Village of Great Neck to consider footbridge connecting two neighborhoods

Joe Nikic

Village of Great Neck trustees are considering the construction of a footbridge between the southern end of Essex Road and northern side of Wooleys Lane to connect two sections of the village that are currently divided by a ravine.

Allegra Goldberg, a village Planning Board member, introduced the footbridge plan at Tuesday’s Board of Trustees meeting.

“Simply it would connect the Allenwood section of the neighborhood to the Baker Hill section,” she said. “Right now, to walk between the two you have to walk up to Middle Neck Road or up to Cambridge Road.”

The land of the proposed footbridge is partially owned by the village and partially owned by the Great Neck Park District, Goldberg said.

Department of Public Works Superintendent Louis Massaro said the ravine is part of Nassau County’s drainage system.

Goldberg said she had brought the idea to park district commissioners in 2012 and was met with support.

She said former village Mayor Ralph Kreitzman had turned down the idea and never made it an agenda item for a board meeting.

Anthony Santoro, a sales engineer for Contech Engineering Services, which would be building the footbridge, said the estimated cost for the bridge was $50,000.

“The reason this is a cost estimate is because we don’t know what the soil reports are going to tell us, how far away from the ravine it has to be, what sized footings, whose going to design the footings, whose going to install it,” Santoro said. “There’s a lot of arbitrary things here. The cost estimate is just to get the ball rolling and have you understand what structure you’re looking at, what it provides and where its going to take you.”

Contech also provided the railroad precast structures for the construction of the Colonial Road Bridge in Thomaston.

Village Mayor Pedram Bral said he wanted to see if the park district was interested in splitting the costs for the bridge’s construction.

Several residents at the meeting voiced their support for the bridge.

Edna Guilor, an architect and former village trustee, said she thought the footbridge would be a good addition for the village.

“I believe that this is a beautification of the village. It’s an amazing concept,” Guilor said. “I think it’s a beautiful way of walking and connecting the village. I just heard about it now, and I think it’s a great idea.”

She also said the board should consider contacting North Hempstead Town Supervisor Judi Bosworth, who is awarding beautification grants to villages.

“I think it would be better for everyone if they didn’t have to go through the more industrial area of the town and can instead walk through the neighborhood which is much nicer for everyone involved,” said Sarah Hirschfeld, who lives two homes down from where the proposed footbridge would be placed on Wooleys Lane.

As well as the aesthetic advantages, Trustee Barton Sobel said the footbridge would provide a safer way for children who cross the ravine while playing with friends to get to the other side.

“This would connect two parts of our village that are currently separated,” Sobel said. “It would also prevent what I think is a dangerous situation with young children crossing that ravine.”

The board directed Village Clerk-Treasurer Joe Gill to contact the park district and county to discuss details of the project before moving forward with the plan.

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