Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Township takes ownership of bridge
KENNETT >> The historic Chandler Mill Bridge, once threatened with demolition, is formally now the property of a township government and local population committed to preserving it.
At their Monday night work meeting the supervisors of Kennett Township voted 2–1 to accept ownership from the county of the 47-foot-long, 18-foot-wide bridge on Chandler Mill Road and to pay $1 for it.
Board of Supervisors Chairman Scudder Stevens and Supervisor Richard Leff voted in favor of accepting ownership, with Robert Hammaker voting against.
About two dozen people attended the meeting, and a pattering of applause broke out when the vote was taken. But last night’s vote was really a culmination of a process begun in June of 2014, when the supervisors voted to begin the work of taking over ownership, effectively moving the bridge off the chopping block.
The bridge had stood over a forested section of the Red Clay Creek since it was built in 1910, and except for a layer of blacktop added some time after 1997, it looks today much as it did then.
In 1980 the weight limit on the bridge was reduced due to age and wear, diverting heavier traffic. The question arose whether to rehabilitate it as it was or replace it with a modern two-lane bridge.
Groups such as the Land Conservancy for Southern Chester County had argued over the years for preserving the bridge. In the spring of 2011, the question became more acute when the county inspected the bridge, found major structural damage, and closed it to vehicular traffic.
The county recommended replacing the bridge. The supervisors of the township at the time — Allan Falcoff, Michael Elling, and Hammaker — were aware that local sentiment favored preserving it. But they said they were reluctant to take it over, citing the liability, cost involved, and loss of federal, state, and
The bridge had stood over a forested section of the Red Clay Creek since it was built in 1910, and except for a layer of blacktop added some time after 1997, it looks today much as it did then.
county funds to repair it.
The bridge had been placed on the National Register of Historic Places, which meant demolition could not begin before a lengthy review process. And in the meantime politics became a factor. New supervisors, Scudder Stevens and Richard Leff, were elected who weighted the decision more heavily on the preservation side, and the process to take over the bridge began.
Currently the goal is to rehab the bridge, preserving its historic qualities, so that it can be used for pedestrians and bicyclists
as well as emergency vehicles. It would remain closed to normal vehicular traffic.
A large grant the township is currently seeking from the state could provide funds to create a nature preserve around the bridge and make it a focal point for a network of trails through the area. The Land Conservancy has already moved its headquarters from Willowdale to a site near the bridge.
Hammaker did not comment publicly on his “no” vote but has said in the past he feels the closed bridge is an inconvenience to area residents and could complicate travel for emergency vehicles, posing a potential safety hazard.
But Stevens, while noting
that opinions were somewhat mixed over the years, praised the people and groups who envisioned ways to preserve the bridge and its surroundings before the current supervisors became part of the process.
Gwen Lacy, executive director of the Land Conservancy, praised the supervisors for having the “courage, the foresight and the vision” to preserve the bridge, and said the group would work to make it “the best decision you’ve ever made.”
Lacy also thanked the various individuals and groups who took part in the effort. “There’s been a lot of controversy, and now there should be some accolades as well,” she said.