I’m genuinely interested in the environmental discussion that took place during engineering that led to this decision. There are a couple of federal statutes pertaining to construction of roads on (or near) historic properties (FHWA Sec. 106 and 4f). I can’t imagine that this was an ineligible historical resource given its age and historical significance.

Even the alterations to view itself could have qualified, so I’m assuming that there were no feasible alternatives. There may also be some other nuances that the article didn’t cover, so I’m not completely certain, but it’s enough that I’m curious.