Stonington agrees to fund temporary repairs to Lantern Hill Road bridge
Stonington — The Board of Finance has approved a $50,000 expenditure to make temporary repairs to the deteriorated Lantern Hill Road bridge in concert with the Town of Ledyard.
Without the repairs, town officials say the bridge would have to close to all traffic in six months.
“This buys us time so we’re not closing the bridge in six months,” First Selectwoman Danielle Chesebrough told the board Wednesday night.
Even with the temporary repairs, the bridge will not be open to large vehicles, such as firetrucks and dump trucks, because it cannot safely handle larger loads. But it will extend the life of the span for another five to 10 years.
During that time the town could decide whether to replace the bridge and how to obtain state and federal funding for the work.
It would have cost the town $20,000 to close the bridge because of the need for signs and creating a turnaround area. It would cost an additional $250,000 to repair the bridge to the point where it could accommodate large trucks.
Chesebrough told the finance board that Ledyard Mayor Fred Allyn III has agreed to split the $100,000 cost of the temporary repairs. The short, narrow span connects the two towns. Previous attempts to replace the span failed due to funding issues.
The Board of Finance transferred the money for the temporary repairs from Water Pollution Control Authority capital improvements.
The finance board’s decision came as an engineering firm hired by the town outlined its detailed assessment of the 17 bridges owned by the town and another five orphan bridges it is responsible for. The analysis will help guide town officials to prioritize repairs, replacement and maintenance and how to fund that work. The town has a similar plan for its roads.
Jay Costello, whose firm conducted the analysis, told the Board of Finance that the town’s bridges are “not in terrible shape.”
"In general, the condition of your bridges (is) not bad, they are fair,” he told finance board members. “But there are structures that definitely need work.”
According to the analysis, the Lantern Hill Road bridge is in the worst condition of the 22 bridges.
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