Battle over whether to save or replace Brunswick-Topsham bridge heats up
Photo / Maureen Milliken
The Frank J. Wood Bridge over the Androscoggin River between Topsham and Brunswick, looking from the Topsham side at Fort Andross.
The battle over whether to save the Frank J. Wood Bridge between Brunswick and Topsham heated up this week, with both supporters and opponents digging in.
The side that supports preserving the bridge got a boost Wednesday from the owners of Fort Andross, the redeveloped mill on the Brunswick end of the bridge.
Waterfront Maine, owners of Fort Andross and an affiliate of real estate development company North River, jumped into the fray with a "friend of the court" brief supporting preservation of the bridge. The redeveloped mill is a thriving commercial enterprise, housing businesses, restaurants and offices.
“We have invested heavily in our red brick textile mill and our property will be adversely affected if the Frank J. Wood bridge is removed,” said Anthony J. Gatti III, Waterfront Maine vice president, in a news release from North River. “Refurbishment and rehabilitation of the existing Frank J. Wood bridge is the obvious and affordable solution and will not require taking our land and burdening us with a financial hardship.”
North River is developing multi-use Portland Square project in Portland and in Waterville owns the Hathaway Creative Center and is developing the adjacent Lockwood Mills. The company, in the release, said the Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration have not considered the historic significance as well as "the clear and viable solution of rehabilitating the existing structure."
The 89-year-old bridge, an 815-foot-long span that carries U.S. Route 201 and state Route 24 over the Androscoggin River, has nearly 20,000 car trips a day, according to the DOT. Both the state and federal agencies determined it would more cost-effective to replace the bridge than rehabilitate it.
A U.S. District Court judge in February ruled in favor of the Maine Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration in a lawsuit filed by the Friends of Frank J. Wood Bridge, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Historic Bridge Foundation. The DOT, following the ruling, said it planned to solicit bids on the $21.8 million project in July and begin the bridge work in the fall. (The plaintiffs filed an appeal, which is still in process.)
Those that favor replacing the bridge were also vocal this week.
In an op-ed published in the Portland Press Herald on Wednesday, the Southern Midcoast Maine Chamber reaffirmed its support for replacement, citing the "dire" condition of the bridge.
"The reasons we sought a replacement in 2016 are still the same reasons we support this position in 2021. All that has changed is there has been a considerable delay of the process brought on by legal challenges of those who would prefer to repair the bridge instead of replacing it. Now, the bridge that was in dire need of repair, is five years older, and five more years less stable."
The chamber said that the DOT in 2016 identified the bridge as not meeting critical safety standards back. "Pieces of the bridge are falling into the river, ruining the animal habitats below. The rusting exterior of the bridge does little to compliment the two thriving communities that it connects, and more importantly than appearance, is the rust permeating the core parts of the structure, such as the bolts and joints. How long until something truly terrible occurs due to the delay?"
DOT: 'Nothing has changed'
The Department of Transportation issued a written statement Wednesday that said, “Nothing has changed with regard to the thorough analysis, consideration, and the decision to replace the bridge. The project record is all available online, including extensive historic evaluation and discussions of the impacts of the project.”
Proponents of saving the bridge say it's recognized as eligible for the National Register. Its removal "is an affront to an historically important asset and one of the attractions that make Maine and towns like Brunswick and Topsham so magical," the Waterfront Maine news release said. "Removal of the bridge would be a scar on Brunswick and Topsham’s historic landscape."
Those in favor of a new bridge point to the possibilities. In 2017, a Brunswick-Topsham Design Advisory Committee recommended a new bridge that would have a lower profile, opening up vistas of Pejepscot Falls, the mills on either side and the river, the design report says. While it would have the same entry points at both ends, it would curve upstream, toward the falls, as well as sidewalks on both sides and bike lanes.
"MaineDOT’s preferred new bridge alternative will open new vistas and allow the communities to better connect with each other and the historic and natural aspects of this special site," the design report says. "Through a collaborative partnership with MaineDOT, the new bridge will fit well into the site, and will be beautiful, durable, cost effective, and functional and inviting for all users."
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what about the properties on each side of the river which will be taken in order to build the new bridge - that is another consideration in the Fort Andross position
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