It’s not just bridges that have fallen into decay because of decades of deferred maintenance, VanDeusen said — it’s also culverts.
By Heather Bellow, The Berkshire Eagle
GREAT BARRINGTON — A steep hike in projected costs to repair the Cottage Street bridge might delay the bridge’s reopening — by at least five more years.
Original estimates pegged the cost at $100,000 to $200,000 to reinforce the superstructure of the 84-year-old span, but now it looks more like a $350,000 to $450,000 job.
And with a full replacement of the town-owned bridge paid for by a $5 million state grant planned for 2023, town officials might just decide to wait.
“I had hoped it would be a cheaper fix,” said Sean VanDeusen, director of the Department of Public Works.”There are other bridges that need work. It’s not a bridge that gets a lot of traffic.”
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It’s not just bridges that have fallen into decay because of decades of deferred maintenance, VanDeusen said — it’s also culverts.
And with modern regulations, those repairs can get expensive, too.
“There’s the Christian Hill Road situation,” he said. “It’s $400,000 for one culvert.”
At the May 6 annual town meeting, VanDeusen will be asking voters for that amount to fix it.
He said stream-crossing standards that allow wildlife to pass through, for instance, have increased these costs, too. And agencies also have made new rules for keeping culverts from blowing out in storms.
In the past, he said, redoing the same culvert would have cost around $10,000.
VanDeusen said a grant from the Housatonic Valley Association is helping towns in the county to map out culverts to determine the scope of repairs.
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