Maybe some new bridges will help:
The Cayuga Street bridge over Six Mile Creek is among the projects Ithaca Common Council wants to get ready for federal funding under the infrastructure-oriented economic stimulus package President-elect Barack Obama plans for 2009. Another city bridge targeted is the Lake Street Bridge over Fall Creek near Ithaca Falls. (ERICA THUM / Staff Photo)
Panel waits on bridge decision
Federal stimulus could help city infrastructure
By Krisy Gashler •
kgashler@gannett.com • December 30, 2008
ITHACA — A Common Council committee held off Monday night on authorizing almost half a million dollars in design work for bridges.
The city's Superintendent of Public Works lobbied for the authorization in order to have the two bridge projects “shovel-ready” in the event of an infrastructure-focused federal stimulus package, as has been proposed by President-elect Barack Obama.
Ithaca's Board of Public Works voted unanimously to support the projects earlier this month.
The committee voted unanimously Monday to wait a month and take a broader look at the city's infrastructure needs before committing $422,500 toward design and engineering for the two bridges: the Lake Street bridge over Fall Creek and the South Cayuga Street bridge over Six Mile Creek.
Several members of the committee, including Chairwoman Maria Coles, D-1st, and Mayor Carolyn Peterson, referred to recent discussions about the $250,000 Commons Reconstruction design project, which some Council members wanted to de-fund. Part of the opposition to the project was based on concern that Common Council needed more long-range information about city needs so that Council members could better prioritize projects in context.
Both Coles, who wanted to de-fund the Commons project, and Peterson, who wanted to go forward with it, argued for waiting a month so Council could take a wider look at infrastructure needs and already funded capital projects.
Superintendent Bill Gray argued that both of the bridges are in need of repair and will have to be completed sometime soon, whether they receive federal funding toward the cost or not.
“This is vital work, and the design won't change,” Gray said. “I think this will be money well spent.”
Gray said that getting the projects to the point where they're ready for construction would take roughly three months in the private sector but will likely take six months in the city because of the voting process required. He asked that the committee allow him to start the process, even if it ends up stopping the process before any or all of the money is spent.
Peterson said it would be difficult to stop a contract once the design process has started. She made a similar argument in favor of going forward with The Commons project.
Gray disagreed, saying that if the city spent $50,000 toward engineering and design work and then learned that, for whatever reason, the projects wouldn't be eligible for federal aid, they could cut the project off there.
Waiting a month will also mean that Obama will be inaugurated and more details on the stimulus package may be available, the committee decided.