The multimillion-dollar Kahkwa Bridge project in west Erie remains stalled — but it could be on track as soon as July.
For the second time in a little more than a month, Erie City Council declined to approve a $2.4 million construction contract with Chivers Construction Co. of Fairview for the bridge work.
At its regular meeting on Wednesday morning, City Council tabled the Chivers contract until its July 3 meeting to give city officials time to resolve a funding gap for the project.
Several council members have expressed concern that the contract amount is roughly $700,000 higher than the city’s previous $1.7 million estimate, while some of those on the seven-member panel have questioned whether a majority of residents living nearthe bridge still wantedit to bebuilt.
City officials said Chivers' bid was the lowest received by the city; bids were opened on April 22.
Council rejected the construction contract at its May 1 meeting.
The new bridge would replace the original 101-year-old bridge that was demolished in October 2021 over concerns about its crumbling condition, including deteriorating and falling concrete.
The bridge connected two sections of Kahkwa Boulevard as it goes over Ravine Drive and was the only route to the Erie Yacht Club and Ferncliff, a group of bayfront houses east of the club.
Plugging a funding gap
Officials with Mayor Joe Schember’s administration have assured council members that plans are in place to cover the higherconstruction costs, including a $300,000 donation to the projectfrom Des McDonald, a South Shore Drive resident and the president/CEO of Erie valve manufacturer Solenoid Solutions.
In a May 31 e-mail to City Council members, Schember’s chief of staff, Renee Lamis, wrote that in addition to the McDonald donation, city officials believe they can secure at least an additional $375,000 for the bridge project via the Erie County Metropolitan Planning Organization.
The MPO is the public body that allocates funding for transportation projects countywide. The group's Local Use Fee subcommittee has given preliminary approval to the additional money, Lamis wrote.
However, a full MPO vote must approve the allocation and the group does not meet until June 26, she said.City Council members said it made sense to delay approval of the Chivers contract until after the MPO's June 26 meeting.
The bridge’s funding already includes $1.75 million in MPO money that City Council previously allocated/approved, generated via an additional $5 fee Erie County motorists started paying in 2018 to register their vehicles.
City Councilman Chuck Nelson said he expects the issue to be resolved by the July 3 meeting, but City Council has to know “where all the funds are” before approving the Kahkwa Bridge construction contract.
“I hope you can all understand that,” Nelson said. “If we did move forward without knowing, I would hope you would vote us out of office.”
Council President Jasmine Flores agreed.
“Hopefully we can come to a conclusion in the coming weeks that everybody will be happy with,” Flores said.
Along with Nelson and Flores, council members Maurice Troop, Tyler Titus and Kathy Schaaf voted to table the Chivers contract.Council members Ed Brzezinski and Mel Witherspoon voted against the move.
Brzezinski said he voted against tabling because he has faith that the MPO will approve the additional funding and he didn’t think delaying approval of the contract was necessary.
“We will pass this bridge,” Brzezinski said.
Bridge project details
City officials had hoped to start construction of the new Kahkwa Bridge in early June and finish the project sometime in October.
A multi-girder design was selected as the best option for the new Kahkwa Bridge, via surveying, by 54% of residents living in the neighborhoods near the Kahkwa Bridge, which was 57.1 feet long and 27.6 feet wide.
Consultants and city officials have acknowledged that 38% of those surveyed wanted a pedestrian-only bridge for the area, and 7% did not want any bridge to be built.
The multi-girder design features enhanced space for bicycles and wide sidewalks along the bridge because citizens said they wanted that, according to city officials.
The city plans to build the bridge in two stages to assist traffic control and minimize impact on Ferncliff residents and those who use the Erie Yacht Club.
What do neighbors think?
City Council on Wednesday heard from several residents who live near the bridge.
One was Erie lawyer and businessman Roger Richards, who resides in the 1900 block of South Shore Drive.Richards recently reached out via e-mail to neighbors who completed the city’s survey about what type of bridge they prefer; city officials provided him their e-mails.
Richards said he is confident that the majority of area residents still want the multi-girder bridge. Additionally, Richards said he is willing to help city officials lobby the MPO for additional funding for the project; he has worked with the MPO previously as a member of Erie Events’ board of directors.
“I’d hate to see the city and the taxpayers lose almost $3 million that has been committed to this project from other sources,” Richards said.
Lincoln Avenue resident Jay Shimek agreed. Shimek said removal of the former Kahkwa Bridge “has torn the fabric of that community” and the community is simply asking for “the replacement of what was there.”
However, another Lincoln Avenue resident, Ruth Swaney, said she would prefer a pedestrian-only bridge be built to keep vehicle traffic out of that area, and she’s talked to other residents who feel the same way.
And Erie resident Dominick Buzzanco told council members that a “limited use, weight-restricted” bridge would be less costly and sufficient for the area.
The bridge demolition project was to include the construction of an access road through one of the wooded ravines that line Ravine Drive.
But Schember in spring 2021 backed off that plan after neighbors complained about how the road would destroy trees and wildlife habitat.
City Council on Wednesday also tabled two other contracts related to the bridge project: $120,000 for Erie’s Urban Engineers for construction inspection services; and $25,272 for TranSystems Corporation of Pittsburgh for consulting work.
Those two contracts are also expected to be reconsidered and/or approved at the July 3 meeting.
Contact Kevin Flowers atkflowers@timesnews.com.Follow him on X at@ETNflowers.
