WESTCHESTER COUNTY LEGISLATOR GORDON A. BURROWS LEADS IN ODELL AVENUE BRIDGE RECONSTRUCTION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 12, 2007

Westchester County Legislator Gordon A. Burrows is facilitatiing a series of improvements to the Odell Avenue Bridge in Yonkers.

Burrows said, “The Odell Avenue Bridge is a key corridor for Westchester in general and Yonkers in particular. For example, often it is the most direct route to St. John’s-Riverside hospital.”

At a meeting facilitated by Legislator Burrows, officials from the State, the County, and the City agreed to widen the Odell Avenue Bridge, to prepare for building walkways on the north and south side of the bridge, to put pedestrian handrails on the bridge parapets, and to install vandal resistant lighting under the bridge. In addition, the County plans to create more openness at the bike path underpass on the old Putnam Railroad right of way.

Construction is approximately six months, but traffic will be detoured only during the period of July 5, 2008 to the start of school in September, 2008, a time when there is normally less congestion as people are away on vacation and school is out. State leaders have committed to looking for state facilities to ease the traffic burden that summer.

Burrows’s meeting took place Thursday, March 8 at the foot of the bridge in Homefield House, 911 Saw Mill River Road, Yonkers. Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Assemblymember Michael Spano, Yonkers City Councilmember Dee Barbato, and Yonkers Deputy Mayor William Regan joined Legislator Burrows, Westchester Deputy Commissioner of Public Works John Hsu, and community leaders such as John Larkin and Kathy Kuhnel in looking for plans to make the repaired bridge a better bridge and to make the transition as easy as possible.

“The important factor,” said Burrows, “is to have all the key players talking to one another well before the contracts are signed and the plans are finalized.”

Specific new commitments coming from the meeeting include:

1. The County will widen the opening for the bike path to at least 30 feet.
2. The County will install vandal resistant lighting under the bridge.
3. The County will widen the bridge to accommodate two sidewalks. Only one sidewalk will be installed until the state acts to widen its’ portion of the bridge.
4. The City will look into providing access to the second (south) sidewalk.
5. The County will install pedestrian hand rails on the north parapet on the County’s portion of the bridge.
6. Senator Stewart-Cousins and Assemblymember Spano will encourage the State to open up the adjacent State work station as a temporary (eight week) entrance to the Saw Mill River Parkway.