News stories tagged with "bridge"

(12/06/11) In our on-going series, The Adirondack Attic, Andy Flynn talks with Steve Engelhart, Executive Director of Adirondack Architectural Heritage, about an early photo of the original Lake Champlain Bridge, which connects Crown Point, New York and Addison, Vermont. Back in 1929, the original bridge was state-of-the-art for the era.

(11/08/11) A crisis that disrupted tourism, farming and family ties along the Champlain Valley came to an end yesterday, as officials from New York and Vermont cut the ribbon for the new Crown Point bridge.

The $70 million structure re-establishes the link from Crown Point to Addison, Vermont. The ceremony was attended by dignitaries, by hundreds of local residents, and by a group of "29ers."

They're the folks who were also on hand in 1929 when the first bridge was unveiled. Martha Foley has more.

(09/27/11) A bridge in the town of Wilna, east of Watertown in Jefferson County, was closed recently after a regular state inspection showed it was no longer safe for motorists. The bridge didn't get much traffic - fewer than 100 cars a day, according to the state Department of Transportation - but residents of the area will now have to get used to a five-mile detour. And, transportation officials said, closures like this one will likely be more common as the federal government reins in its budget for repairs. Joanna Richards has the story. more

(08/26/11) UPDATE: The arch was at the new site around 8 this morning. Lifting it into place is expected to take four to eight hours.
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This morning just before six am, workers on the waterfront in Port Henry fired up their tug boats and began moving the massive four hundred foot arch that will complete the Crown Point bridge.

Fifty or so people turned out early to watch, listening quietly as the tugs' big engines rumbled. Brian Mann was on the breakwater watching as the big arch left the construction yard and began its journey south to Crown Point. He spoke with Martha Foley. more

(07/25/11) Construction of the Lake Champlain Bridge that will connect West Addison, Vermont and Crown Point, New York has been moving forward this summer.

The bridge's signature steel arch has been assembled at an old marina on the New York shore, and looks like it's ready to be moved to the site of the new bridge. But as VPR's Melody Bodette reports, there's still more work to be done before that can happen. more

(04/29/11) Just after noon on Friday Governor Andrew Cuomo arrived by helicopter in the flood-ravaged community of Moriah, in the Champlain Valley.

After touring two sites where bridges collapsed following torrential rains, the governor declared that Essex County has official "disaster" status. more

(04/28/11) Widespread and heavy flooding has struck much of the North Country in the last twenty-four hours, as torrential rains, winds and even a tornado warning in Hamilton County have caused widespread disruptions.

Emergency officials say dozens of highways and a number of bridges have been washed out across the region.

The Plattsburgh Press-Republican is reporting that Mineville-Witherbee fire chief Paul Tromblee was taken to Fletcher Allen hospital after a road collapsed under his vehicle.

Tromblee suffered a cervical injury but is described by the newspaper as in "fair" condition.

According to the National Weather Service, the Ausable River crested yesterday at more than three feet above flood stage.

Major flooding is still being reported at Rouses Point where Lake Champlain remains nearly two feet above flood stage.

Significant flooding and road damage has also been reported along the banks of the Schroon, the Raquette, and the Hudson rivers.

According to the Department of Environmental Conservation, some homes in the region were completely swamped by the rising water.

Brian Mann has been following the story in Saranac Lake, where emergency crews have been struggling to manage a dangerous glut of water pouring down from the Saranac chain of lakes. more

(08/12/10) The Canadian government announced Tuesday it will begin building a new bridge between Cornwall and Cornwall Island next spring. The lower, shorter span will open up acres of land along the St. Lawrence River. City of Cornwall and Mohawk officials applauded the project, which will cost $75 million.

We'll have more next week on what the new bridge could mean for the ex-paper mill town of Cornwall. Construction was to have begun last summer.

But a standoff between Canadian border officials and Akwesasne Mohawks delayed the project and led to the closure of the customs checkpoint on Cornwall Island. The dispute over arming border agents shut down the international bridge between Cornwall and Massena for six weeks.

Today, Canada still operates a make shift checkpoint in the city of Cornwall. Locals report delays of up to two hours. Canadian and tribal officials haven't met in months. And Mohawks on Cornwall Island say they're stuck in a netherworld between two borders. David Sommerstein reports. more

(05/12/10) The budget crisis in Albany is threatening to bring state construction projects to a standstill. But New York's Department of Transportation says the effort to rebuild the Lake Champlain bridge at Crown Point is still on track. With eighty percent of the funding coming from the Federal government, the project appears to be insulated from most of the chaos in the state capital. But as Brian Mann reports, many local residents still worry that the bridge could be delayed.

(01/28/10) Governor David Paterson was in the North Country yesterday, announcing that a new, temporary ferry will begin serving Crown Point and Addison Vermont as early as this weekend. The Lake Champlain bridge closed in mid-October after inspectors founds the concrete pilings were disintegrating. As Brian Mann reports, residents and business-owners in the Champlain Valley see the new ferry as another big step toward returning their lives to normal.