By: Lauren T. Agnew
Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. visited four culverts and bridges on Friday, November 4th, to announce that three of the projects were completed and one was underway. The tour included the Locust Avenue Bridge in Bloomfield, where construction was underway, the Lakeside Avenue Bridge in West Orange, Marion Avenue Culvert in Millburn, and the Mitchell Street Culvert in Orange, completed recently.
County officials said the projects are part of the County Executive’s ongoing initiative to modernize infrastructure and enhance safety for pedestrians and motorists.
“Residents rely on our County bridges and roads to get to work, go to school and travel about their daily routines. It has been my ongoing priority to ensure that our infrastructure is up to date, able to meet the growing demands of our community and provide the safest passage for pedestrians and motorists,” DiVincenzo said.
“While these improvement projects may not be flashy, they are an essential component of increased safety for pedestrians and motorists within our communities,” Commissioner Brendan Gill said.
The first stop was at the Locust Avenue Bridge on Locust Avenue in Bloomfield, where work to replace the existing culvert had just started. The two-lane bridge crosses over Lloyd Brook and was initially built in 1930 and rehabilitated in 1975.
The old bridge was in a deteriorating condition and exhibited substantial rust. The 30-foot-wide bridge will be replaced with a similarly constructed structure.
“There is a big need for these projects. Infrastructure is critical, and the County Executive has made this a priority. There is an elementary school right by here, so we are grateful,” Bloomfield Mayor Mike Venezia said.
The second stop was at the Mitchell Street Culvert on Mitchell Street in Orange. The two-lane bridge crossed the East Branch of the Rahway River and was constructed about 1930. This bridge was described as structurally deficient because of the bad condition of the two-lane roadway and substructure. The 30-foot-wide bridge will be replaced with a similarly constructed structure.
“These projects border two municipalities and, on behalf of all the residents of the City of Orange, we thank the County Executive for these improvements,” said Orange Mayor Dwayne Warren, who joined the County Executive at the announcements at the Mitchell Street Culvert in Orange and the Lakeside Avenue Culvert in West Orange. Orange Councilwoman Adrienne Wooten joined the Mayor.
The third stop was at the Lakeside Avenue Bridge on Lakeside Avenue in West Orange. A recent inspection report concluded the culvert, initially constructed in 1920, needed to be replaced because its condition was deteriorating.
The 36-foot-wide culvert carries two traffic lanes, with one traffic lane heading in each direction. The new structure will be a steel stringer and brick masonry jack arch supported on stone masonry abutments and will be similarly designed like the old one. Work started in August and was completed in less than three months.
“It’s good to see the County do such quality work quickly in West Orange. We are grateful for our relationship with the County that provides us with needed improvements to benefit our residents,” West Orange Councilman Bill Rutherford said.
The last stop was at the Marion Avenue Culvert on Marion Avenue in Millburn. A recent inspection report concluded the culvert, originally constructed in 1962, needed to be replaced because its condition was deteriorating. The 27-foot-wide culvert carries two traffic lanes, with one traffic lane heading in each direction.
The new structure will be a three-sided culvert, similarly designed like the old one. Work started in July and was completed in September.
“The replacement of this culvert will help us tremendously with our infrastructure and waterflow improvement. We are grateful to the County Executive and his team for getting this project done for the residents of the Township of Millburn,” Millburn Mayor Maggie Miggins said.
The Locust Avenue Bridge, Mitchell Street Culvert and Marion Avenue Culvert were packaged together in the same project, along with the Freeman Street Culvert over Foulerton’s Brook in Roseland.
French and Parrello were awarded a professional services contract to design the improvements to the four culverts and provide construction inspection services on the project. A publicly bid contract for $2,878,204 was awarded to Grade Construction from Paterson to replace the four culverts. The culvert improvements were funded with a grant from the NJ Department of Transportation Local Aid Program.
The Lakeside Avenue Culvert was a stand-alone project. Mott MacDonald from Iselin was awarded a professional services contract for $236,000 to design the new culvert. Pennoni Associates Inc. from Newark was awarded a $300,000 contract to perform construction inspection services for the Lakeside Avenue Culvert and the Dougal Place Culvert in West Caldwell projects.
A publicly bid contract for $537,218 was awarded to Colonnelli Brothers from Hackensack to perform the construction work. The culvert replacement funded with a grant from the NJ Department of Transportation Local Aid Program.