Future of bridge renewal uncertain

Community activists are convinced that, if the city has its way, $50 million of their hard earned tax money will go to one ugly bridge.

But at a public hearing yesterday, they learned that if construction doesn't start soon, it may never happen.

The City Council's Committee on Streets and Services convened the hearing to debate a proposal to widen South Street.

Talk immediately turned to the upcoming South Street Bridge renovation. Community members and City Council members both expressed concern over comments from project leaders that further delay could lead to a reallocation of funds set aside for the bridge.

Pennsylvania Department of Transportation representative Charles Davies said that the project is fully funded at this time, but that his "fiscally restrained" department could be forced to use the money elsewhere once the fiscal year ends.

The $50 million project will close the bridge for 18 months while it is rebuilt.

Under the current plan, the bridge will feature nine-foot-wide pedestrian walkways and five-foot-wide bicycle lanes, directly adjacent to car lanes.

Construction is expected to begin in early spring 2008, chief bridge engineer John Lutz said. But talk of repair stretches back to 1991, when part of the bridge began to fracture. Since then, reconstruction has been repeatedly delayed.

Community leaders chided project managers at the meeting yesterday for failing to include residents' concerns when planning the re-construction of the bridge.

These concerns include the aesthetic quality of the bridge, access issues and the lack of a completed traffic survey prior to the beginning of construction.

Philadelphia Democratic Committee member Alex Scroca also argued that, in the current model, pedestrians and bicyclists are put in harm's way, while others complained that the city had not been communicating properly.

"It's a typical bureaucratic response - nobody in City Hall is giving guidance or support," Philadelphia Inquirer architecture critic Ingra Saffron said in an interview yesterday. "I've been to two community meetings on this project. They could of had cotton in their ears."

From the University's standpoint, however, the city has been adequately handling the re-construction.

Office of the University Architect Principal Planner Mark Kocent said that Penn officials have taken part in the design process and are pleased with the result.

"It's a very contemporary-looking bridge," he said. "Within the constraints given to the design team with area, it's a dramatic improvement."

But Saffron begs to differ.

"The government could've said, 'Let's make this a statement,'" she said. "But it's neither pleasant nor impressive."

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