As promised a new road in Bridgeport is under construction. And as promised, it’s being done by staff of the City of Bridgeport.

 

Parks and Recreation Director Don Burton confirmed that work has begun on what will be a new concrete roadway that will run off of the parking lot of the Benedum Civic Center behind the building and to an area approaching the fence at the Bridgeport City Pool.

 

The road will be 160 feet long by 10 feet wide. It will begin where there is an opening between the small concrete parking lot retaining wall and go all the way back to the corner of the building, stopping short of the earth ramp that leads into the pool. To help set the stage for the project, the concrete retaining wall from the parking lot into the area behind the building has been partially removed. Already, the infrastructure – primarily the replacement and upgrade of a sewer line – is complete.

 

“The initial work that is taking place is the removal of the old sidewalk and steps going to the back door of the Civic Center,” said Burton. “They’re going to form it, put a gravel base down and then lay the concrete.”

 

The road is being done to help make the facility more conducive to those who utilize it, as well as for other issues. Burton said the backside of the building will be accessible for deliveries and limited drop off for seniors and individuals with disabilities.

 

“This is a convenience factor for customers and patrons of the facility,” said Burton. “We have a lot of groups that this will help with and for deliveries of major items, it’s going to create a much easier process than going through the building either down the steps or using the small elevators. For some, not having to negotiate the stairs of walk in from the parking lot as opposed to being dropped off right at the back entrance will be a tremendous benefit.”

 

One thing the new road won’t have added near it behind the building is parking spaces. The road is simply for access purposes. Burton also said that barring the pouring of the concrete, the work shouldn’t interrupt parking accessibility at the complex for any significant time period.

 

While that project is being done, other work is also on the table. Burton said the existing concrete retaining/flood wall along the existing parking lot that was broke up to make way for the new road will be cosmetically improved.

 

“That will be fixed and we’re also going to restripe the parking, which may eliminate a few spaces,” said Burton. “The angled parking should help with the problem of people backing into the wall. We get more complaints on that than anything. The angled parking should eliminate that.”

The project is being done by the city’s concrete work crew. The project has a wide range of cost depending on how much labor is needed to complete it or any issues that could arise. The estimate could be as low at $10,000 or as high as $20,000.