the home to the newly constructed Smolen-Gulf Covered Bridge, which is the longest timber covered bridge in the nation at 613 feet,” Pearson said.

The idea of the shortest timber covered bridge became the centerpiece of the city’s total downtown revitalization plan.

“With a span of only 18 feet and a roof trust width of 43.3 feet, the (Liberty Street Covered Bridge) stands out among its peers as the shortest in the nation and serves as a bookend of sorts for the Smolen-Gulf Bridge,” Pearson said.

“The bridge may be short in stature, but it is long in character, charm and significance,” he said.

The bridge, which was funded in part by the OPWC, was designed by covered bridge engineer John Smolen and built by Ashtabula County Technical and Career Campus students and staff, the bridge is capable of holding more than five times its 18-foot span and can accept all highway traffic.

Timber for the bridge — 13,000 feet or 42,000 pounds — of pine oak, red oak, red maple and yellow poplar — was donated by Ron Smoker of Smoker and Son. The wood was transported to Whitewood, S.D., by Jeff Jenks of Truckmen Corp., where it was treated with copper naphthenate.

The 4,600 pound glued laminated floor beam, used to support the bridge, was manufactured by Sentinel Structures of Wisconsin. The galvanized steel hardware includes 900 square washers and 768 shear plates, which were fabricated by the metal working students at ATECH.

Most of the structural components for the bridge were joined in a modular fashion by ATECH students. The bridge was transported to Geneva and assembled by community volunteers and city employees, who used turn-buckles donated by Richard Kovach of Ken Forging and a crane owned by ATECH alumni Mike Jones.

This Liberty Covered Bridge is Ashtabula County’s 18th timber covered bridge. Pearson said the bridge’s “toll booth” structure, which will hold literature on local attractions, will be installed today. Parking lots have been graded, but won’t be paved until later.

“Everything is done or will be done for Saturday,” Pearson said. “After three years of construction, it is so exciting to be just days away from the big dedication.”

The short bridge is also officially a state-recognized throughway, Pearson said.

“Our bridge has its own official number,” he said. “We are number 3504-65, and that number makes it an official bridge.”

Pearson said the bridge has already garnered tourism to the area.

“I was out there yesterday and they were working on the final details, and a van pulls up and there are two couples in there and they were from Columbus. I started telling them about the bridge and how the timber was donated and how the students built it and they were just fascinated.”

“If you go and stand at the short bridge long enough, you’ll see that sort of thing happens every day,” he said. “It makes me feel good to see people who come from out of area and the only reason they came was to see that covered bridge.”

But the tourism, though it was the reason for the bridge initially, isn’t even the best thing about the bridge, Pearson said.

“The bridge is good for our economy, sure, but the idea that the bridge was actually built by the community, donated by the community, supported by the community — that’s what makes this bridge so special,” he said. “I think this has been a rewarding journey for everyone.”