Groton RTM decides not to fund Old Stonington Road Bridge
Groton — The Representative Town Meeting has voted not to fund Groton's portion of replacing the Old Stonington Road Bridge, and one frustrated fire chief says the bridge is a safety issue.
The RTM voted 14-13 on Monday, with three members abstaining, to spend zero on the bridge which straddles Groton and Stonington. The total cost of replacing the bridge is $1.2 million. Stonington and Groton would each have to contribute $309,000 toward the cost and a state grant would provide $597,000.
“I’m frustrated,” Old Mystic Fire Chief Kenneth Richards Jr. said Tuesday. “That’s an understatement that we’re frustrated at the fire department level and the fire district level. We feel that we have a strong case from a public safety standpoint.”
“We understand that we have budget problems,” he said. “But to risk losing $600,000 from the state to save $300,000, I just don’t understand it.”
The RTM has until midnight on May 25 to reconsider funding. Richards said he was encouraged by the fact that the vote was close.
The bridge was inspected in 2010 after a storm and later closed, forcing firetrucks to drive to the Old Mystic General Store at 47 Main St. and turn right at the three-way stop to reach Groton. The Old Mystic Fire Department covers a 26-square-mile area in Stonington and Groton, including Flanders Road, Lambtown Road and the Field Crest section of Mystic.
Cars park legally along Main Street in front of the general store, making the turn difficult, and motorists often run the stop sign, Richards said.
“We’ve had numerous close calls at that intersection,” he said, and plans to install a dashboard camera on the firetruck to record video that demonstrates that point.
Bruce McDermott, chairman of the RTM Public Safety Committee, said firetrucks must move into the lane of oncoming traffic to get around the corner at the store. While there hasn't been an accident there, he said, the concern is that it's just a matter of time.
But RTM member Brandon Marley said the bridge has been closed for years and there hasn't been an issue yet that he's aware of.
The Town Council also voted to spend zero on the bridge, but created a short list of projects it would pay for if Groton received greater state revenue than expected. The bridge is on that short list, Town Manager Mark Oefinger said.
The RTM would need a two-thirds vote to restore the bridge funding.
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