Courtesy of NYC DOT
Opponents filed a lawsuit Friday, charging that the city violated its own laws by greenlighting the 180-foot-high, cable-stayed design without subjecting the plans to the requisite public review.
BY DENIS SLATTERY
It’s a bridge to somewhere else!
That’s what angry City Island residents said about the design adopted by the city for a new $ 102 million span that would connect the tiny hamlet to mainland Bronx.
Opponents filed a lawsuit Friday, charging that the Department of Transportation broke city laws by greenlighting the 180-foot-high, cable-stayed design without subjecting the plans to the requisite public review process.
“These bridges are meant to be gateways to major cities, not City Island,” said Barbara Dolensek, a member of the City Island Civic Association and the lead plaintiff in the suit.
Denis Slattery/New York Daily News
Barbara Dolensek, a member of the City Island Civic Association and the suit’s lead plaintiff, says a 180-foot-tall bridge would look ridiculous across tiny Eastchester Bay.
After the suit was filed, Bronx Supreme Court Justice Mark Friedlander granted an order temporarily halting construction. The court proceedings are scheduled to begin on Dec. 4.
“Putting a cable-stayed bridge over Eastchester Bay is like telling the Starship Enterprise it can land at LaGuardia — it just doesn’t fit,” said state Sen. Jeff Klein (D-Throgs Neck), addressing the crowd that gathered at the foot of the current 17-foot-tall bridge on Friday.
If built, the project would be the first cable-stayed bridge in the state.
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The construction of a temporary bridge was supposed to begin on Sept. 30; that didn’t happen, but officials still hope to start construction before year’s end.
“We believe that the court will ultimately agree with our position,” a Law Department spokeswoman said.
Denis Slattery/New York Daily News
The current 112-year-old City Island Bridge shows signs of rust and general wear and tear. Residents would like to see it replaced by a similar, 17-foot-tall span.
Residents, meanwhile, hope the lawsuit will force the city to change course and choose a more traditional style for the span.
According to the suit, the city broached the idea of replacing of the current 112-year-old crossing in 1998, and Department of Transportation representatives met with community leaders and local organizations eight times between 2002 and 2008, when the design was finalized.
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The lawsuit alleges that the informal planning process allowed the city to ignore the community’s concerns.
The design, crowned by an off-center, H-shaped tower, has been likened to the goalposts in a football stadium.
The proposed structure would loom over the island’s quaint homes, bait shacks and seafood restaurants, which are subject to a 35-foot height requirement.
During the drawn-out planning phase, the project’s cost ballooned from $ 32 million to more than $ 100 million. The cost soared, even as the height of the controversial crossing was shortened from 450 feet to 180 feet.
“Big deal,” Dolensek said of the change. “We didn’t want the cable-stayed bridge, and they keep giving us excuses. And then they turned a deaf ear.”
dslattery@nydailynews.com
http://newyork.greatlocalnews.info/?p=16998
via Great Local News: New York http://newyork.greatlocalnews.info
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