By Jeff Lipton
The 150-foot-long bridge, which crosses the Auerbach Channel, connecting Seawane Drive to Harbor Road, was given a "red flag" by the state Department of Transportation, which inspects New York's bridges.
Only 12 percent of the state's bridges are considered structurally deficient, a description, officials are careful to explain, that does not indicate that they are unsafe or likely to collapse. But a bridge with that designation may require extensive maintenance and repair in order to remain open to traffic and, eventually may need rehabilitation or replacement to address the deficiencies, officials said.
According to Mark Weiss, who was elected Hewlett Harbor's mayor last month, the two-lane Mallow Reach Bridge, which was built in 1932 and is owned and operated by the village, has been inspected every year since it underwent an $800,000 reconstruction in 2003, and received a favorable rating each time until an inspection last month. The village received the state report on the bridge on Aug. 17, when it was red-flagged, signaling that deficiencies needed to be addressed immediately.
The 2003 reconstruction of the bridge, which was undertaken by Amma Construction, was funded by federal and state government grants, and the village paid 5 percent of the cost.
Weiss said he was told that state bridge inspectors found a small, 50-millimeter hole in the bridge, which is why it was red-flagged. "This is something that can be remedied through a repair project," the mayor said. "We will do it as quickly as we can, and give it to a reputable company to do what needs to be done."
He said that the state report will be forwarded to the village's longtime engineering firm, Carman-Dunne, which will review the report to determine what needs to be done, at which point the project will be bid out for immediate repairs. The cost of the repairs, and who will pay for them, has yet to be determined.
"It is important to point out that they found no distress on the structure of the bridge," Weiss said. "But it is the job of village government to ensure the safety of the bridge. I think we're ... taking it seriously, and we will deal with it quickly and appropriately."
Weiss added that the state did not deem the problem serious enough to close the bridge to traffic. But in light of the Aug. 1 collapse of Minneapolis's Interstate 35W bridge, officials are proceeding with extreme caution, he said. "I think it's very clear after what happened in Minneapolis that people are concerned," he said. "I drive over [the Mallow Reach] several times a day myself. We have reason to believe that the bridge is safe."
Gloria Kreizel, a Hewlett Harbor resident, said she is not too worried about the state's red-flagging of the bridge. "I go over that bridge all the time from my house to my son's house," she said. "I still don't have a concern about it. I'm sure they will do something about the problem."
Norton Sperling, a 19-year resident of the village, said that if he were aware that a bridge was structurally deficient, he would think twice before using it. "What happened in Minnesota was a terrible thing," Sperling said. "We all think that the bridges we're crossing are OK. If there's a deficiency, we should know about it."
Rochelle Trager Grossman, who stepped down as mayor in March after serving for three years, said she was surprised that the Mallow Reach was judged structurally deficient, especially only a few years after it received a major overhaul. "It's definitely, definitely a concern," she said. "I would not be happy if I had to drive over it to the other side."
Weiss said that based on recommendations from village engineers, truck and bus traffic will be prohibited from using the span until the problem has been corrected. The bridge has a seven-ton weight limit, he said. "We're doing this because we don't want to cause any additional stress on the bridge," Weiss said on Monday.
He said that signs have been installed on both sides of the bridge alerting truck and bus drivers to the restrictions. In addition, letters have been sent to all utilities, including LIPA, KeySpan and cable companies, informing them about the temporary restrictions. Weiss said he did not know how long the ban will be in effect.
"We're also asking residents to notify their gardeners and anyone else they get deliveries from, to let them know about this so as to minimize any inconvenience," he said.
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