‘IT’S LONG OVERDUE’
Plans underway to restore Bridgeport bridge, demolish another
“It’s about connectivity between neighborhoods . ... It will make us a fuller city and give people more to do.”
State Rep. Antonio Felipe, D-Bridgeport
BRIDGEPORT — The city’s broken Congress Street drawbridge — a symbol of urban decay since the late 1990s — is inching closer to being replaced and returned to service.
City Engineer Jon Urquidi said the design for the downtown bridge is now “100 percent” complete and the process of obtaining various construction permits is underway.
Another remnant of the city’s past, the former bridge to Pleasure Beach destroyed by fire in 1996, is awaiting demolition permits from the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Urquidi said.
An examination of two years of bridge inspections in Bridgeport showed that the more than 90 structures that pass over waterways and roads are in good overall shape, including those connected to Interstate 95 and Route 8.
“These are good numbers; there is nothing out of the ordinary,” said Kevin Nursick, a spokesman for the state Department of Transportation, referring to the inspection reports. “There are no safety concerns.”
One bridge spanning the Yellow Mill Channel on Route 1 was rated in poor condition and is now undergoing needed repairs. Rehabilitation of the bridge began in early 2020 and the $10.3 million project is scheduled to be completed in June 2022, according to the DOT.
“Yellow Mill is a good example,” Nursick said. “That required a more comprehensive approach so you don’t get to the point where you have to shut a bridge down.”
Bridge work
The Congress Street bridge, a moveable span over the Pequonnock River, became stuck in the upright position in 1997, separating the city’s downtown from the East Side and forcing motorists to detour to other bridges some distance away.
For many, the bridge became a stark reminder of the hard times that had beset once thriving industrial hubs such as Bridgeport, which decades ago hosted a waterfront steel
plant, a massive Remington arms plant and a brass factory, just to name a few.
“I think it would be great and it’s long overdue,” said state Rep. Antonio Felipe, D-Bridgeport, referring to restoring the Congress Street bridge.
“It’s about connectivity between neighborhoods,” Felipe noted. “There is not much in the state that’s disconnected like that. It will make us a fuller city and give people more to do.”
Lauren Coakley Vincent, president of the Downtown Special Services District, said fixing the Congress Street bridge is good news.
“I think it’s a helpful addition in terms of adding other ways to get in and out of the downtown,” Vincent said. “The design will make possible bike paths and walking paths and car traffic, everything
from electric scooters. It will add that value.”
Coakley said being forced to use other bridges is inconvenient at best.
“For residents who avoided downtown because it was not that easy to get in and out, we hope this will make it much easier to pop into downtown,” Coakley said. “We see it as an asset for downtown residents who want to explore the East Side or East End.”
About half of the estimated $24 million replacement cost is expected to be paid by the state, which committed $3.7 million in the waning days of former Gov. Dannel Malloy’s administration.
Federal lawmakers a few years ago secured permission to replace the bridge with a fixed structure by declaring the section of the Peqonnock
River to be non-navigable. The decision eliminated the need to build a far more expensive moveable bridge.
Meanwhile, plans to remove the remnants of the burned Pleasure Beach bridge are well underway, city officials said.
The peninsula and beach was a popular tourist attraction from 1892 to 1958, offering an amusement park, a large carousel and other attractions. A bridge to the property was built in 1927 to carry cars and people.
The city has been operating water taxis from Seaview Avenue since 2014 to provide access to the beach, which is about a half mile walk from the Pleasure Beach pier. There are no plans to rebuild the bridge.