Four drill rigs will be placed at the base of the Oceanside pier later this month to conduct geotechnical borings in preparation for the replacement of the Pier View Way Bridge and lifeguard headquarters. “Drilling operations will take approximately five working days,” Senior Management Analyst Terry Gorman Brown said Friday. “Data review and analysis will take between two and four weeks to process.” The information collected by Earth Mechanics Inc., a consultant based in San Marcos, will be used to help determine structural design elements for the bridge, the lifeguard headquarters, and other beachfront improvements. The steel-reinforced concrete bridge, completed in 1927, crosses The Strand to connect the wooden pier to Pacific Street atop the nearby bluff. The Oceanside City Council approved preliminary plans for the project on Aug. 23, 2023. The new structure will look similar, if not identical, to the iconic white bridge, only updated to modern construction and seismic safety standards. Drilling rigs will go up after the Super Girl Surf Pro competition Sept. 20-23, which includes includes musical entertainment and other activities in the area around the pier. “The drilling operation is expected to produce noise and potential dust,” Gorman Brown said. “However, best management practices will be in place to minimize those temporary impacts to the extent feasible.” Traffic controls will be used on Pacific Street during the work. Nearby businesses have been notified. Rebuilding the bridge and lifeguard headquarters is expected to cost about $40 million, city officials have said. Construction could begin in 2028 if final plans are approved and money is obtained. State and federal grants could be available for the work. The concrete approach ramp was built long before the wooden portion of the nearly 2,000-foot-long pier. The wooden part of structure is the sixth version, built in 1986 to replace a previous one destroyed by storms. The western end of the pier was badly damaged in April by a fire that investigators say appeared to be started accidentally by old wires beneath the deck. Quick action by firefighters from throughout the region saved more than 90 percent of the structure. Two buildings, a long-vacant Ruby’s Diner and a locally owned, short-lived, Brine Box take-out seafood kiosk, were destroyed along with some of the decking. The end of the pier remains closed, and a contractor is set to start removing the charred timbers remaining from the buildings soon after the upcoming surf competition. City officials have said they plan to rebuild the end of the pier, but so far no date has been set and there’s no money for construction. Repairs are expected to cost about $17 million. Efforts also are underway to restore or replace Oceanside’s beachfront bandshell, amphitheater and community center in the plaza at the base of the pier. Home to some of the community’s best-loved cultural, athletic and theatrical events, the seaside bandshell and amphitheater have hosted high school graduation ceremonies since the 1960s. The bandshell, built in 1937, is the third one at the location since 1919. The amphitheater, also built in the 1930s, has seating for 2,500 with 1,500 of that on the tiered concrete benches and 1,000 on the plaza level.