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LBI asks Corzine to delay project
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SURF CITY - Local officials are calling on state Department of Transportation Commissioner Stephen Dilts and Gov. Jon S. Corzine to stop a $4.18 million rehabilitation project scheduled to begin July 20 on the Route 72 bridge.
The project is slated to be a rehabilitation of the bridge deck, ceiling cracks and safety walk, along with reconstruction of curbs and a resurfacing of the deck to preserve and protect the structure, DOT spokeswoman Erin Phalon said.
Bridge work will be done Sunday through Thursday, but not on weekends. Overnight lane closings - 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. - will take place through Sept. 15, Phalon said.
The expected completion date is Nov. 24, but the project could take until February or March, Phalon said. The DOT also plans to award a contract in August 2012 to replace the structurally deficient bridges.
The Dorland J. Henderson Memorial Bridge carries about 42,000 cars per day during the summer and is the only way on and off Long Beach Island.
Ninth District lawmakers wrote to Dilts on Friday and said they and the mayors of the island's six municipalities - Barnegat Light, Harvey Cedars, Surf City, Ship Bottom, Long Beach Township and Beach Haven - find any work that would cause the closing of any lanes on the Route 72 bridge prior to Labor Day unacceptable. Starting the work next month is highly insensitive to local businesses that already are struggling in the difficult economy, the group wrote.
They asked the DOT to do everything within its power to schedule the project at a time that does not coincide with the height of the summer season.
The group wrote that it has been contacted by the Southern Ocean County Chamber of Commerce and several of its business members, all expressing deep concern that the project will significantly disrupt traffic and interfere with tourists traveling to Long Beach Island. The letter states that the work will have a negative effect on the local economy and may make some tourists avoid the island and go elsewhere.
Rick Reynolds, the chamber's executive director, said he is pleased with the response of local elected officials, but he is mobilizing local business owners against construction starting in July. Reynolds said Dilts has agreed to revisit whether the DOT will start the project next month.
"I think the perception is as important as the reality. If I were a business person, I wouldn't want to bet my business on it. I think there will be ramifications on the business side if they start this thing. Starting this work in the height of the summer is definitely going to have an impact. There are all good reasons to delay the start of this project," Reynolds said.
Public safety is also an issue, the lawmakers and mayors said. The bridge work could seriously hinder efforts to evacuate the island in an emergency, the letter states.
According to the group, the bridgework timetable was moved up from late August or September to July due to use of funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
In their letter to Dilts, the group contends that the act's purpose was to stimulate the nation's economy, but starting this work during the height of the tourist season would negatively affect southern Ocean County's economy and only contradict the goal.
The six Long Beach Island mayors banded together and drafted a letter to Corzine on Friday expressing their concerns about the project's timing.
Surf City Mayor Leonard T. Connors said he expects the busiest season ever on Long Beach Island. His borough has sold more preseason badges this year than ever before, he said.
"We desperately need the bridge repaired, on one hand. But on the other hand, we are in a bad economy. The only business surviving is tourism, and what are we going to do? We're going to hamper it," he said.
E-mail Donna Weaver:
Lane closings
Single lanes may be closed for the project during the following hours:
Route 72
May 15-Sept. 15: Monday-Thursday 9 p.m.-6 a.m.
Oct. 12-March 31: Monday-Sunday at any time
Route 72 eastbound
Sept. 16-Oct. 11: Monday-Thursday at any time
9 p.m. Friday-6 a.m Saturday
8 p.m. Saturday-9 a.m. Sunday
Sunday: 8 p.m.-midnight
Route 72 westbound
Sept. 16-Oct. 11: Monday-Friday at any time
Saturday 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. Sunday
Sunday 8 p.m.-midnight
Source: NJDOT
Posted in Ocean on Saturday, June 20, 2009 11:30 pm
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