Dryden in initial stages of Freese bridge replacement

Town of Dryden officials are in the beginning stages of replacing the current one-way Freese Road bridge in the hamlet of Varna, according to a discussion at the Town Board meeting on Dec. 16.

The bridge has been closed to vehicles by the Tompkins County Highway Department since Dec. 10 due to structural issues and weight-limit concerns. Between 2019 and now, the bridge’s weight limit was lowered from 15 to three tons.

Town Board member Jim Skaley, who lives in the hamlet of Varna, noted the bridge is still open to foot and bike traffic.

The bridge was built in 1882 by the Groton Bridge Co. It is one of the last two-span, pin-connected Pratt pony truss bridges left in America, Town Deputy Supervisor Dan Lamb said back in March of this year.

The process of replacing the bridge involves six stages, with Lamb saying that Dryden has begun the first stage. Parts of the six-stage process include revising and designing a plan for a new bridge, designing the new bridge — which Lamb said takes three submittals and review from the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) — and to advertise and bid out the project to construction companies, which could take place by the 2022 fall season.

Due to the length of the timeline, Lamb noted he doesn’t see construction of the new bridge happening until 2023.

“This has been a big disruption [in terms of cars] for people, but if we gain some traction with DOT, we might be able to move this along a lot quicker than expected,” Lamb said of the bridge.

Lamb mentioned that once the bid for bridge construction is awarded, the contractor will be “notified and start the process of getting material prefabrication [together].”

“Then, we can do work on removing the former bridge,” he added. “It’s exciting to see this move forward.”

Lamb said the bridge will be “technically demolished” but preserved for the village of Groton for display in the area. Dryden and Groton are currently under a memorandum of understanding for the potential exchange, which means the preserved bridge could be an “outdoor attraction” for the Groton area, Lamb added.

Dryden would potentially sell the bridge to Groton for $1, Lamb said.

At the Dec. 16 meeting, outgoing County Legislator Martha Robertson, who represents the town of Dryden, was surprised to hear construction of a new bridge on Freese Road “likely won’t happen” for another year or more.

This prompted Robertson to suggest putting in a bailey-type bridge. This type of structure is a temporary, pre-fabricated and factory-made bridge that performs the “function of a regular bridge and is easy to install,” she added.

“There’s another installed somewhere in [Tompkins] County,” she said. “It was initially installed as a short-term option, but the county left it there because it’s been working great.”

Robertson mentioned the county could buy the bridge for the town, saying “maybe that would be a way around the inconvenience of such a long closure.”

“It’s good to have on hand for situations on something that will take a long time to reopen,” she added.

Lamb responded to Robertson by noting, “We can’t remove the original bridge until we have the design plans approved for a new one.”

“Removing what’s currently there is part of the replacement process,” Lamb said. “It’s something we can’t do incrementally.”

Further details on the replacement of the Freese Road bridge will be discussed in the coming months, Lamb said.

Dryden Dispatch appears every week in Tompkins Weekly. Send story ideas to editorial@vizellamedia.com.

In brief:

Meetings scheduled for the month of January

Here are upcoming meetings for the villages of Freeville and Dryden and the town of Dryden.

The Village of Freeville Board of Trustees is slated to meet Jan. 4 at 7:30 p.m. at the Village Hall on Factory Street.

The Village of Dryden Board of Trustees is scheduled to meet Jan. 19 at 7 p.m. on the second floor of the Dryden Village Hall on South Street.

The Dryden Town Board will have its annual organizational meeting Jan. 6 at 6 p.m. and its business meeting Jan. 20 at 6 p.m. Each meeting is a hybrid option, which means patrons can attend the meeting remotely or in person at the town hall on East Main Street.

New book for the Story Walk in the village of Dryden

A new book is on display on the Story Walk at the Jim Schug trail in the village of Dryden.

According to the Family Reading Partnership in Ithaca, the book is “Frederick” by Leo Lionni. It is about a family of field mice getting ready for winter. The family learns along the way that even though someone’s work might not look important, every contribution is valuable to the group.

The beginning of the Story Walk at the Jim Schug Trail can be accessed adjacent to the Dryden Agway hardware store, which is on 59 W. Main St. in the village.