Six years after buying Riverside Avenue property in order to build a new parking lot and pedestrian bridge over to Memorial Boulevard’s war monuments, the project remains stalled.
But city councilors this week unanimously agreed to stay the course.
What’s holding up the project is the lack of a permit for the proposed bridge across the Pequabuck River that needs to be issued by the state Department of Environmental Protection, said Robyn Bugbee, the city’s grants coordinator.
“It is frustrating,” said Mayor Art Ward. “The wait is longer than any of us anticipated.”
Bugbee said the division that would issue the permit is short-staffed, but has assured her that the permit application remains on the table.
The city’s hope is to erect an 80-foot long pedestrian bridge that would span the river between a city-owned parking lot on Riverside Avenue and the boulevard.
There is also a small, vacant store on the property – which once housed Hubbard’s Florist – that might someday become a meeting space for veterans and perhaps other community organizations, officials said.
City Councilor Frank Nicastro, who heads the Real Estate Committee, said he’s been approached by several potential purchasers interested in the site.
But, he said, “I don’t see selling it.”
Councilors unanimously backed Nicastro’s contention that the city should hang on to the property.
Councilor Kevin McCauley said the project hasn’t been forgotten.
“We are still working on it,” he said.
Public works officials said years ago they did not expect much trouble with regulatory agencies because the bridge abutments on both sides would be located outside the river’s channel.
The prefabricated bridge walkway would be more than 3 feet higher than the expected flood crest of the worst storm in a century, according to permit paperwork.The city used downtown revitalization money to acquire the Riverside Avenue property for $179,000 during Mayor Frank Nicastro’s tenure in 2002 and tapped Community Development Block Grant aid to pay the $43,000 demolition fee to knock down the old Hubbard & Co. Feeds & Fertilizer building there in 2003.State Sen. Tom Colapietro got a $150,000 state grant to help the project along a few years ago. Some of the money was used for a parking lot for the boulevard, but there is still some cash left for the bridge project.
Bugbee said the state recently gave the city another three years to use the funds.
Bugbee said, too, that she’s not sure the city could sell the Riverside Avenue property at this point.
She said the grant money that Colapietro nabbed provides that it would remain public property for at least 10 years.
*******
Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
18 comments:
I laughed when they bought the building and said, "We'll just put a bridge over the river."
About time Frankie and company learned what businesses have been dealing with for decades. The DEP is broken. No one in that agency will sign off on a lavatory pass let alone a bridge.
Now the building looks like crap. Might be a good museum for Frankie to display all of his own horns that he is aklways blowing.
As Harry Hershman used to say, "tis sad."
Thanks Frank: another memento for your Wall of Fame!
Why don't you "doomsayers" just leave if things aren't going your way? Things aren't as bad as you keep professing. I know your way or the highway. Take the highway you won't be missed . Except people like you!
there isn't much more room on nicastro's wall of fame/shame or space on his mirrors, they are all full of one thing - himself.
I'd say that the paralysis at DEP is a caused by a combination of the personnel cuts Johnny Rowland made to essential workers combined with the aftereffects of the years when you had to pay off his "fixers" to get a permit. People need to wake up to the fact that despite what Granny Rell may say, we are still dealing with the collateeral damage to state government caused by Waterbury's favorite son and director of economic development!
ANOTHER BRIDGE TO NO-WHERE!
August 15, 2008 9:27 AM:
Hey you left-wing jerk, Rowland was still the best Governor Connecticut ever had. A lot better than Bill "The bar owner that had the state build him a entire cottage and no one cared" O'Neil (at least the AG and the Courant didn't then), or Ella "I ran the state into the ground sucking up to liberal special interests" Grasso
The personnel cut by Johnny have all been rehired. Those that took a package have all been replaced. You union sops will never admit that state employees are just plain lazy and avoid taking responsibility for any failure of government agencies.
Here's a challenge, how many state employees are there today compared to when Johnny was forced from office?
You can bet the workforce continues to grow even as you whiners blame every failure on John Rowland.
Admit it; dealing with state government is a painful, harrowing, unending torture of the public by lazy, whiney responsibility-avoiding bureaucrats.
12:48
Bravo, you are 100% correct. I could not have written it better myself.
Hey 11:53 tell it to the rest of the ex cons. We already know you republicans can condone crooks among other things as long as they're republicans. You clowns really are funny !
We do know there is one less x convict in jail where he belongs. You face it all your whinings don't mean a thing cause you only hide and moan.
Left-wing jerk here - Did some basic on-line research and I'll admit your point that the state workforce is up slightly in sheer numbers. There were about 400 more state employees in 2006, (last year for stats on the US census website) It was about 7,400 full and part time employees versus 7,000 in 1998. However, I would still argue that front line, lower level workers took the brunt of those layoffs. Granny Rell and others are constantly saying that the reason bridge and truck inspections aren't done more often is that there aren't enough inspectors. I would hazard a guess that many of the 400 extra folks are higher level political appointees. But I will admit in sheer numbers you are right. Bet you didn't think a left-wing jerk could admit being wrong!
Funny how the topic gets misdirected.
Someone wants to paint the picture that this was the greatest thing ever and the big bad state is standing in the way.
Don't we ever acept any resposibility?
Who cares? Now we have those stupid new stop signs for the 3 people per day that cross there.
August 16, 2008 3:40 PM asks, "Don't we ever acept any resposibility?"
Why is it Bristol's fault that DEP takes years to approve a permit? This is common knowledge among developers who try to get DEP approval for a project.
7:26, Still whining about the stop sign I see. Your life must be really problem-free if that's the biggest thing you've got to bitch about. I'm one of the three people who cross there daily and the other two people and I are really grateful that the sign is there. Otherwise, we might end up getting nailed by some aggravated jerk whose biggest problem in life is a stupid stop sign.
August 18, 2008 4:00 PM
````````````````````````
I taught my kids to safely cross streets when they were 4 years old .
I guess it's important to pollute the environment so three retards can cross a street . NOT !!!!!!!!!!
August 18, 2008 4:00 PM:
Well obviously (by your comment) then and you don't have a job (because you're out walking the Blvd) and most likely the job you held (if any) was much less stressful (and less important) than the one I have. So keep your assumtions about problems to yourself.
Bristol City Gov't: Remove the signs NOW!
Post a Comment