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Hearing delayed on Dorrance housing development

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Pittston Area track teams win to open 2017 season with a splash

<p>Lawrence Plesh is known as Luzerne County government&#8217;s &#8220;bridge guy,&#8221; the engineer tasked with figuring out which of the county&#8217;s 304 bridges get fixed.</p><p>It&#8217;s a daunting mission, Plesh said, because the demand for repairs and replacement bridges far outweighs available funding.</p><p>&#8220;Unless we have money to completely rehabilitate or replace them, we have to use our own workers,&#8221; Plesh said, referring to county road and bridge crews. &#8220;You&#8217;re getting a Band-Aid fix.&#8221;</p><p>Bridge repairs have become a debated topic nationwide as officials at all levels of government wrestle with aging infrastructure.</p><p>Of the 304 Luzerne County-owned bridges, 185 &#8212; or about six in 10 &#8212; are considered &#8220;structurally deficient&#8221; based on the latest inspections by outside contractors or Plesh, he said.</p><p>Bridges are rated structurally deficient if one or more of their major structural components deteriorate, which can result in weight limits or closure if they are deemed unsafe, officials say. These components are the deck, the superstructure and the foundation, according to Plesh, a certified bridge safety inspector.</p><p>Structurally deficient bridges are considered safe for travel but need costly repairs or replacement to meet current standards.</p><p>There are approximately 900 bridges in Luzerne County. The ones that aren&#8217;t owned by the county are owned either by the state or the municipalities where they stand.</p><p>The issues with county-owned bridges include erosion, cracked beams or other concrete elements, missing mortar joints, and the deterioration of headwalls, which are devices placed on the ends of bridges to help stabilize soil around the retaining walls that support the ends of bridges, Plesh said.</p><p>&#8220;That being said, all bridges, even new ones, have cracks,&#8221; he said, stressing that no operational county bridges are in danger of collapsing.</p><p>Overall, 26 county-owned bridges have weight limits, while two are closed &#8212; an 1895 steel bridge over Nescopeck Creek in Sugarloaf Township and a 1925 concrete slab bridge over Toby Creek in Kingston Township, according to a report compiled by Plesh.</p><p>The Division Street Bridge over Solomon Creek in Wilkes-Barre was demolished in 2014 after it partially collapsed into the creek. (No one was injured). County officials earmarked $1 million toward a replacement structure but said they can&#8217;t proceed unless Wilkes-Barre agrees to contribute the same amount, arguing the city is responsible for half the span. Discussions between the county and city are ongoing, but nothing has been finalized, according to county Manager C. David Pedri.</p><p>The age of county bridges is a major part of the problem, Plesh said, adding that those needing attention typically were built before 1980. The number in this category is approximately 256, or 84 percent of the county-owned bridges, his report shows.</p><p>At least 190 county bridges &#8212; 63 percent of the total inventory &#8212; were built before 1930.</p><p>The county inherited most of its bridges during the Great Depression, when municipalities didn&#8217;t have the financial means to care for the infrastructure.</p><p><strong>Longest spans</strong></p><p>Luzerne County bridges range from stone arches to concrete spans of various sizes to steel girders and trusses. Most cross over the many streams and creeks winding through the county.</p><p>The three longest are over the Susquehanna River: the Water Street Bridge in Pittston, the Shickshinny/Mocanaqua Bridge in Conyngham Township, and the Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge in Plymouth Township.</p><p>Built in 1920, the 1,500-foot steel Water Street Bridge &#8212; which connects West Pittston and Pittston &#8212; is deemed structurally deficient and carries a 20-ton weight limit, the county report shows. Plesh said the steel is &#8220;starting to deteriorate.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Is it still a viable bridge? Sure, but it&#8217;s going towards the end of its life cycle,&#8221; he said.</p><p>The county would need the state to help fund a replacement because it would cost millions of dollars, Plesh said. However, he said, financial aid is unlikely because the state owns the nearby Fort Jenkins Bridge &#8212; which was built in 1926 and also links Pittston and West Pittston &#8212; and state transportation officials are studying the feasibility of constructing a new bridge between the two spans.</p><p>State studies and design for a new bridge could take a decade, Plesh said.</p><p>&#8220;All we can do is maintain the Water Street Bridge in its current condition, to the best of our ability, and that&#8217;s what we&#8217;re currently doing until it gets removed from services,&#8221; he said.</p><p>The 880-foot Shickshinny/Mocanaqua Bridge isn&#8217;t a concern because it was built in 1994, Plesh said.</p><p>The Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge, a combination concrete and steel crossing spanning 2,072 feet, also is structurally deficient but has no weight limit, Plesh said. It requires continued maintenance and eventually will need replacement, he said.</p><p>County officials estimated a decade ago that the Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge would cost $25 million or more to replace.</p><p>&#8220;We would need state funding assistance for that. What we receive is not enough to cover it,&#8221; said Edmund O&#8217;Neill, head of the county&#8217;s operational services division.</p><p>The Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge is among 80 county-owned bridges that are eligible for federal and state bridge funding because they span more than 20 feet.</p><p>It can take years to get a bridge on the state plan, and several more years to complete the design and finish construction due to government specifications and requirements, Plesh said.</p><p>If bridges aren&#8217;t part of this program, the county must rely on three annual state revenue streams to pay for bridge work. This funding, which includes liquid fuels, is expected to generate $1.75 million in 2017, according to O&#8217;Neill and Plesh.</p><p>The $1 million earmarked for Division Street is an exception because it comes from dwindling funds the county borrowed in the past for capital projects. New borrowing isn&#8217;t an option at this time because the county still owes about $325 million in outstanding debt through 2030.</p><p>The 80 bridges over 20 feet in length must be inspected every two years unless they are structurally deficient, which requires annual or more frequent checks. The remaining 224 county bridge structures are inspected annually by Plesh.</p><p>Replacements of five bridges over 20 feet are currently in construction or design through the state program: two each in Huntington and Kingston townships, and one in Jackson Township, Plesh said.</p><p><strong>Prioritizing</strong></p><p>Every fall, Plesh reviews the latest inspections on county-owned bridges and develops an annual maintenance plan.</p><p>He ranks repairs and replacements based on their need for emergency evacuations and school transportation and the number of businesses and motorists they serve.</p><p>He also tries to bundle projects together for efficiency.</p><p>For example, county road and bridge crews soon will start installing new planks on three wooden-deck truss bridges &#8212; two in Butler Township and one in Sugarloaf Township. Two of these bridges have weight limits.</p><p><strong>Not afraid</strong></p><p>Pittston resident Michael Lombardo, who has served as mayor and in a variety of city leadership roles, said he&#8217;s talked with many residents about the Water Street Bridge over the years and hasn&#8217;t heard anyone express reservations about driving on the bridge or fears about its safety. But he did say motorists tend to slow down as they cross because the lanes are more narrow than those of newer spans.</p><p>While the Water Street Bridge looks dated, Lombardo said he doesn&#8217;t sense &#8220;a lot of movement&#8221; when he travels over it, as he did with the old Eighth Street Bridge in Jenkins Township, which was replaced years ago.</p><p>Lombardo said county officials would shut down the span and any other county bridges if they posed a risk to public safety.</p><p>&#8220;I have absolute confidence the county would not allow a circumstance that could be catastrophic,&#8221; Lombardo said.</p><p>The United States, however, has seen some deadly bridge collapses, including 13 fatalities when a portion of Interstate 35 West in Minneapolis dropped more than 60 feet into the Mississippi River in 2007.</p><p>In 1983, three people died when a 100-foot section of the Mianus Bridge in Greenwich, Conn., collapsed after one of the pins used in its construction broke off.</p><p>In 1967, there were 46 fatalities from the collapse of Silver Bridge, which connected Point Pleasant, W.Va., and Kanauga, Ohio.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">The Water Street Bridge, as seen from the entrance to Riverfront Park in Pittston, is a steel structure that spans 1,500 feet. The bridge, built in 1920, has been deemed &#8216;structurally deficient.&#8217; </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_Bridges2-2.jpg</photo0><caption0>The Water Street Bridge, as seen from the entrance to Riverfront Park in Pittston, is a steel structure that spans 1,500 feet. The bridge, built in 1920, has been deemed &#8216;structurally deficient.&#8217; </caption0><photoCredit0>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_TTL081315roadsandbridges_jen_2-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Luzerne County engineer Lawrence Plesh, right, speaks with a municipal official during a 2015 meeting about county-owned bridges and roads. The county owns one-third of the nearly 900 bridges in Luzerne County. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_TTL081315roadsandbridges_jen_2-2.jpg</photo1><caption1>Luzerne County engineer Lawrence Plesh, right, speaks with a municipal official during a 2015 meeting about county-owned bridges and roads. The county owns one-third of the nearly 900 bridges in Luzerne County. </caption1><photoCredit1>Times Leader file photo </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_TTL090515bridge1-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">In this 2015 photo, Wilkes-Barre mayoral candidates Frank Sorick and Tony George, right, meet at the site of the demolished Division Street Bridge between Hanover Township and Wilkes-Barre to discuss their support for a replacement structure. The estimated $2 million needed for the project still has not been secured. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_TTL090515bridge1-2.jpg</photo2><caption2>In this 2015 photo, Wilkes-Barre mayoral candidates Frank Sorick and Tony George, right, meet at the site of the demolished Division Street Bridge between Hanover Township and Wilkes-Barre to discuss their support for a replacement structure. The estimated $2 million needed for the project still has not been secured. </caption2><photoCredit2>Times Leader file photo </photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_Bridges3-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">The Water Street Bridge in Pittston. 4/4/17. Sean McKeag | Times Leader</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_Bridges3-2.jpg</photo3><caption3>The Water Street Bridge in Pittston. 4/4/17. Sean McKeag | Times Leader</caption3><photoCredit3>Times Leader file photo </photoCredit3></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_Bridges4-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Rust is seen on a support beam on the Water Street Bridge in Pittston. The span carries a 20-ton weight limit. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo4>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_Bridges4-2.jpg</photo4><caption4>Rust is seen on a support beam on the Water Street Bridge in Pittston. The span carries a 20-ton weight limit. </caption4><photoCredit4>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit4></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_Bridges1-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">The Water Street Bridge, which connects West Pittston and Pittston, is &#8216;starting to deteriorate&#8217; and is &#8216;going towards the end of its life cycle,&#8217; according to a bridge safety inspector. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo5>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/web1_Bridges1-2.jpg</photo5><caption5>The Water Street Bridge, which connects West Pittston and Pittston, is &#8216;starting to deteriorate&#8217; and is &#8216;going towards the end of its life cycle,&#8217; according to a bridge safety inspector. </caption5><photoCredit5>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit5></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jennifer Learn-Andes</p><p>jandes@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p><strong>THE SERIES</strong></p><p>We drive on them, bicycle on them, walk on them. But it isn&#8217;t always easy. In a three-part series, the Times Leader looks at three problem areas in our system of roads and highways.</p><p>&#8226; <strong>Monday</strong>: potholes</p><p>&#8226; <strong>Tuesday</strong>: snow</p><p>&#8226; <strong>TODAY</strong>: bridges</p><p>On the web: timesleader.com/tag/PAroads</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

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With 60% of county-owned bridges ‘structurally deficient,’ repairs a key topic