December 13, 2013

Rep. Case touts state’s step in improving Holabird Avenue Bridge

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HARTFORD – After pressing the Malloy administration to refocus funding on the Holabird Avenue bridge and its much-needed improvements, state Rep. Jay Case (R-63) celebrated the first step in infrastructure repairs Friday when the State Bond Commission approved nearly $2.4 million for the project.

In August, Rep. Case invited administrators from the Connecticut Department of Transportation, Town of Winchester officials and colleague state Rep. David A. Scribner (R-107) to inspect the bridge and roadway on Holabird Avenue, and pushed for them to address its decaying state. The money approved Friday for bonding will cover approximately half of the entire project’s funding needs.

“I want to thank the Bond Commission for realizing that the Holabird Avenue bridge is an important project to the residents of Winchester and its surrounding communities,” Rep. Case said. “This bridge is central to the town’s operations – whether it’s used for students at Northwestern Connecticut Community College or the Winsted Fire Department, or the businesses at Whiting Mills, or all the residents who use that road daily – it is a heavily traveled route and it needs work. This move should be applauded, and I’m delighted to see taxpayer dollars coming back to this district.”

Rep. Scribner was an integral part of the conversation about the Holabird Avenue bridge, and with his veteran knowledge in the state’s transportation system, guided Rep. Case in securing the improvement funding.

“Anyone familiar with this bridge is well aware of its weakened condition and the real danger it poses to the thousands of motorists who travel it daily,” said Rep. Scribner (R-107), Ranking Member of the Transportation Committee and Transportation Bonding Subcommittee, and Member of the Bond Commission. “I’m grateful to the Bond Commission for recognizing our concerns and taking action on the need to rehabilitate this deteriorating structure to ensure commuters will be safe.”

The commission also authorized $295,401 for a $602,000 project on West Road, spanning the east branch of the Naugatuck River. Before the project moves forward, Winchester will be responsible for $306,599.

Because the state estimates a total cost of 4,862,954 for the Holabird project, there is still much work to be done for funding – money that town officials probably won’t be able to put forward. So Rep. Case said he will continue fighting for more funding.

“Due to Winsted’s current financial state, it might not be able to complete the Holabird Avenue project on its own. I plan on getting the remaining 51 percent of that project – some $2.5 million – by any accessible avenue. There will be a lot of legwork but it’s work I’m happy to do for my district,” Rep. Case said.