“They Fixed It”

Could it be … cheers for the city from road-weary Quinnipiac Avenue neighbors?

Sure enough, Mayor John DeStefano Jr. left 40 neighbors like Tina Cupo (pictured) happy, and even earned a cheer or two, when he returned Thursday night for an update on city efforts to fix broken roads and sidewalks just east of the Quinnipiac River.

It was quite different from the reception city officials received at previous meetings from the Quinnipiac River Community Group, even though the news he brought them was not all sweetness and light.

The mayor led an entourage of nearly a dozen city and state officials to discuss the ​“re-do,” the project to reconstruct Quinnipiac Avenue from Clifton Street south to Judith Street.

What pleased neighbors most was a report on action on its complaints about the condition of a half-mile stretch along the road.

The mayor brought news of progress in the project to reconstruct that road. He brought a schedule with specific dates.

“I’m very happy about the way things turned out,” said Cupo, a woman with a shock of white hair and an expressive face. She also was moved to give a cheer as the mayor was leaving. There had been parking and turning problems near her home, and they have been resolved, she said.

DeStefano also brought specific progress on the reconstruction of Quinnipiac, including a reduction in the number of rights of way on snippets of property the city acquired. There were 19 on the list to be acquired; some are already well underway, with solid plans for the rest. The city split the road project into two parts; most of the funding for the first part is in hand.

The city hopes to get the rest as a Surface Transportation Project, or from the regional Council of Governments. It all depends factors not yet in play, such as the next federal budget, not due out until the next administration is seated in Washington, DeStefano said.

“I haven’t even begun thinking about Phase 2,” he said.

An Easier Road

Residents had waited six long years to be able to walk the mile-long loop along both sides of the river and across two bridges, six years before the Ferry Street bridge was finally fixed and reopened last month. When they finally were able to take the neighborhood-binding walk, they were horrified by the condition of the sidewalk along Quinnipiac Avenue.

When the mayor came among them Thursday night, he bore a list of 13 reported problems that had been corrected or were well on the way to being fixed:
​‚Ä¢ Parking car on sidewalk: resolved.
​‚Ä¢ Tree obstructing stop sign: resolved.
​‚Ä¢ Front and back yards overgrown: resolved.

So it went.

Some of the issues were not yet resolved, but the city has been contacting the owners or handling the problems themselves.

“This was a result of our last meeting,” said Heather Findlay, who was accompanied by her son, Cole (pictured). ​“They fixed it,” she said. ​“It’s as good as it’s going to be until the reconstruction” of Quinnipiac Avenue.

On the main road reconstruction project, the mayor said the city ​“had to make deadlines,” the most important of which is Jan. 14, 2009, the date the final design has to be submitted for review. Actual construction is scheduled to start in April 2010, and be finished by the end of 2011.

The mayor told the group there may be funding problems in the future, especially on projects, like the Grand Avenue bridge, for which money is not yet in place. He cited the current credit crisis.

“This is not going to be a great year for special appropriations,” the mayor said. On the other hand, it’s ​“worthwhile having a couple of pots on the stove,” meaning requesting funding for the road repair from Surface Transportation money and from the Council of Governments.

He said, almost as an aside, that it would be good to ​“have an infrastructure bill” as part of the economic stimulus package being bandied about in Washington. He said after the meeting that he thinks the political climate in Washington favors a stimulus package and that all construction helps boost the economy.

Many of the questions from the group centered on the Grand Avenue bridge. The swing bridge on the list for a major renovation. The bridge would have to be lifted up and work done on both its structure and the works that makes it swing, the central pinion of which has not been replaced since the 1890s.

Tired Of Bridge Openings

Some of the questions Thursday had little to do with the bridge itself, but about the scheduling of its openings.

Both Cupo and Findlay complained about the frequency of the openings. City Engineer Richard Miller said Coast Guard regulations require the bridge to be opened every time a commercial craft requests it. Pleasure boats also have the right of way, except during rush hour.

“We should change the law,” Cupo said. Findlay said she understands the bridge opening for commercial boats, but not for recreational boaters.

The bridge would be closed about a year and a half once work starts, but that work won’t start until there is sufficient money to complete it, so the crossing would not be out of service as long as the Ferry Street Bridge. Miller, the city engineer, said small problems on the bridge will still be addressed in the meantime.