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DOT Chief Answers

Safety is top reason for replacing Route 36 bridge


BY KRIS KOLLURI
(OpEd column in the Asbury Park Press, January 10, 2007)

The Route 36 Highlands Bridge is critical to the safety and vitality of our transportation network and to the economic vibrancy of Monmouth County.

In recent days, some concerns have been raised about the need to replace the bridge. I understand these concerns. However, we must move forward with replacing the existing bridge, which is structurally deficient and functionally obsolete.

After reviewing the structural, environmental, operational, socioeconomic and cost impacts — and based on the professional judgment of state Department of Transportation bridge engineers — I have concluded that the existing movable bridge should be replaced with a fixed-span structure.

This decision was based on three key considerations: safety, reliability and cost efficiency. I would like to outline the factors that led me to this conclusion.
Safety: This project is an especially high priority for us, not only due to the poor condition of the bridge but because Route 36 is the official coastal evacuation route for Sea Bright and the Gateway National Recreational Area (Sandy Hook).
At 75 years old, the existing bridge is at the end of its service life and is ranked eighth on the list of worst movable bridges in the state. The span has experienced significant structural deterioration and will soon be subject to weight restrictions if it remains open. In addition, the bridge lacks shoulders and adequate accommodations for pedestrians and bicyclists.

Reliability: The existing bridge is subject to frequent mechanical failures, as well as closures on hot days when the expansion of steel makes it impossible to open or close the bridge. The total length of these closures in recent years adds up to six days, including one failure at the height of the summer travel season that resulted in four-hour traffic delays. This level of reliability is unacceptable for an official evacuation route.

Cost efficiency: A story in the Jan. 7 Press inaccurately reported there has been a recent increase in the cost of the project. Not so. The estimated overall project cost remains about $120 million, of which $99.5 million would be spent on construction.

While this may seem like a lot of money, a replacement bridge is the most prudent course of action. The state spent nearly $1 million last year alone to keep the existing bridge in service. Repairing it will cost more than $50 million and could be expected to only add about 10 years to its life. After that, the bridge will still need to be replaced — at a significantly higher cost.

A new bridge will enhance safety with wider travel lanes and shoulders for motorists, physically separated sidewalks and bike paths as well as a center median. The additional capacity will accommodate more vehicles per hour than the existing bridge, easing congestion. Moreover, as a fixed-span, the new bridge will not be subject to closure due to mechanical failures or temperature, providing a reliable and safe evacuation route for coastal areas.

From the earliest stages, this project has enjoyed an unprecedented level of cooperation and partnership between the DOT and the state Department of Environmental Protection's State Historic Preservation Office. The communities that stand to benefit from the new bridge — Sea Bright and Highlands — have passed five resolutions of support over the life of the project.

I have always said the DOT's projects must meet strict criteria in the areas of consensus, fiscal accountability and safety. This project meets all of those requirements and should move forward.
I am convinced we have taken all responsible steps to select the most feasible and viable alternative. It is in the public's best interest to advance this project.

Kris Kolluri is the state commissioner of transportation.

What happened to Winter?

Winter in Highlands before Al Gore invented global warming

President Ford: Rest in Peace

Merry Christmas

From Carla:

Politics at it’s worst!

I write this letter out of deep concern for my children, parents and my family. I was a Republican Candidate in the Borough of Highlands. Since the loss of the election I have heard many horrifying rumors that need to stop. Friends, clients, colleagues and school PTO members, have approached me from our community asking me if I was arrested on Election Night in Middletown. For the record, I was not arrested on Election night, in Middletown or anywhere else! However, it makes me sad that my children may suffer from these rumors in school. I also serve as the President to the Highlands Business Improvement District and have good credibility with most of my colleagues. I do not want to tarnish the reputation of our viable organization with Rumor Mongers.

On another note, on August 10, 2006 my family and I set out for a family reunion in Pittsburgh, PA. Prior to leaving late in the afternoon, my eight-year old son Alex and I were distributing flyers for an event in town hosted by the Highlands Business Partnership. I was trying to meet a production deadline before heading out to PA. My son wore his sneakers with wheels because he thought we could go faster as he was excited to get on the road. We delivered to Welsh Farms and Driftwood. I did not want him to go in the bar with me so I told him to wheel around to Just Round the Corner Pizza in the same lot to drop flyers and not to go in the busy parking lot. We then met up and were heading across the way to the Claddagh. A woman approached us and started threatening me in my face. I did not know who she was and never saw her before. She said, “Hey Carla, you better watch your back”, I replied, I am sorry Miss do I know you? She proceeded to threaten me again and again stating she knew what I was writing about her. By this time my son was getting nervous and said lets go Mommy, come on let’s go. Because I did not know who she was and I did not have my glasses, I asked my son to get her license plate. He was upset and wanted to go back to our office and see his Dad. We told my husband what happened and decided to call the Police since my 8 year old was scared. The detective was able to locate the resident. She was a resident in the Paradise Trailer Park. She was upset about some writing that I had absolutely nothing to do with. We left for PA and all weekend my son kept saying “here comes a green car Daddy, there goes a green car Mommy”. We explained that we were 300 hundred miles away and everything was ok. When we came home on Monday evening my son was still talking about it. I then decided to sign a complaint at the Highlands Court Clerk’s office in an attempt to get an apology for my son. I received a court notice form Highlands to appear on September 12, 2006 at 3PM. The following week, I received a Change In Court Date Notice from Highlands Boro Municipal Court for October 16, 2006 at 5PM with a hand written note on it that it was being heard in the Atlantic Highlands Court. Shortly after I received a letter dated September 21, 2006 from the Atlantic Highlands Municipal Court addressed to Middletown Municipal Court stating that William Eaton ESQ. was representing this Paradise Trailer Park Resident, and due to his role on the Harbor Commission in AH, he had a conflict and the case would be heard in Middletown on November 8, 2006 at 8:30 AM. During the election, a very close family member died and I had to attend a funeral at 8AM on November 8th in Staten Island. With all of the emotions of the election and the death in my family, I forgot to call the Middletown Court and advise them of my circumstance. Needless to say since I did not appear for the COMPLAINT THAT I FILED, the case was dismissed. I believe the rumors mentioned above were possibly related to this incident. I was the VICTIM, not the person charged. The only reason I initially signed a complaint was to get an apology for my 8-year-old son whom she scared by threatening me. These rumors need to STOP!


Sincerely,


Carla Cefalo-Braswell

Another list Highlands didn't make

3 Monmouth towns get tax-relief grant

Save the Bridge

From James Parla, Jr., Frederick W. Callis, Laura Adler, and S. Adler, Esq

November 17, 2006

MORE THAN 200 LETTERS HELPED SAVE
THE HISTORIC TWIN LIGHTS HIGHLANDS DRAWBRIDGE!
PLEASE JOIN US IN COLLECTING 1000 LETTERS TO MAKE THAT SUCCESS PERMANENT!

Only three months ago, four of us attended a hearing on August 17 in Trenton. We were shocked. The Department of Transportation (DOT) testified they needed to demolish the Highlands Drawbridge because the local residents were demanding it!

The DOT thought no one from Highlands was there. But we were. So we stood up. We said it wasn’t true. We said the local people love the drawbridge. We said we’d all been told our bridge was falling down. We’d all been told our bridge was dangerous. We’d all been told we had no choice. We said the local people want the drawbridge repaired and upgraded.

Suddenly, public officials began asking tough questions of the other public officials. Instead of answering the tough questions, the lead DOT official stood up to announce they were temporarily withdrawing their application! Four regular people showed up in Trenton and temporarily stopped a $137 million project!

The DOT had been saying one thing to the local people, and exactly the opposite when it came time to go on the record in Trenton. Every reason sounded sensible on the surface. But with a bit of digging it became clear that none of those reasons were valid. Even the DOT’s own engineer on the record in Trenton said, “It’s not…dangerous, of course, or unsafe.” If you want more details, we have supplemental information we can get to you.

We learned a few things.

We learned that the US Congress last year approved $300 billion in spending to build new transportation infrastructure – including bridges. Suddenly the world’s largest heavy construction firms were busy coming to communities like ours to convince them their bridges needed to be replaced with new bridges – and the bigger the better! In Highlands, the JE Jacobs engineering firm had come to town. A Forbes Global 2000 heavy construction corporation, it was the same Jacobs engineering firm that had been involved with the Big Dig tunnel fiasco in Boston!

So we started asking around. We found a couple of people who didn’t care. But nearly everyone else from the area was so upset that they wrote letters. Eventually, we had over two hundred.

The DOT tried to submit their application again. So we showed up in Trenton again. We presented that stack of individually written letters. The public officials on the Historic Sites Council said they had never seen so many letters on a single issue! And this time, they didn’t buy the arguments the DOT was presenting. So the Historic Sites Council unanimously recommended their Commissioner deny the DOT’s application.

Good job team!! All those letters made a difference!

Attached below is a front-page article from this week’s Hub newspaper, along with a letter to the editor. Take a look at what people are saying!

Hub Story


Next this decision goes to the Commissioner of the DEP. She is not likely to make her decision without consulting with the Governor. So next we’ve got to persuade them. WE NEED YOUR LETTERS

It took 200 letters to convince the Historic Sites Council. It may take 1000 letters to convince the Governor. So today we are setting out to collect 1000 letters. Please join us! With the help of neighbors, schoolmates, relatives, friends and co-workers, we can still save our charming drawbridge!

This is no time for seeing both sides of the issue. Either the drawbridge comes down, or it doesn’t. If it comes down, the new bridge will either be a drawbridge or a fixed bridge twice its height. Tell them what you want them to do.
Assume that if we do want to keep our drawbridge, the officials can find the money to upgrade it and maintain it. In the worst case, we can get a replacement drawbridge. It happened in other towns. Mantaloking got a new drawbridge. Rumson hopes to get two new drawbridges.

Most people are especially upset about safety. Can you imagine what it would be like to drive over a steep bridge in winter? After all, we live along the ocean, and black ice on a steep bridge would be a real danger. Meanwhile, the bridge we’ve got is nearly flat – and it has one of the safest records.

WRITING YOUR LETTER

Please don’t waste time. If you want to take days to write your letter, please write a quick one now and update it with a second one later. Every letter counts. A husband and wife should each write their own. Kids can write their own. Professional-looking letters get the most attention, but if you can get a handwritten letter to us more quickly, then write a handwritten one!
Be sure to include: 1.Your name, 2.Your address, 3.Your signature, 4.professional affiliation, if you feel comfortable mentioning this.

If you’re mad, tell them why! If you think we’ve all been lied to, then say so! If you think we’ve all been tricked, then say that!

Your letter should start with “Dear Public Officials.” Get your letter to us by hand or by mail. We’ll make sure copies get to all the right people.
If you want to do more after you’ve written your own letter, then please find four friends or relatives, and ask them to write a letter. Remember: The goal is 1000 letters. If you want to do more, such as writing a letter to the editor, then please talk to us first. If you send us an email, we’ll do our best to stay in touch.
And kids are welcome to make a drawing of the drawbridge while it still stands. We’ll get those to the Governor, too!
Thanks!

James Parla, Jr., Frederick W. Callis, Laura Adler, and S. Adler, Esq., and over 200 of your friends and neighbors who feel similarly.

Deliver your letters to Jim Parla at:
16 Portland Road, Highlands, NJ 07732 (732) 872-2064 (ajparla@aol.com)

Anna Little to be sworn in as elected Freeholder

Anna Little will be sworn in as an elected Freeholder on Tuesday November 21 at 7pm during the Freeholders meeting in the Hall of Records, Freehold.

Friends, neighbors and supporters are encouraged to attend. A victory celebration will be held after the meeting at the Metropolitan Cafe.

What does that flag mean?

From the Anti-Defamation League:

Symbol Type: General Racist Symbol

Traditional Use/Origins: Civil War/Old South

Hate Group/Extremist Organization: White Supremacists

Extremist Meaning or Representation: White southern pride

Background/History: Although the flag is seen by some Southerners simply as a symbol of Southern pride, it is often used by racists to represent white domination of African-Americans. The flag remains a subject of controversy because some Southern states still fly the flag from public buildings or incorporate it into their state flag’s design. The flag is also used by racists as an alternative to the American flag, which they consider to be an emblem of what they describe as the Jewish-controlled government.


I have been shocked and saddened by the reaction of some to my making an issue of this flag on Mr. Urbanski's property. It seems that for some, my making an issue of the flag is more of a controversy than the flag itself.

I suppose it is understandable that some would think that I am expressing sour grapes, given that I just lost a hard fought election to Mr. Urbanski. I don't think I am, but even if I am, so what...look at that flag! What is it doing here? And why has it replaced the American flag?

Some have protested that the flag is not Mr. Urbanski's, but rather his tenant's. I wonder if those making those protests really believe that the flag is beyond Mr. Urbanski's control. That is just not credible. Mr. Urbanski owns the property. He lives there with his wife and children. He conducts his business, and much of the Borough's business from that property. That he is powerless to remove the flag or that he does not approve of it being there is just not credible. I doubt there is a lease that says the tenant controls the flag pole and what flies on it.

The flag does not reflect well on Mr. Urbanski, and it doesn't reflect well on Highlands. I hope he takes it down soon.