5 years in, frustrated New Haven businesses await State Street Bridge ‘Guys, figure it out!’ says biz owner

East side abutment construction for deck beams on the State Street Bridge construction near James Street in New Haven last week. East side abutment construction for deck beams on the State Street Bridge construction near James Street in New Haven last week. Photo: (Peter Hvizdak - New Haven Register) Photo: (Peter Hvizdak - New Haven Register) Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close 5 years in, frustrated New Haven businesses await State Street Bridge 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

NEW HAVEN >> Five years after the ill-fated State Street Bridge project began, nearby business owners roll their eyes and laugh sarcastically when they are told the latest official projection of when it finally will be open: the spring of 2015.

They have heard many predictions since 2009 and none of them came true.

On the website of the project inspector, GM2 Associates, the engineers roll out a continuing list of unforeseen setbacks which led to more and more delays: “an unexpected conflict with a 42-inch water main” in 2009; the water main’s relocation in 2010; “conflicts during the installation of the sheet piling cofferdam with the piles supporting the (overhead) I-91 bridge structure” in 2011, requiring a re-design of the cofferdam; the discovery later the same year “that existing groundwater was contaminated and required additional treatment not included in the original design”; the subsequent discovery of more contaminated soil and groundwater; and “settlement of surrounding structures resulting from seismic vibrations caused by pile driving” in 2013.

The website notes: “construction activities were supposed to be completed within 365 days ... of closing the bridge.” The bridge was closed in October 2010.

When the project began, the estimated cost was about $5.1 million. The Register reported last November that the cost has ballooned to $25 million. When engineers were asked by the Register over the past week what the project’s total cost is now, they did not provide a figure.

The construction is being funded by the state and federal governments. The project was awarded to C.J. Fucci Inc. after competitive bidding. The state Department of Transportation is also involved.

The bridge, which crosses the Mill River, is only about 88 feet long but it’s at a key location for motorists: between James Street and the entrance of the city’s Ralph Walker Skating Rink at 1080 State St. The original bridge went up in 1920. Before it was shut down, it handled about 7,000 vehicles on an average work day.

Ever since the bridge closed, traffic has been detoured via a series of signs to James Street, Humphrey Street and East Street. This convoluted path has discouraged regular customers of those State Street businesses near the bridge.

In a New Haven Register story written in October 2009, Jerry Sobask, owner of MENU restaurant, sagely predicted: “If they say a year, you know it’ll be five.”

Sobask has since closed his business.

Most of those who have hung on say their businesses are still suffering from the bridge’s closure.

“I’m down about 40 to 50 percent,” said the owner of a sandwich shop who asked that his name and the name of the store not be used.

Before the bridge closed, he said, “We used to do $5,000 per week. Now it’s less than $3,000 or $2,500. It’s big-time.”

He said many customers used to buy sandwiches on their way back toward Hamden later in the day. “Now that’s all gone. We’re just hanging on right now.”

Fred Walker, co-owner of Chestnut Fine Foods, said, “It’s definitely affected our business. Especially customers who come down from Ridge Road and Hartford Turnpike, going through the detours. They don’t come as often, especially when it gets dark earlier.”

Walker noted, “We’ve been very vocal about it. But it doesn’t do any good. It’s very frustrating.”

Lenny Fritz, who owns the Pantry restaurant, said he’s losing the customers who normally would make quick stops for coffee or sandwiches to go. But he said his business is still healthy because his loyal customers know how to find their way there.

“It’s a government project,” Fritz said, “so they don’t have any sense of urgency.”

Fran Vessichio, owner of Squillo’s Cigars, a fixture on State Street since 1960, said, “This (bridge closing) has had a very bad effect. For people coming from the north, when you tell them they have to go around the block, they get confused. Sometimes they get lost.”

“I know they’ve had problems,” she said of the engineers. “But if you’re working on something old, don’t you anticipate it’s a difficult project? We have all these brilliant engineers; we’re in the computer age. What is going on here? Guys, figure it out!”

Robert Frew, an architect with an office near the bridge, said, “Oh, it’s been a disaster. An accumulation of errors.”

Frew said he believes a central problem is “the city hired engineers to design it, then state engineers took over the construction. The designers should have been involved in the construction.”

Asked about this, Mark Rolfe, DOT district engineer, said in an email: “While it’s true the designer worked for the city and the contractor worked for the DOT, this has been more of a complicating factor than a driving factor.”

Rolfe added, “Two major issues have driven the project progress: contaminated soil and groundwater; and foundation interference with the I-91 bridge above. Both issues required redesigns of the bridge foundation and resulted in significant delays and increased costs.”

Rolfe said he expects the workers will complete the last of 72 micro piles (for the foundation supporting the bridge) by the end of this week. “We are still projecting next spring for opening the bridge to traffic.”

When a reporter and photographer visited the east side of the bridge work Wednesday, Project Chief Inspector John Ossa said, “We’re pouring one pile a day.” He pointed into a muddy pit where the tip of a pile was visible; they are drilled about 80 feet into the ground.

Ossa conceded, “It certainly has been a troublesome project.”

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