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A NEW NORTH MAIN STREET BRIDGE
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
[The Welland-Port Colborne Evening Tribune, 10 October 1931]
In any proposed plan for providing for the unemployed in Welland this winter, construction for a new bridge over the river at North Main street has been given an important place. At the special meeting of the council on Thursday night the bridge was included in a list of public works to be submitted to the unemployement officials in Toronto for approval.
It is pointed out to those who favor the proposal that the present bridge has outlived its usefulness and must, in any event, be replaced within a couple of years. The road allowance is only just wide enough for two cars to pass and there is always danger when a bus or wide truck is using the structure . Loads are restricted to ten tons.
It so happens that the bridge is on a road that is part of an important provincial highway and, as a result, must carry a very large amount of traffic. Under present condtions the bridge constitutes more or less of a danger spot, and this fact is not without its interest for the municipality.
The city engineer’s estimate is that a new bridge would cost $84,960, $50, 976 of which would be expended for labor and $33, 984 for material. If the structure is built as a means to relieve unemployment, the Federal and Provincial government will contribute 50 per cent of the cost.
All things considered, it looks as if the municipality would benefit in several ways, if the council decided to go ahead with the work.
Other public works have also been chosen as a means of making jobs for the unemployed. Provided expenditures are kept within a reasonable sum, thereby not causing too great an incerease in the tax rate, it is better for the city to secure needed public improvements-with the government paying half the cost-and receive something in return for the money it spends, rather than dissipate a large sum in direct relief and have nothing to show for the expenditure.
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