Politics & Government

Darien Looks To Build Bridge Of Communication With Norwalk

The First Selectman waits for "more information" on plans to demolish and rebuild Old Tokeneke Bridge.

First Selectman Dave Cambell says he's still waiting for the city of Norwalk to substantiate recently announced plans to reconstruct Old Tokeneke Bridge and split the bill with Darien.

"Until we get some more information, there's not much we can talk about," said Campbell at Monday's Board of Selectmen meeting. "It's been talked about for years with no proposal, and these numbers are new and haven't been defined."

Plans to reconstruct Old Tokeneke Bridge have long been in the works. The footbridge that stretches the Darien, Rowayton town line on Route 136 was first built in 1912 and has been closed to vehicular traffic since the state Department of Transportation realigned the roads many years ago. Concrete continues to crumble, posing a safety hazard to both the pedestrians who ignore the barricades to cross the bridge, and to the kayakers below who travel the Five Mile River on a regular basis despite signs of "falling rock."

When the reconstruction was first proposed a few years back, demolition costs alone topped $600,000, said Campbell. The price of entire project circa 2010 is about $280,000, which includes $200,000 for demolition and $80,000 for a rebuild.

News of this year's demolition and rebuild of the bridge came just weeks ago, when an article in the Norwalk Hour reported Norwalk officials' inclusion of $140,000 in the city's 2010-11 capital budget to fund half of the infrastructure project, assuming Darien had agreed, "in writing," to follow suit.

Campbell had sent a brief, two-sentence email to Mayor Dick Moccia saying he'd "find the money," but admitted he thought nothing of a formal commitment when hitting send.

"You know how short that email was. It seriously went in and out of my brain in the time it took to write," said Campbell.

Funds for the project have not been included in the coming fiscal year's budget, nor has the project been discussed in the context of long-term capital projects. Campbell said money would not be transferred from any approved project to fund the bridge rebuild, and that it was premature to begin discussions of any transfer in finances.

"I talked to [Director of Public Works Bob Steeger] and asked if we could find the money, and he said yes, but we haven't gotten there," said Campbell.

Town Administrative Officer Karl Kilduff said that for Darien to fund any part of the project this year, a special appropriation would have to pass through the Board of Selectmen, the Board of Finance and the Representative Town Meeting.

"Given how tight our budget is, I really would be reluctant to vote on a transfer here," said Selectman David Bayne.

Others agreed. Campbell said he would only seriously consider moving forward with the bridge project soon should an engineering study prove the bridge a threat to health and safety.

"People kayak under the bridge all the time, which is our major concern," said Campbell.

Campbell said Director of Public Works Bob Steeger is waiting to hear from his Norwalk counterpart to discuss the matter.

"It's fascinating going back to look at the history of this bridge and how many times proposals have been put forward and never gained momentum," said Campbell. "That's what goes on when two towns own the same property."


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