NORTHFIELD — In the town’s latest effort to secure funding to replace the Schell Bridge, the Selectboard has sent a letter to U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Edward Markey seeking their support.

The letter, which was recently sent to the senators’ offices in Springfield, laid out reasons to financially support the project through the congressionally directed spending process that identifies high-impact projects within the state that can be completed with federal assistance, according to Warren’s website. The town hopes to secure federal funding to match the $25 million that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation has already pledged toward the project.

The proposed project consists of the complete replacement of the Schell Bridge, named after Francis R. Schell, a New York merchant who gave $42,000 for the bridge’s design and construction. The bridge, carrying East Northfield Road over the river, opened in 1903 and has been closed since 1985 because it deteriorated beyond being safe to use. It links two sections of Northfield, as the town is the only one in the state that is divided by the Connecticut River.

Listed within the Selectboard’s letter are potential benefits the bridge could provide to Northfield residents and surrounding rural neighbors, should it be replaced. While a new bridge, which could take up to three years to build, would be primarily intended for pedestrians and bicyclists, it would also allow for increased efficiency for first responders in the event of emergencies that require getting to the other side of the river. Replacement also would eliminate the threat that the existing, deteriorating bridge could collapse into the Connecticut River.

The Selectboard called the bridge a centerpiece in Northfield and the region that may help to expand business opportunities and employment. Multi-use paths also could be created through this project, enhancing access to parks, forests and regional trails.

“The board strongly feels that this bridge project will enhance the quality of life, safety and connection for the town and region,” the letter reads. “The bridge was central to the town’s growth in the early 20th century, and remains a pivotal icon of Northfield as we just celebrated the town’s 350th anniversary in 2023. ”

The Selectboard signed the letter to Warren and Markey during its April 2 meeting after Town Administrator Andrea Llamas announced that Northfield did not receive the $25 million it had hoped for through the United States Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods Grant Program. The Selectboard had sent a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg last September while seeking funding through that grant program, following earlier unsuccessful efforts to secure funding through the 2022 Rural Surface Transportation Grant Program.

“We’re just keeping our fingers crossed,” Llamas said. “We’re just trying to move this in hopes that the project will eventually advance. [The] best we can do is just keep going after funding.”