Press Releases
08/21/2020
CTDOT Wins Historic Preservation Award for Merritt Parkway Bridge Project
The Connecticut Department of Transportation has won an historic preservation award from Preservation Connecticut – formerly the Connecticut Trust for Preservation – for its work in rehabilitating the 1940-era Lake Avenue bridge over the Merritt Parkway in Greenwich.
“An award of this nature illustrates and underscores the DOT’s commitment to historic preservation, as well as our ability to partner with local and statewide organizations to keep our history alive and our highways safe, while staying as true to the original design as possible,” said CTDOT Commissioner Joseph J. Giulietti. “I want to commend everyone involved in this important project, including the town of Greenwich and the Merritt Parkway Conservancy. The ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures tell a beautiful story.”
The award will be presented at Preservation Connecticut’s Annual meeting in recognition of the year’s achievements in preservation excellence. The project is a result of a public-private collaboration between CTDOT and the Merritt Parkway Conservancy. Preservation Connecticut notes that the Lake Avenue bridge is once again a fitting gateway into Connecticut and applauds the Department’s “ongoing work to enhance and improve the Parkway as an important transportation corridor and a treasured historic asset.”
The reconstruction involved full removal of the original cast iron panels for off-site restoration. Prior to their removal, a 3-D laser scan was taken of the bridge as insurance that the ornate panels could be recreated in the event they were damaged. Fortunately, all the panels remained intact throughout their removal, restoration, and re-installation on the bridge. Site engineers Elona Coppola and Mark Strang oversaw the day to day management of the historic bridge construction project. The treatment, finish colors and gloss were reviewed in collaboration with DOT planners and engineers and the current Merritt Parkway Conservancy executive director, Wes Haynes.
DOT’s Bridge Design team collaborated with District 3 Construction, the Office of Environmental Planning, the Merritt Parkway Conservancy, Merritt Parkway Advisory Committee and the town of Greenwich as they developed repairs that would meet the structural needs of the bridge and remain sympathetic to the original design.
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