Bridge studies ‘heighten’ concerns
NORWALK — Neighbors of Manresa Island believe recently released studies analyzing the state’s plan to relocate construction of the new Walk Bridge to the abandoned power plant don’t go far enough in addressing their concerns.
Waterfront homeowners along the southern tip of Norwalk raised concerns in June about the state Department of Transportation’s proposal, which would see the construction of the new Walk Bridge relocated from the heart of South Norwalk to Manresa Island.
In response, project managers requested additional studies on the noise, traffic and environmental impacts of the proposed work, as well as an analysis of potential alternative sites for that work.
Residents hoped the additional
studies would allay their concerns, or even result in the project being moved to Bridgeport or New Haven industrial waterfront properties with no neighboring residential areas.
But the studies, which were released last week, have only “heightened” residents’ concerns, according to a letter sent by residents of four neighborhoods to the state DOT on Nov. 11.
In the letter, which was cosigned by homeowner associations in Village Creek, Harbor View, Wilson Point and Harbor Shores, residents complained the studies “failed to answer” their questions.
“These reports are not a genuine attempt to address the concerns of the surrounding communities. They significantly underestimate the effects on and risks to our residents, particularly our children. We are disappointed that the Department has not taken our questions seriously, and we will continue to object to this project,” the letter stated.
Nora Niedzielski-Eichner, a Village Creek resident and outspoken
opponent of the Manresa Island plan, called the studies “half-hearted” and “not convincing.”
Most concerning, she said, was the analysis on alternative sites for the project, which the letter called “simply baffling in its omissions.”
The alternative sites study looked at the originally proposed location for the construction at 90 North Water St. in South Norwalk, as well as sites in Baltimore, Albany, N.Y.; and Luka, Miss.
The study did not consider locations in Bridgeport or New Haven, as was suggested by residents during a public meeting with project officials in June.
“Why were no shipyards and/ or other industrial sites on the Connecticut coastline considered? The report points to the need to dock barges bringing spans constructed elsewhere in appropriate harbors in Bridgeport or New Haven. But it does not answer the question of why the spans could not be constructed on barges parked there in the first instance,” residents asked in the letter.
The noise study, NiedzielskiEichner claimed, “significantly underestimates” noise levels that
could be generated by the project. She and other resident echoed those same concerns about the project’s traffic study in the letter, too.
The environmental study, residents claim, amounts to the DOT telling concerned neighbors not to worry and providing no further explanations.
“That’s all the environmental report says: ‘Don’t worry, we know what we’re doing.’ Well my daughter is 3, and I want to know what their plan is if the air and the water in my backyard is contaminated because of this project,” Niedzielski-Eichner said Wednesday.
Walk Bridge Project officials did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday afternoon.
The noise study, conducted by DOT contractor WSP, focused on the Wilson Point, Village Creek, Harbor View and Harbor Shore neighborhoods.
In a statement posted on the project website, the DOT said the noise created by the construction at Manresa “will be significantly below state limits.” It further determined that work done in the heart of SoNo, as opposed to Manresa, would be about 20 decibels worse on the surrounding community.
“The results of the study also indicate that the noise impacts would be significantly higher if the Lift Span Assembly were to occur in the 70 Water St. vicinity since noise receptors are much closer at this area,” they said in the statement.
The noise study estimated that Wilson Point would likely be the community most affected by the noise, with decibel levels reaching 64 during activities like sandblasting or use of an air compressor.
The study also said noise level “mitigations” would be considered, if warranted.
The department’s study concluded Manresa Island is the optimal off-site location for constructing the new bridge because “it optimizes the coordination, logistics and risks associated with the lift span assembly.”
The state DOT’s original plan for the $1 billion bridge replacement project called for the new lift spans to be constructed at vacant properties at 68 and 90 Water St. and then transported via barge to the project site.
The problem with that land, DOT Manager of Facilities and Transit James Fallon has said, is it would require the state to dredge parts of the harbor and build a bulkhead at the location.
Chet Muckenhirn, senior project manager, has called the abandoned 92-acre former power plant a “beautiful” alternative for the construction of the vertical lift spans that will eventually replace the 122-year-old Walk Bridge spanning the Norwalk River.
The Water Street properties would still be used for some stages of the construction process, Fallon said, but a majority of the work would be completed at Manresa Island.
Once assembled, the verticallift bridge components will be shipped by barge to the Walk Bridge site, nearly 3 nautical miles away.
The site is located at the southern tip of Norwalk, near the Harbor View neighborhood, and it houses a former power plant that closed in 2013.
Under the state’s proposal, work would be based on Manresa Island’s southern parcel, near the waterfront, for up to five years. In addition to construction, the site would be used for storage of construction materials, safety boat vessels, construction vessels and barges, which officials say will alleviate congestion in the Norwalk Harbor.