Reprinted from Daily Hampshire Gazette Article
Photo by CAROL LOLLIS
By EMMA KOLCHIN-MILLER
Gazette Contributing Writer
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
(Published in print: Tuesday, June 2, 2015)
NORTHAMPTON — A consultant told about 60 people who attended a community meeting Monday night about the historic Hotel Bridge in Leeds that a new plan could cut the estimated cost of its restoration in half — from about $1.1 million to roughly $500,000.
Julie Bowers, project manager for Workin’ Bridges of Grinnell, Iowa, which conducted an engineering study on the bridge in March, said dismantling the bridge and repairing it on land across the street would result in the lower cost.
Debated during the hour-long meeting at the Leeds School was whether the bridge could be opened to pedestrian and bicycle traffic for the summer while the city and the Leeds Civic Association, which has led efforts to restore the bridge, pursue funds for a full restoration. Workin’ Bridges and the civic association advocated temporarily reopening the bridge, while Edward Huntley, director of the city Department of Public Works, expressed concern about the safety hazards and costs involved.
Workin’ Bridges is the second firm to study the bridge. Last summer, a study by Stantec Consulting Service Inc. of Northampton — funded by a $35,000 Community Preservation Act grant — found the bridge to be unsafe and in need of extensive repairs totaling $1.5 million.
Though the bridge had technically been closed, the Department of Public Works fenced it off after the Stantec Study was released.
The Stantec and the Workin’ Bridges studies both initially suggested that the bridge would need to be repaired in place, which would involve expensive machinery. However, Bowers said Monday that there is potentially enough space across the street on the land of Alternative Recycling Systems to place the bridge as it undergoes repairs.
“I took a look at the site, and it looked a lot bigger without your piles of snow around it,” Bowers said. “I thought that we could pull this bridge of and perhaps put it in Alternative Recycling right across the road.”
The repair on land would lower costs to around $500,000, according to Bowers, though her team would have to further study on that option to give a more precise estimate of the cost. That research would cost $1,000, Bowers said.
Huntley said the city does not currently have that $1,000, though he expressed support for repairing the bridge on the ground.
“I don’t have any funding for that. I’d have to find the funds in my budget somewhere, or the city would have to approve it through the cash reserves,” Huntley said in an interview after the meeting.
Heidi Stevens, vice president of the civic association, said it has over $5,000 in its bridge restoration fund. Stevens said the board would discuss using this money to hire Workin’ Bridges to research the costs of repairing the bridge in the open lot.
Bowers also presented two “repair to reopen” options that would allow the bridge to reopen for the summer while funding for longer-term repairs is sought. One option, estimated at $13,700, would reopen the bridge with an 8-foot-wide pedestrian and bicycle lane, while the other, estimated at $20,300, would include asphalt patches to the bridge decking.
“I would say open it up and let you use it. The city has other concerns,” Bowers said at the meeting. “I don’t think you need to do much more than replace the section of guardrail that’s missing to open it back up and grandfather it back to the way it was.”
But Huntley said he was not satisfied with those options, and expressed concern about the asphalt patches, the deteriorating panels underneath the bridge, and its overall strength.
“Workin’ Bridges would open it tomorrow. I’m not putting my professional liability on that,” Huntley said in an interview after the meeting. “What if someone fell through the bridge, and I was the one that said it was OK to be on it?”
Huntley and Bowers said they would continue to explore ways to open the bridge for the summer.
“I support the project, I worked through the process with the CPA grant, and I look forward to doing something on this at some point. I just don’t have the time frame and there’s no funding right now,” Huntley said during the meeting.
If the DPW and civic association secure funding for any repairs, there will be a bidding process in which the “lowest qualified bidder” will be selected to do the work, according to Huntley.
People who attended the meeting said they are hopeful that the city will be able to restore the bridge.
“I used to walk across this bridge not that many years ago,” said Gary Roodman, who has lived in Leeds for 13 years. “We have a close community here, and the bridge is something we’ve taken pride in.”
Sept Update
Julie Bowers of Workin’ Bridges, the iron bridge restoration outfit that performed a March 2015 site visit and submitted a scope of work report on Hotel Bridge, has done further reseach on lifting Hotel Bridge to the parking lot across Main Street to make the repairs on land. Bowers contacted the utility companies over the summer to determine what actions might be feasable. Her findings to date follow: Moving electric, cable, and phone is doable. The big hinderance is that there is a Columbia Gas service line that runs across the south side of the bridge deck. The line carries gas to Water Street customers. Rerouting the line would be expensive (Columbia gas pays the city for use of resources). Temporary piles to hold the gas line in place while the bridge is moved would be expensive as well. Unfortunately, in order to move Hotel Bridge to land it would require two 500 ton cranes, and dollies, not the smaller crane that Julie used for the quote given at the June 1st community meeting. The conclusion drawn is that it is not a feasable alternative to move the bridge to the parking lot for repairs.
Julie is currently seeking further information from the engineering firm, Stantec Associates, that ran the original load capacity numbers on the bridge. Stantec used heavy tonnage to determine the load capacity. Workin’ Bridges would like them to rerun the load capacity using more realistic pedestrian only weight figures. Just a few days ago Paul Duquette of Stantec responded to Julie’s inquiries and said he will be conferring with his structural and legal team to see if they can change a recommendation with new data. If they are able to rerun the data, fewer repairs will have to be done in order to make the bridge safe for pedestrians. Of course the City, as owners of the bridge, would have to support the plan.
Ice Cream Social on the Leeds Green
When my grandfather was a kid, he and his buddies paid close attention to the ice man’s comings and goings. Large ice deliveries often meant ice cream making was happening. When the ice cream was ready for a big party in a fancy house it was stored on the back porches surrounded by the big ice chunks. Knowing this routine, Pop Pop and his buddies would lay in wait and be sure to get first dibs (sometimes even the whole container) of delicious homemade ice cream. He loved ice cream so much that as an adult he bought two huge freezers full of gallon containers from a shop going out of business. Ate every last spoonful too.
The Leeds Civic Association is making it easy for everyone to enjoy some delicious home made ice cream from Mt. Tom’s. You won’t have to lay in wait, just come down to the Main Street Village Green on Sunday, September 27th at 3:00. LCA members will be scooping up the good stuff. Bring your families and neighbors. The ice cream social starts at 3:00 sharp. Get it while it lasts!
Hotel Bridge Update
Julie Bowers of Workin’ Bridges, the iron bridge restoration outfit that performed a March 2015 site visit and submitted a scope of work report on Hotel Bridge, has done further reseach on lifting Hotel Bridge to the parking lot across Main Street to make the repairs on land. Bowers contacted the utility companies over the summer to determine what actions might be feasable. Her findings to date follow: Moving electric, cable, and phone is doable. The big hinderance is that there is a Columbia Gas service line that runs across the south side of the bridge deck. The line carries gas to Water Street customers. Rerouting the line would be expensive (Columbia gas pays the city for use of resources). Temporary piles to hold the gas line in place while the bridge is moved would be expensive as well. Unfortunately, in order to move Hotel Bridge to land it would require two 500 ton cranes, and dollies, not the smaller crane that Julie used for the quote given at the June 1st community meeting. The conclusion drawn is that it is not a feasable alternative to move the bridge to the parking lot for repairs.
Julie is currently seeking further information from the engineering firm, Stantec Associates, that ran the original load capacity numbers on the bridge. Stantec used heavy tonnage to determine the load capacity. Workin’ Bridges would like them to rerun the load capacity using more realistic pedestrian only weight figures. Just a few days ago Paul Duquette of Stantec responded to Julie’s inquiries and said he will be conferring with his structural and legal team to see if they can change a recommendation with new data. If they are able to rerun the data, fewer repairs will have to be done in order to make the bridge safe for pedestrians. Of course the City, as owners of the bridge, would have to support the plan.
Movie Night – Friday, Oct 16
Don’t Miss the Last Movie Night of the Season
Groups of 50-70 kids and grown ups have enjoyed this summer’s five flicks shown on the big screen in the backyard of 32 Upland Road. There’s not much that beats sitting under the stars, hearing crickets, breathing fresh air, being with a group of nice people and watching a movie AND eating fresh popped popcorn. The most recent Movie Night had a special visitor, Northampton Police Officer Jared Lavalle who was recently appointed to Leeds and Florence as an outreach officer, stopped by. He fit in perfectly and enjoyed meeting the Leeds movie goers. The final movie of the season always pays tribute to Halloween, so on Friday October 16 we will be watching Monster House at 7:00pm in the backyard of 32 Upland Road, eating popcorn and sipping hot chocolate!
Pumpkin Party Food Sign Up 2015
Help make the Pumpkin Party a delicious event!
Hoping to branch out from the usual suspects and give others a chance to contribute food to the big pumpkin event, we have set up an easy way to sign up for food items for the party. Click on the SignUp Genius link below to see a list of what is needed. You may also contact Amy Quinn at 413-586-0283.
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f054cafae2aa57-great
City Council Chambers – Help Slow Down Cars on Main Street
More the Merrier, and More Effective the Result!
September 15, 4:00
Many Leeds residents have expressed concerns about the speeding cars on Main Street in Leeds. Children walk this route to get to school, it has a narrow bridge, and poor sight lines at both the Arch Street intersection and Mulberry Street intersection. Often cars ignore the stop sign at Mulberry altogether. Thankfully, a traffic calming application was submitted last month by Main Street resident, Jason Johnson. On Tuesday, September 15th the Transportation and Parking Commission will consider and vote on the Leeds application (whether or not to undertake a traffic study).
Resident input is important!
Tree Blooms along the Mill River in Leeds
Orange Dam Summer Update
Orange Dam/Riverfront Trashing/Bike Path Development-Leeds Civic Association members, Chartpak owners, and the Northampton Police Department met to develop a strategy around the ongoing abuse of the river and area around Orange Dam. This was following the graffiti issues we had there last month, and ongoing complaints from locals about abuse of the area. This has resulted in improved posting of the area, increased police presence. The level of use has not seemed to have been altered much and there have been mixed results regarding trash, fires, and noise. We have requested for improved signage at the entrance to the trail from Planning, but the construction planned for this summer, and the difficulty in enforcing activity is not providing solutions as fast as some of us would like. If you see abusive activity there, call the police, that is about as much as we can do at this time. NPD Phone Number 413-587-1100
Hotel Bridge Update
The big news from the June 1st community meeting with Workin’ Bridges project manager, Julie Bowers, is that it may be possible to move the bridge to land to make the repairs which would cut the restoration cost considerably. Questions and logistics for such a plan would need to be addressed. One of which is, if Alternative Recycling is willing to allow the bridge to be worked on for six weeks in their parking area. Julie Bowers’ initial conversation with the owner implies that it is indeed a possibility. The question of the gas line being interrupted during the lift and set would need to be addressed. Electric lines, too. The fee to research these details and logistics for the operation would cost $1,000. How the LCA moves forward will be discussed at the next LCA meeting on June 9th.
The city seems to have little interest in opening the bridge temporarily citing liability issues. Bowers will be asking DPW to have Stantec utilize the numbers that Workin’ Bridges uses for loading at occupancy which would be somewhere between 30 and 60 pounds per square foot, which is more realistic for a pedestrian bridge. Thanks to everyone who came to the meeting. A strong show of community support was important. NCTV has released a video of the meeting (see link below). Leeds Civic will continue to advocate to make Hotel Bridge a working pedestrian bridge. New people are interested in helping with grant writing and we’ll continue to fund raise. And, Leeds Civic will keep the bridge entrances looking their best. Thank you, Lora Sandhusen, for adding fresh flowers to the planters on Main Street and Water Street for the summer season.
Video of June 1st community meeting:
Consultant Says Repairs to Hotel Bridge in Leeds Could be Reduced to About $500,000
Reprinted from Daily Hampshire Gazette Article
Photo by CAROL LOLLIS
By EMMA KOLCHIN-MILLER
Gazette Contributing Writer
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
(Published in print: Tuesday, June 2, 2015)
NORTHAMPTON — A consultant told about 60 people who attended a community meeting Monday night about the historic Hotel Bridge in Leeds that a new plan could cut the estimated cost of its restoration in half — from about $1.1 million to roughly $500,000.
Julie Bowers, project manager for Workin’ Bridges of Grinnell, Iowa, which conducted an engineering study on the bridge in March, said dismantling the bridge and repairing it on land across the street would result in the lower cost.
Debated during the hour-long meeting at the Leeds School was whether the bridge could be opened to pedestrian and bicycle traffic for the summer while the city and the Leeds Civic Association, which has led efforts to restore the bridge, pursue funds for a full restoration. Workin’ Bridges and the civic association advocated temporarily reopening the bridge, while Edward Huntley, director of the city Department of Public Works, expressed concern about the safety hazards and costs involved.
Workin’ Bridges is the second firm to study the bridge. Last summer, a study by Stantec Consulting Service Inc. of Northampton — funded by a $35,000 Community Preservation Act grant — found the bridge to be unsafe and in need of extensive repairs totaling $1.5 million.
Though the bridge had technically been closed, the Department of Public Works fenced it off after the Stantec Study was released.
The Stantec and the Workin’ Bridges studies both initially suggested that the bridge would need to be repaired in place, which would involve expensive machinery. However, Bowers said Monday that there is potentially enough space across the street on the land of Alternative Recycling Systems to place the bridge as it undergoes repairs.
“I took a look at the site, and it looked a lot bigger without your piles of snow around it,” Bowers said. “I thought that we could pull this bridge of and perhaps put it in Alternative Recycling right across the road.”
The repair on land would lower costs to around $500,000, according to Bowers, though her team would have to further study on that option to give a more precise estimate of the cost. That research would cost $1,000, Bowers said.
Huntley said the city does not currently have that $1,000, though he expressed support for repairing the bridge on the ground.
“I don’t have any funding for that. I’d have to find the funds in my budget somewhere, or the city would have to approve it through the cash reserves,” Huntley said in an interview after the meeting.
Heidi Stevens, vice president of the civic association, said it has over $5,000 in its bridge restoration fund. Stevens said the board would discuss using this money to hire Workin’ Bridges to research the costs of repairing the bridge in the open lot.
Bowers also presented two “repair to reopen” options that would allow the bridge to reopen for the summer while funding for longer-term repairs is sought. One option, estimated at $13,700, would reopen the bridge with an 8-foot-wide pedestrian and bicycle lane, while the other, estimated at $20,300, would include asphalt patches to the bridge decking.
“I would say open it up and let you use it. The city has other concerns,” Bowers said at the meeting. “I don’t think you need to do much more than replace the section of guardrail that’s missing to open it back up and grandfather it back to the way it was.”
But Huntley said he was not satisfied with those options, and expressed concern about the asphalt patches, the deteriorating panels underneath the bridge, and its overall strength.
“Workin’ Bridges would open it tomorrow. I’m not putting my professional liability on that,” Huntley said in an interview after the meeting. “What if someone fell through the bridge, and I was the one that said it was OK to be on it?”
Huntley and Bowers said they would continue to explore ways to open the bridge for the summer.
“I support the project, I worked through the process with the CPA grant, and I look forward to doing something on this at some point. I just don’t have the time frame and there’s no funding right now,” Huntley said during the meeting.
If the DPW and civic association secure funding for any repairs, there will be a bidding process in which the “lowest qualified bidder” will be selected to do the work, according to Huntley.
People who attended the meeting said they are hopeful that the city will be able to restore the bridge.
“I used to walk across this bridge not that many years ago,” said Gary Roodman, who has lived in Leeds for 13 years. “We have a close community here, and the bridge is something we’ve taken pride in.”