June 25, 2002
BBAC Rejoins Bridge Design Battle
The Batchellerville Bridge Action Committee is rejoining the battle over the design of the replacement Batchellerville Bridge across the Great Sacandaga Lake at Edinburg.
"Like most people, we took the New York State Department of Transportation at its word when it announced in February that it had decided to build a replacement bridge with a 42-foot vertical clearance at center span," BBAC spokesman Peter VanAvery said.
"But following an unpublicized May 9 meeting with Assistant DOT Commissioner Paul T. Wells, a delegation of four sailboaters informed other sailboat owners that the decision was an interim one and that a final 'record of decision' still had to be made," VanAvery said. "That gave sailboaters an unfair advantage, allowing them to lobby quietly for a still higher bridge while the rest of us thought the battle was over."
DOT's February decision, widely covered by area newspapers and TV stations, was a compromise that appeared to resolve the long and sometimes rancorous public debate over the two replacement options offered by the state: a 35-foot vertical clearance and a 55-foot vertical clearance. Supporters of the lower option argued that a high replacement bridge would damage one of the most spectacular scenic views in the Southern Adirondacks, while those in favor of the higher option wanted a vertical clearance that would accommodate all sailboats on the lake.
The design announced in February would result in a structure 55% higher than the existing bridge and would allow more than 98% of all boats on the lake to pass underneath, VanAvery said. The higher design sought by sailboaters would be about twice as high as the existing bridge.
As rumors surfaced about the sailboaters' lobbying effort, VanAvery wrote separate letters to two top DOT officials, Assistant Commissioner Wells and Regional Director Thomas C. Werner. The letters asked pointedly: 1) Was the February decision a final one?, and 2) Is it not true that a final "record of decision" remains to be made? "Neither official responded, showing their indifference to what the public majority wants," VanAvery said. He also noted that DOT's media relations office has continued to inform reporters who call that the February decision was final.
"If DOT had been honest in February, it would have stated that its design decision was not final and invited interested persons to continue submitting their comments," VanAvery said. "But it did not do. This ploy is tantamount to DOT holding a soccer match and inviting only one team to play," VanAvery said. "Guess which team will win?"
Of the thousands of boats on Great Sacandaga Lake, only 163 are sailboats, according to a DOT survey. The February design would allow 77%, or 126 of them, to sail under the bridge when the lake, a flood-control reservoir, is full. As the lake's level drops during summer months, some of the remaining 37 could sail under as well.
"Since when do the interests of just 37 sailboaters outweigh those of the thousands of property owners and other lake lovers who want to preserve this wonderful scenic view?," VanAvery asked. He pointed out that 75% of the lake's water surface occurs above (south of) the bridge where the lake is widest, giving the 37 sailboaters plenty of water on which to enjoy their hobby.
VanAvery also said that DOT, without informing the public, added four feet to each sailboat's mast height to allow for wave action and radio antennas. "That's a questionable practice for boats on a reservoir with a varying water level," he said, noting also that some sailboats are not equipped with a radio antenna.
VanAvery said that DOT has consistently attempted to sneak its plans for a high bridge past an unsuspecting public. This is the second time that the BBAC has caught DOT in a cover-up on this project. Two years ago, the BBAC's founders blew the whistle when DOT scheduled what was to have been its final informational meeting on the project for a date well after Labor Day, when many seasonal residents would have departed for the year. The resulting controversy forced DOT to hold a previously unscheduled town meeting in Northville last summer.
"In both public meetings, people in favor of a low bridge far outnumbered the other side," VanAvery said. While many people who favor a low bridge have environmental concerns, they also include bridge users worried about the safety of a high, arched structure under icy and windy conditions in winter.
For additional information:
Daily Gazette story, "Ownership Issue a Key to a New Batchellerville Bridge," 7/7/02