American Bridge Co. Returns After 110 Years for Swing Bridge Renovation, Closures Delayed Until 2023
Steve Jensen
EAST HADDAM – The grainy photograph shows a crew from the
American Bridge Co. working on the deck of the now-iconic Swing Bridge over an
icy Connecticut River about four months before it first opened to cars and much
fanfare in 1913.
And when a major renovation of the moveable steel span
begins this month, American Bridge workers will be back on the job they
finished 109 years ago when the only public transportation across the river
here was by ferry.
The Pennsylvania-based company with worldwide reach has been
awarded the $55 million state contract to repair and replace major systems of
the bridge, which was considered an engineering marvel when it was built in
only 14 months.
“This project is just a little more special for us,” company
spokeswoman Heather Engbretson told CT Examiner. “We are excited for all our
jobs – but the project team is thrilled to start working on a structure that
our predecessors built.”
Drivers who will be stuck at the bridge during lane closures
or have to take lengthy detours when it is shut down completely during the
two-year renovation will likely not share that thrill.
But there is good, albeit temporary, news on that front.
Originally slated to begin this spring, work on the bridge
and the associated traffic headaches will likely not start until next year,
officials say.
State Department of Transportation spokesman Josh Morgan
said a construction schedule has not been finalized, and he did not provide
further information.
But First Selectman Irene Haines told CT Examiner that
details of the project’s timeline were discussed late last week at a meeting
she attended of the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce.
She said officials with DOT and American Bridge told the
group that while preliminary staging work will begin this fall on both sides of
the bridge, significant work on the bridge itself has been put off until next
year.
“They’re going to start with building infrastructure on the
west side of the bridge (in Haddam) for the sidewalk approaches this fall,” she
said. “This winter they’ll work on the east side approach infrastructure. They
foresee that no long-term closure will happen this year. The majority will
happen next year.”
A groundbreaking event is expected to be held later this
month.
The project was initiated when inspectors determined that
the bridge’s superstructure had deteriorated to the point that it was
jeopardizing its reliable operation.
Major repairs or replacement are needed to address corroding
steel on the deck and the supportive structure under it, and an aging
electrical system that often failed and caused the bridge to get stuck in the
open position.
Much of the renovation work will restrict traffic to
alternating one-way directions.
During full closings, drivers will be detoured up to 29
miles through local roads to reach one of only two other bridges that cross the
Connecticut River in the southern half of the state – the Arrigoni Bridge on
Route 66 between Middletown and Portland and the Baldwin Bridge on Interstate
95 between Old Lyme and Old Saybrook.
The 63-hour midweek closures will allow deck-replacement
work that would otherwise be impossible.
DOT estimates that there will be approximately 25 full
bridge closures during the two years of construction, starting Sundays at 8
p.m. and ending Wednesdays at 11 a.m.
About 23 weeks of 24/7 alternating one-way traffic routing
are expected.
Boat traffic will be impacted by closures from December
through March in 2023 and 2024 of the span that swings open in its middle to
allow passage of vessels taller than its 25-foot height.
That is necessary to complete mechanical and electrical
work, including replacement of underwater cables that power the motors and
massive ring gears that open and close the bridge.
Drivers and boaters will be given notice of the closures by
DOT through a website and social media pages dedicated to the project and
available at https://easthaddamswingbridgeproject.com.
Haines said DOT also will provide 90-day forecasts of the
project’s progress, a 3-week schedule to allow planning for using the bridge
and a link to a live-feed camera that will show whether it is open or closed.
She said both DOT and American Bridge are “well aware of the
impact to the entire region and are committed to communicating as much as
possible” with the public.
When completed, the new 6-foot-wide walkway cantilevered to
the outside of the bridge is expected to enhance its role as a generator for
tourism and commerce in the area.
It will allow pedestrians and bicyclists to cross from the
Goodspeed Opera House driveway on the east side to the Eagle Landing State Park
access road along the west bank in Haddam.
But during construction, the bridge project will undoubtedly
be an impediment not only to drivers, but to businesses in the area.
Haines, who is also the town’s State Representative as well
as its previous economic development coordinator and past president of the
local business association, said she has been working with state and local
officials to try to mitigate that commercial impact.
“We have some real solid ideas there and as soon as we have
details we will be announcing the plan,” she said. “In the meantime, I can’t
stress enough that although this project needs to be done, it is on all of us
to continue to support our local businesses even if it takes a little longer to
get there.”
For American Bridge, which was founded in 1900 via a JP
Morgan-led merger of 28 bridge and structural companies, its return to the
swing bridge after more than a century not only renews that historical
connection, but carries great responsibility under what will be intense public
scrutiny.
“It’s been amazing to see the interest in the project from
the community,” company spokeswoman Engbretson said. “We know we have to be
good stewards of an essential connection for the towns of Haddam and East
Haddam.”
What architect envisions for new West Hartford community center
Michael Walsh
WEST HARTFORD — The architectural firm designing the town’s
new Elmwood Community Center gave Town Council members an update on the project
during last week’s Community Planning and Economic Development committee
meeting.
Edward Widofsky, a senior project manager at the
Hartford-based Tecton Architects, said they’re looking to design and build a
“welcoming, multi-generational cultural destination” to serve as the town’s new
community center at the
100 Mayflower St. property, the former St. Brigid School that the town bought
for $3 million last year.
“What we’re trying to basically exemplify in the design of
the building is something that really celebrates the town’s pride, reflects the
diversity and is a blend of a wide range of programs that really enhances the
experience for all residents,” Widofsky said.
Initial plans for the building, town officials said last
year, is that it would be the new home for the teen and senior centers that are
operating out of an aging former school building constructed in the 1920s.
They’d also move the Faxon Library branch, as well as other community
programming, into the new building.
One of the first steps, Widofsky said, is determining how
the building should be configured.
“What we’re seeing is kind of some flexible spaces at the
core of the building that all connect to the individual uses where there are
spaces that are for each group,” Widofsky said. “To get the most bang for our
buck really is to have spaces that can be used by as wide of range of groups as
possible.”
Some of those decisions will be made once the town decides
on whether to completely tear down the former school building or reuse some of it
in a renovation and expansion project.
“Certainly, we are going to look at reuse of the existing
building,” Widofsky said. “We assume there are likely some cost savings in
doing so. There are a number of difficulties. A sizable addition would be
needed. There’s concerns with accessibility because nothing is at grade.
There’s no elevator. The gym is at a different level from the building. The
multipurpose space existing is in the basement, so access is tough. There’s a
number of things that are going to be difficult and quite honestly we’d be
surprised if this really winds up being the strategy.”
He said users of the Elmwood Community Center have been
frustrated being in a former school building.
Council member Leon Davidoff said replicating that would be
the “last thing we want to do.”
“One takeaway I took from the presentation was people’s
concerns that we would even attempt to try to have a community center in a
former school building and have history repeat itself,” Davidoff said. “What
we’re trying to do is create a building, a living institution that stresses the
vibrance and the diversity and meets the needs of the entire community, but
most particularly that it’s a building that is located in our Elmwood section
of town and will become a prized part of our West Hartford community.”
The Mayflower Street property also sits adjacent to another
piece of town land — Beachland Park. Widofsky said it would be wise to create
more of a connection between the two properties.
“One of the things we really want to do is enhance the
connection between the two properties and make this one cohesive town facility
so that the park and the community center are extensions of each other,”
Widofsky said.
The next step, Widofsky said, is more community engagement.
Opportunities for residents and stakeholders to hear updates about their
plans will
be posted on the West Hartford Library’s website.
“We’re looking at a site analysis and starting to kind of
figure out how does this building fit on the site,” Widofsky said. “We’ll be
developing conceptual options for both new construction and to renovate and
creating an addition. We’ll be giving the community a chance to take a look at
and see how they feel about the various options and then ultimately coming up
with a feasibility report that will be a cohesive document that is a summary of
everything we’ve done to date.”
Widofsky said a final design may be chosen by the Town
Council sometime in November.
“It does promise to be a very positive thing for our
community,” Davidoff said. “It will be a gem that people will appreciate for
generations to come.”
New owners of Civil War-era Glastonbury mill plan apartment redevelopment
A52,434-square-foot mill complex in Glastonbury dating to
1863 could find new life as upscale apartments following a $1 million sale.
The mill complex at 122 Rear Naubuc Ave., joins several
three-story buildings. These are located at different elevations on the
1.4-acre property, creating a complex of seven levels, said Robert Gaucher, a
senior associate with O,R&L Commercial.
Gaucher, who brokered the recent sale, said the complex
hosts tenants on the bottom two floors, including a woodworking shop,
photography studio, small engine repair shop and antique car parts dealer,
among others.
The new owners plan to eventually renovate the buildings
into upscale apartments, Gaucher said.
Alemo Realty LLC sold 122 Rear Naubuc Ave. to Peekskill, New York-based
Nestwell LLC, in a $1 million deal recorded by Glastonbury on July 22.
Alemo’s principals are Michael Napoletano, of Coventry, and
Stephen Napoletano, of Manchester.
Nestwell has a Peekskill, New York address, according to the deed. The company
is registered in Delaware, with its agent listed as Edwyn Stuart, at an address
in Magnolia, Delaware. Attempts to reach a Nestwell representative were not
successful.
Gaucher said the mill building needs to be almost completely
gutted and renovated, including a new roof and major systems. It has attractive
features, including sturdy, 3-inch-deep floors; 12-foot-ceiling heights; and
ornately-carved wooden beams, Gaucher said.
“It has some gorgeous beams inside and beautiful brick,”
Gaucher said. “It could be stunning.”
The building is just off the commercial center of Glastonbury, with many nearby
retail and civic amenities, Gaucher said. It also borders extensive wetlands,
which will preserve a scenic, wooded view for future residents, he said.
Glastonbury Town Planner Jonathan Mullen said the property
at 122 Rear Naubuc Ave. is among several in town targeted for “adaptive
redevelopment.” Mullen said he has had informal discussions with prospective
developers over the years but plans never advanced.