Gowanus Residents Have Weeks to Decide on New Union Street Bridge

The span is in dire straits

The 111-year-old Union Street Bridge, which crosses the Gowanus Canal near its end, has been surviving on short-term fixes and needs to be replaced. Now, residents have a matter of weeks to decide what kind of bridge will replace it, the Brooklyn Paper reported. The choice is between a fixed bridge and a movable bridge (like the current drawbridge). A fixed bridge would be cheaper, faster to build (24 to 28 months instead of 30 to 39 months) and more aesthetically pleasing, but would intrude on private land.

Joannene Kidder, from the Department of Transportation’s Division of Bridges, said the bridge hasn’t been opened for a boat to pass since 2012. Still, a movable bridge would allow that and make the cleanup of the Superfund site easier.

Brooklyn Community Board 6’s transportation committee took a preliminary vote on Tuesday. It came down 6-3 in favor of a fixed bridge. Stay tuned.

• Short time span! Residents only have a few weeks to decide on new Canal bridge that could affect cleanup [Brooklyn Paper]

from
http://ny.curbed.com/2016/4/24/11490840/gowanus-residents-have-weeks-to-decide-on-new-union-street-bridge