County legislators reject plan for Russell bridge sidewalk

Dec. 17--CANTON -- The county Board of Legislators met on Monday night for Operations and Services committee meetings.

The evening's most contentious issue was a resolution introduced by Legislator Larry D. Denesha, R-DeKalb, in support of adding a sidewalk to the County Route 24 bridge over the Grasse River in Russell.

The legislators rejected the proposal, with only Mr. Denesha voting in its favor.

In February, county officials announced that they had received a $3.1 million grant from the state to replace the bridge, which was built in 1929. In October, the New York State Department of Transportation imposed a 10-ton weight limit on the bridge, causing a number of school buses to be re-routed. But many residents are not happy with the proposal, which includes a five-foot shoulder but no raised sidewalk to protect pedestrian traffic.

At the general meeting of the legislators on Dec. 4, Russell Town Supervisor-elect Timothy White addressed county legislators during the public comment section of the meeting about the lack of a sidewalk. He presented the legislators with a petition, authorized unanimously by the Town Council and signed by hundreds of residents, asking for a raised sidewalk.

Mr. Denesha's proposal acknowledged the increased cost for adding a sidewalk -- according to Highway Superintendent Donald Chambers, it would add over $180,000 to the final cost of the project.

"I am concerned about the cost, but I am also concerned about the concerns raised by the residents of the hamlet," Mr. Denesha told legislators.

The bridge repairs are funded by a grant from the state, and the process was expedited to allow construction of a new bridge next year, rather than in 2019. The sidewalk was not included in the $3.1 million grant, and would necessitate building a stronger bridge to take the extra weight, which in turn might need obtaining new right of ways, according to Mr. Chambers. Mr. Chambers also said renegotiating the project now might lead to a loss of the state funding.

"The funding for the whole project ... is in jeopardy," he said. He also said that research into traffic showed that even curbs of up to one foot high would not stop cars except at very low speeds, making the proposed 6-inch curb to the sidewalk relatively useless at protecting pedestrians in his view.

Several legislators asked questions about the project, including alternatives to the sidewalk. John H. Burke, R-Norfolk, asked about the possibilities of adding pillars to prevent traffic crossing over into pedestrian areas, or adding an aluminum walkway on the outside of the bridge. David W. Forsythe, R-Lisbon asked if it was possible to lower the speed limit to 20 miles an hour over the bridge, and Mr. Denesha asked about adding a lighter steel grating sidewalk.

Mr. Chambers said these alternatives would either be impractical or would not meet state and federal standards. He suggested instead that a separate bridge for pedestrian traffic could be built for about the same cost as the sidewalk.

"I think it's more important that we get this bridge built," said Legislature Chairman Kevin D. Acres, R-Madrid. "Mr. Denesha, I'm not going to support your proposal."

"(I am) disappointed, obviously, because it was something that was important to my constituents," Mr. Denesha told the Times, adding "I think there were some good alternatives that were thrown out," including the possibility of a footbridge.

During the earlier Operations committee meeting, legislators were also briefed on the new electronic home monitoring program by Tim LePage, director of probation.

The grant would give the county $196,596 for 40 electronic ankle monitors and a new position to monitor the inmates released. The program would only be available to people charged with felonies who were being held pretrial and were judged to be at a moderate to high risk of recidivism.

According to Mr. LePage, the county is currently paying $75 a day for inmates held outside the county when the St. Lawrence County Correctional Facility is full, and costs have shot up following Operation Gravy Train, the large-scale drug bust from earlier this year. Even without the post-Gravy Train spike in inmates, Mr. LePage estimated the county could save $1 million a year through the electronic monitoring program.

In other business, the county approved filling five vacant county employee positions, created three new positions and eliminated two.

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