(Updated) Letters: Support the Repair of Bridges in Hinesburg
Readers urge voters to approve bond issue Nov. 4 to rebuild Beecher Hill Road bridges and repair bridge on Hollow Road
Resident who lives right next to washout urges approval of bond.
In November, Hinesburg residents will get to vote on authorizing financing for the repair of three bridges in our town. Notably, this is not a requirement to borrow money and the town can still change course. Authorizing the bond for the town’s portion of the bill will unlock federal and state funds that will cover the majority of the cost of these projects. In case this limited time deal isn’t enough to convince you to support this measure, I’d like to remind you of the importance of road connectivity in a community.
Roads are an essential public good in any functioning economy or community, and designing resilience into the road system keeps it working smoothly during weather, traffic, safety, or maintenance events. One of the key principles to having a resilient network is redundancy and diversity in route connections. Instead of having short spurs that funnel onto main highways, having more roads that connect to each other makes a stronger network where users have alternate route choices to avoid disruptions or can simply choose another path.
My house is now a canyon-front property, and the decrease in traffic on Beecher Hill Rd. since the bridge washed away in July 2024 has been quite significant. This is a clear indication of just how many people in our community found value in this connection. In addition to the hundreds of individuals who visit the waste drop-off center weekly, I’ve spoken to individuals who are not direct residents who frequently used Beecher Hill Rd. as a connection because they saw it as safer, shorter, or simply more scenic. That is exactly what road networks are for and exactly what we, as taxpayers, should be funding for the common good of our community.
I implore Hinesburg residents to support the maintenance and rebuilding of this road and all public infrastructure to keep our community strong and maintain the freedom of all road users to choose the route that best meets their needs. Remember that even if a road is not a primary route for you personally, having it open likely reduces congestion on the route you travel and gives you options should you need to seek an alternate path.
Please vote Yes on the bridge bond on November 4.
Nathan Petter
Beecher Hill bridges vitally needed
I am writing to urge my fellow Hinesburg residents to vote YES for the bond vote on Nov. 4. Those of us who rely on access to Beecher Hill Rd live one storm away from disaster – including the town highway garage. Imagine another storm like that in July 2024 which left the town’s highway equipment stranded with no way to get to Hinesburg residents trapped by such an emergency. We cannot run that risk. We also cannot run the risk of losing a VERY favorable funding and reimbursement arrangement for the town.
Please take the time to vote on Nov. 4 and please vote YES.
Priscilla Reidinger, Hinesburg
Maintaining the roads and bridges we have is essential
I want to urge Hinesburg voters to support the town’s bond initiatives on November 4.
One of the fundamental things we do as an organized town is to maintain the infrastructure which connects us, and which supports public safety and health. Sometimes things are dramatically damaged, as by flooding, and sometimes the structure just reaches the end of its useful life. In the later case, it is always a bit of a surprise, because the lifespan of these things can be intergenerational. A bridge can be so much a part of everyday life that we forget how long it has been there. In my own time on the Selectboard, we replaced some bridges that had been built as ‘short term’ replacements after the ‘27 flood. They lasted better than a half a century.
I want also to commend Todd Odit and the Selectboard for seeking the best way to fund these things that they could find, for publicizing the issues and the thinking behind the proposals.
Finally, in this particularly fraught year, we get to act on one of our most important responsibilities: VOTING! Let’s get out and vote on anything and everything that we can, including bond issues.
Rob Bast, Hinesburg
For more information, seek out the documentation from the selectboard meeting on Oct. 15 in the story about the meeting and bond issues published by The Record.