Joey Kaempfer is a 1965 graduate of Staples High School.
After working on commercial real estate projects around the world, he moved back to Westport. He lives near Saugatuck Shores, and drives through Saugatuck often. Joey writes:
I have watched and listened to the back and forth about our 143-year-old Cribari Bridge for some time. I have traveled across it in cars, bicycles and by foot on and off for nearly 70 years.
So, as a Westporter, I wish to offer a few thoughts.
First, I understand and completely concur with the idea of not curing the ills of an overcrowded I-95 by running giant trucks through the village.
Second, I have had the pleasure of living in antique houses, and in my business career rebuilding a number of old structures around the world. I do not find the Cribari either charming or pretty, except at Christmas time with its colored lights.
Yes, it’s old, but mere age isn’t really a meaningful reason to retain something that has outlasted its useful life. I say that as someone who is often nostalgic about older buildings, houses, and objects of beauty.
Mere age is not a reason to retain something that has outlived its useful life, says Joey Kaempfer.
I would like to see the bridge, or part of it, moved closer to town as a footbridge near the Library, or as an interesting replacement for the Kings Highway bridge near the medical park formerly known as Fort Apache.
We could then build a magnificent modern bridge in Cribari’s stead. It could be genuinely beautiful, perhaps designed by a remarkably talented architect. (Perhaps Jon Pickard of New Haven, the former head designer at the late Cesar Peilli’s office, or someone like Norman Foster in London, or another notable and brilliant designer.)
I would be delighted to pay the differential cost for this great design over yet another dull river crossing. Such a bridge could help lift up our wonderful town, by showing what startling design can do. I have found great design to be contagious.
One example of a modern bridge design. Joey Kaempfer notes, “Ours would be smaller and more delicate. But great design can lift the spirits of those who see and travel across it.”
The replacement bridge could be slightly wider; be more graciously proportioned; have a simple, modern mechanism to allow taller boats to pass, and still not be designed to allow large, noisy trucks trying to avoid I-95 congestion.
I see this as an opportunity for Westport to keep some history, while creating something accretive to the beauty and charm of our town.
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I love that so many people are contributing interesting ideas about this bridge. The first step is to get DOT to agree that 18 wheelers are not welcome.
Any replacement span, per FHWA regs, will be tall enough to accept “all legal loads”. Period.
Great idea.
Love this idea. Perhaps a design contest would create even more abundant community interest.
Love the idea of a footbridge closer to town. It might help the downtown parking issues. I’m enjoying all the creative contributions to the issue. How fortunate are we to have so many curious thinkers amongst us. However, I agree with Mandell that we need to have a united approach tonight and once we are assured we won’t be a haven for trucks avoiding I95 congestion we can talk about things like design. Top on the agenda for the CT DOT tonight is to make it possible for more traffic to move through Westport. Top on Westport’s agenda – no more traffic moving through Westport, truck or otherwise. Given the number of apartment complexes being built and there are likely more to come – Westport will develop quickly into a town with a very poor quality of life given the environmental impact.
Whatever is chosen, perhaps a rotary where Bridge Street terminates with Riverside Avenue, might be appropriate.
Dan, The original name for the bridge had Bill’s nickname in it. That was vetoed by Bill’s old buddies………….do you know his nickname?
I’ve heard whispers ‼️🤩🇺🇸
Crowbar
Just to clarify, because facts matter, in any version—including the no-build, a.k.a. repair what’s there—the CTDOT will restore the truck height to 13’6″ for all legal loads, as Morley sort of stated. This applies to any concept, whether restoration, rehab, adaptive reuse, or replacement.
The engineer I spoke with last night(3/19) at the public hearing with CTDOT stated that both the No Build and the Conservation options will retain the present 12’7″ posted vertical limit and will not entail moving the electrical box. These heights are contrary to the information provided in table ES-1 of the EA/EIE document. The Rehabilitation option as presented will however include relocating the electrical box and provide somewhere between 13’11” and 14’3″ as correctly presented in the same chart.
Interesting, they must have changed the plan for the hanging electrical box, since in every option we discussed during the 6 PAC meetings it was always stated that the box had to be remounted outside the roadway so a wandering truck wouldn’t rip it off the truss. Apparently, it keeps shifting every time the span opens, according to CTDOT. Maybe an email to confirm is in order?
just email them. stand by.
Confirmed , the sagging electric box will be removed from the trusses so its protected from the road way on all options.
Well then one of us has been given wrong information. I was speaking with the engineer standing in front of the Rehabilitation posterboard before the presentation who gave me the information stated above. I also asked several of the other CTDOT people in the lobby and none of them could give me a definitive answer. All of them directed me to that particular engineer in the room for clarification on the vertical clearances.
Ask’em and reply.
I love the idea of a new, modern bridge and retaining the existing bridge as a footbridge. I also agree that a way needs to be found to keep tractor trailers away from Saugatuck. And we need more than one rotary in town – the horrendous intersection near what used to be Exit 42 (I cannot remember the new number) is a prime example. A rotary in Saugatuck might help with traffic congestion; I wonder if it would also deter tractor trailers… And, Joey Kaempfer has it right that age alone is not a reason to keep something.
Common sense is coming out of the woodwork. Several comments are from perpetual naysayers. The bottom line is that there needs to be a way of alleviating horrific traffic along the spine of Saugatuck several hours every single working day and the heart-pounding experience of traversing a dangerous, dilapidated, war-scarred structure that has more than seen its day.
Want to salvage an icon and not impose it on the general public? Then support moving the Cribari Bridge somewhere it can be seen and enjoyed as a footbridge, as suggested. Height and other restrictions can adequately deal with the issue of oversized trucks. Join a win-win solution.
There is a profound lack of imagination on how to keep trucks off of Bridge Street and Greens Farm Road. There have been multiple previous suggestions but I’d like to add one more.
Make the area between South Compo and the Connector a “gated community”. It’s done all the time in Florida to keep out the riff raff.
Basically, install unmanned gates at either end of Green Farms Road that open with a scanner reading tags issued to cars registered in Westport. Maybe sell a limited number of tags to non-Westporters to help pay the cost of installation and maintenance as well as Westporter’s that choose to register their cars out of state depriving the town of related property tax revenue.
Maybe even keep the gates open most of the time but with Werner and/or the Greens Farms Association given the ability to close them during rush hour when they think there might be overflow traffic.
C’mon people. Use some of that famous Westport creativity.
Whoa Bill! What status are you conferring on me? I’m no gatekeeper.
And Bill, you might have gotten an appropriate reaction to your gated community suggestion at the CTDOT meeting tonight when Westport RTM members thwarted CTDOT’s feckless attempt to stifle members of the public speaking at a public hearing…( a strange new world conceived by frightened bureacrats?)
My hope is that, if I have done anything in this discussion, it is to remind Westporters that engaged activism is important, effective, and vital.
Is Greens Farms Rd. a state road?
No.
When I was a kid, and as Matt Murray and others might recall, there were several Rotarys(sp) in Westport: Riverside and 33, Weston Rd and Main St, Canal and Main…Rotary/Roundabouts “invented” in Westport by Mr Eno…
I think they should consider moving the bridge to Riverside park. Currently the park, not far down the river has two sides to walk that end at the river, like a C shape. I think the bridge could connect them to continue down the other side & walk laps.
That’s definitely something that might work and it keeps it in Saugatuck , possible be done by water with the cranes on site for the bridge work, we want minimal disruption. The truss system is extremely heavy but I Love it! keeping that one.
Joey (and others), thanks for shaking things up – perhaps the best of both worlds approach – never too late for better ideas