6 THE COURIER SUN • FEBRUARY 20, 2014 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.couriersun.com Major transportation projects stalled BY LIAM LA GUERRE lguerre@queenscourier.com @liamlaguerre Ridgewood residents were hopeful that reconstruction of the Metropolitan Avenue Bridge would fi nally start this spring, but it’s been stalled again. The path, which is elevated over LIRR tracks where Metropolitan Avenue intersects Fresh Pond Road, carries major truck traffi c and is long overdue for repairs. In 2007, city offi cials informed Community Board (CB) 5 it was in danger of collapse. Financial troubles delayed its original reconstruction start date back in 2009, and at a recent CB 5 Transportation Committee meeting, it was said that it’s been pushed back yet again, because the project has to undergo review and redesign. The bridge is just one of a few major transportation projects, together worth about $115 million, Join us at A Culinary and Cultural Celebration to Benefit the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Queens... Monday, March 10 at 6:00 PM Russo's on the Bay, Howard Beach, NY Participating Restaurants as of (2/1/14): Amagansett Wines & Spirits Coca-Cola Bottling Co Gino’s Pizzeria & Restaurant La Dolce Italia Manor Oktoberfest Matteo’s Russo’s on the Bay Schmidt’s Confectionery Uncle Bacala Woodhaven House Vetro Individual Tickets are $75 per person (tickets must be purchased in advance) Please call 718-441-6050 ext 206 For more information about how you Can RSVP for this event or Visit us online at www.metroqueens.org Enjoy a sampling of gourmet delights & fine wines. Total average savings of Let me show you how combining home and auto policies can really add up. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.® CALL FOR A QUOTE 24/7 State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, State Farm Indemnity Company, State Farm Fire and Casualty Company, State Farm General Insurance Company, Bloomington, IL 0907501 Car + Home Savings Donald A Enga, Agent 216-18 Jamaica Ave 2nd Floor Queens Village, NY 11428 Bus: 718-468-6500 don.enga.gujn@statefarm.com $696* *Average annual household savings based on national 2009 survey of new policyholders who reported savings by switching to State Farm. in CB 5 that just keep getting delayed. The Metropolitan Bridge alone could be a $25 million project, CB 5 District Manager Gary Giordano said. “You are talking about a lot of money for one district,” Giordano said. “We keep bringing them up at our transportation meeting because we believe that they need to be done and want don’t want to forget about them.” Developers are now considering building an abutment, eliminating one track under the bridge, to help the building process. But then there is the Grand Street Bridge project, which connects Maspeth to Brooklyn over Newtown Creek. The 111-year-old bridge is so narrow that it can’t support two-way traffi c, although it is a two-way span, with all the big rigs and city buses that traverse it. The new bridge would cost about $50 million. The plan for new bridge was ready to go when Sandy struck in 2012 and fl ooded the area. Now plans are being redesigned to meet new fl ood regulations. Besides the bridges, major street rebuilding plans have also been setback. The Wyckoff Avenue Reconstruction Project, estimated to cost about $20 million, was supposed to start during the summer of 2010, but has been pushed back to 2026, according to the city Department of Design and Construction (DDC). The project would give Wyckoff Avenue new sewer lines, new water mains to replace the 70-year old ones, as well as a new concrete base on the roadway, new sidewalks and new curbing from Flushing Avenue to Cooper Avenue. The community has been waiting on a similar project in south Middle Village for about two decades. Streets from 73rd Place to 80th Street are due for new sidewalks, sewer lines, new water mains, signage and street lights, estimated to cost about $20 million. The project has a due date of 2022, according to the DDC. The projects are pushed back because the city puts funding to higher priority initiatives, CB 5 Chair Vincent Arcuri said. But Arcuri said the planned repairs would help boost the community and should be pushed. “When you rebuild the streets, the property value increases,” Arcuri said. “It becomes an economic boost to the community.” THE COURIER/Photo by Liam La Guerre The Grand Street Bridge in Maspeth is one four large-scale projects in CB 5 seeing major setbacks.
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