PBS Archives - Keeseville's Historic Bridges

Mountain Lake PBS Updated Story

By matt | May 3, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

MAY 3, 2021 —

Hi Everyone,

Last week Mountain Lake PBS released their story on our bridges. PBS works with WCAX on news stories together, and you will notice this video is very similar to the one put out by WCAX a few weeks ago. This one has some small changes in it.

This is from the PBS website:

We told you last fall about a preservation group in Keeseville, New York, working to save several historic bridges in the community. Matthew Pray says the bridges, all built in the 1800s, are one-of-a-kind. They are all on the National Register of Historic Places and are considered civil engineering landmarks. The group has worked with lawmakers looking for grant money, something both Essex and Clinton County say will be needed if the bridges are to be restored. Essex County Board of Supervisors Chairman Shaun Gillilland says the county pegs the cost at over $2-million-dollars to make the repairs necessary to restore the bridges. In addition to the grant money, an engineer would need to certify that any fix-up would make the bridge safe to use. The group has started placing these signs around Keeseville, hoping to get people in the community to show their support. Many have already signed a petition to save the bridges. Pray says they’ve collected more than 2-thousand signatures. Learn more: www.facebook.com/Keesevillehistoricbridges

Thank You WCAX

By matt | April 22, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

APR 22, 2021 —

Watch the WCAX News story here:

https://www.wcax.com/2021/04/21/ny-group-pushes-to-restore-historic-bridges/?fbclid=IwAR1OgStZ25tV00MIBDuJPZgsIqb-stLjOjkOvW7rtkAUIpdjDV8We0XajOU

Thank you WCAX for running the story on our bridges tonight. I’d like to clarify a couple of things that were stated. I mean these in the most positive ways, and it’s not meant to take anything away from what was said by either county.

-Our county officials have grant writing teams that can research grants to cover the cost of these bridges. They have the experience, but need to be directed by the County to do research. Clinton County has applied for two grants recently (Swing Bridge and Old State Road Bridge) – Thank you!

-$3 Trillion in Federal Infrastructure money, $10 Billion in Federal Infrastructure money made available, $310 Billion in NYS Infrastructure money made available, $96 Million in Bridge NY funds made available, CHIPS money that each county could be used, but we have been asked not to use that. Clinton County received $1 Million in extra CHIPS money for this year. DOT money could be made available if the right conditions were met. Somewhere in all of that, has to be a way to fund our bridges. But I’m asked to find ‘creative means’ to cover the cost of the bridges.

– Shaun Gilliland was speaking about the plans to put vehicles over the bridges and what the weight limits would be…and he hadn’t ‘seen plans’. With all due respect, he was informed by our Town Supervisor (and invited by me) of a meeting we had with Town Board Members, Officials and Highway Departments with an Engineer who laid out a plan on how to restore the Upper Bridge. That engineer was not selling his business but providing information on a solution. Shaun did not attend that meeting.

-“Over $2 Million per bridge to make the repairs necessary” is not the cost of the restoring bridges. The Old State Bridge was far less than that. The Swing bridge wasn’t anywhere close to that cost. Each county has only one closed bridge to account for. Grants cover 80% and the rest is split 50/50 between the counties….(10% each county) costing taxpayers nearly nothing. We have even discussed ways of making this remaining cost less.

-We also had an engineer quote the Upper Bridge at 1-1.65 Million barring any long drawn out NYS processes.

-Let’s work together to find a solution, rather than finding ways that we can’t make it happen.