Ogdensburg discusses bridge work

OGDENSBURG — The Ogdensburg Council unanimously tabled a decision on Sept. 26 regarding renewals with Statewide Insurance and discussed the Passaic Avenue Bridge status.
Councilman Robert McGuire said he suspected the Passaic Bridge start dates were changed, with the state knowing the Transportation Trust Fund would be shut down, in order to “basically strongarm us into eventually voting for some kind of gas tax hike.”
McGuire wants the timeline details before the October N.J. Legislative group meeting.
Council President George Hutnick said, the line item was already encumbered for the job, but they pulled it.
McGuire responded said there was money left in the fund, but the state decided to allocate the money to different projects.
Councilman David Astor said, he spoke with Senator Steve Oroho, who said, they were hoping a bill would pass, thus, freeing up some money. When the bill failed, the governor placed the freeze.
Astor also said he had two draft resolutions for the council, Franklin, and Sparta to consider. In addition, he said, he is working on a letter to all their legislators, regarding the huge inconvenience and safety hazard.
“Absolutely nothing will happen, but at least we're trying to do something,” Astor said.
Officials urged the public to get involved writing letters. Astor said,
“Maybe we can get some noise,” so something will be done.
McGuire said, Oct. 11 will be Candidates' Night, giving people an opportunity to voice concerns.
Ciasullo said people need to vote and really think about it. He added, this is the way the state is run, a microcosm of bigger things.
“There's no way you should be hoping a bill passes,” he said.
Ciasullo added, not a single cone should have been put in front of the bridge without funds to finish the job.
Astor said if they ran their businesses the same way, the state would be slapping them with fines.
Ciasullo said he would love to see who was in charge of funding the whole thing, and if they are still employed with the state.
Hutnick asked who determined the Ogdensburg bridge was state paid and the Franklin bridge was county paid, because both are on county roads. He added, suddenly one was paid with a different fund, and they put a rush on it.
Astor said State Sen. Steve Oroho told him Ogdensburg could pay for the bridge themselves and receive reimbursement.
Ciasullo and Astor voiced doubts of being reimbursed.
Ciasullo said they would never have started the project, because the bridge was considered safe until the day the project started. He continued, the only certainty is,
“There's absolutely no certainty when they're going to resume work," Ciasullo said. "They have no idea. So you could be looking at a year, six months, or five years.”
Astor asked for the council to reach out to the county to replace some guard rails on 517, which had been knocked down in April.
Ciasullo said he will contact engineering, especially because of the increased traffic through town due to the bridge.