Fate of Plattsburgh footbridge hangs in balance

PLATTSBURGH | As far as the Plattsburgh City School Board is concerned, the condition of the Webb Island Footbridge has evolved into a do-or-die scenario. At a meeting last week, the school board's position was unanimous: If the City of Plattsburgh agrees to take ownership of the bridge, they'll agree to fix it. But if the city refuses to accept title to the structure, it's getting demolished. "At the end of the day, I will not support repair of the bridge if it is not transferred to the City of Plattsburgh," said school board member Fred Wachtmeister. "They should accept title and ownership of the bridge. That's the end of it." The Webb Island Footbridge, a pedestrian connection from the city's South End to the local high school and SUNY Plattsburgh, has been out of commission for over a year. It was closed last November in the wake of an engineering report that deemed the bridge unsafe to use. Since then, the local city government and school board have been at loggerheads over whose responsibility it is to fix the bridge and who will foot the bill. All the while, parents of students who use the bridge to get the school and commuters alike have taken to school board and Common Council meetings to implore the two entities to come together to remedy the situation. REHAB FUNDING SECURED Wachtmeister acknowledged that both the city school district and the City of Plattsburgh are facing financial challenges, and the cost of repairing the bridge would be cumbersome to both entities. The funding to fix the bridge is there, according to Superintendent Jay Lebrun and board member Rod Sherman. State Sen. Betty Little (R-Queensbury) has pledged to work with the Dormitory Authority of New York to allocate up to $400,000 to help fix the bridge, and state Assemblyman Billy Jones (D-Chateaugay) has secured $50,000 in funding. "I was happy to provide this funding to the Plattsburgh City School District for the purposes of rehabilitating the footbridge," Jones told The Sun. "This highly trafficked pathway provides not only a convenient way for students to walk to school, but with its reparation ensures the safety of our students." Now it's time to make a deal, school board member Clayton Morris said. "We need them to make a decision," said Morris. The school board is willing to fix the bridge with the help of that funding — if it'll be out of their hands when it's done. "We have a choice right now of either repairing the bridge or tearing it down," Sherman said. "We can't have that object sitting there as a liability." "I think we've tried everything imaginable to make this something that everyone will agree upon," said school board member Tracy Rotz, noting that the school district had even offered to oversee the bridge reconstruction with its own architects and engineers. "After the bridge is done, I don't want us to have anything to do with it." The cost of repairing the bridge is estimated at around $250,000, according to Lebrun. The cost of demolishing it is in the vicinity of $125-150,000. Board member Robert Hall Jr. said that he's passionate about the footbridge, and believes that the public wants it to remain open. "But we've reached the end. We really have. We have to move forward," Hall said. "If they don't accept what we've got, I do feel we'll be at a point where we'll need to tear it down." "I don't want this to be a complicated process," said Wachtmeister. "It has already gone on too long. "We are an educational entity. It needs to be a municipal bridge, not a school district bridge," he said. "It's not just the mayor that needs to accept ownership. He's not the only one that controls that process. There are councilors. "Are they prepared to accept ownership?" he asked. COUNCIL RESPONDS According to Councilor Rachelle Armstrong (Ward 1), the answer is yes — if the school agrees to split the eventual cost of demolishing the bridge 50-50 with the city. "From the beginning, I've advocated that the Webb Island Bridge be repaired," Armstrong said. "The bridge is a valuable community resource for pedestrians and for recreational use. "In response to the recent statement by the school district's board, I sympathize with frustration about delay. As a councilor, I too wish to see this agreement moved forward as quickly as possible." But the Common Council hasn't yet been updated on the school district's response to correspondence from the city seeking clarity on contract terms, she said. And the agreement presented by the district's lawyer to the city's attorney dictated that the school would agree to make the repairs to the bridge, the school would transfer ownership and maintenance responsibilities to the city, and when the bridge had lived out its "useful life," the city and school district would split the cost of demolishing it, Armstrong said. "The larger framework for the agreement presented by the district's lawyers to our attorney were acceptable to me," she said. "I am anxious that any outstanding issues be resolved as quickly as possible." "About all that should be said is that each parties' legal counsels are in negotiations and that we should await the end of those discussions before we comment or act," said Councilor Michael Kelly (Ward 2). Asked if they believe that the city should take permanent ownership of the footbridge, the remaining four city councilors, Dale Dowdle (Ward 3), Peter Ensel (Ward 4), Patrick McFarlin (Ward 5) and Joshua Kretser (Ward 6), did not respond to a request for comment. Mayor Colin Read deferred comment to the council.

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Fate of Plattsburgh footbridge hangs in balance

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