Rotary Log: January 12, 2012 (Ben Porter)

Posted by Mark Lorusso

on Jan 17, 2012

ROTARY HEADLINE NEWS

News from around ~~the world~~ Rotary in 60 seconds.

Now for the weather--this just in—SNOW, real SNOW.

Rotary suffers low turnout due to wintry weather. Stalwart Rotarians adopt the Postal Service motto and brave the cold, icy and snowy conditions to attend their Thursday meeting. Nothing can stop a Rotarian from making those meetings for food (beef stew), friends and fellowship . . . and Happy Dollars for the end of the primary political season in New Hampshire among others.

Fine master Neil alerted the troops with reports of Rotarian mischief. Caught in his fine master web were Nancy Clayburgh and Ben Wheeler—Nancy for her Dinnerhorn Ad and for Signgate, (still under scrutiny according to unnamed sources close to the investigation) and Ben for his Dinnerhorn Ad—an unabashed Bratskellar regular and Dinnerhorn turncoat. Bill Hurly did not escape either—a sign man disguised as a print shop owner. Formerly unscathed Norm Olsen was fined for bringing in the three top Presidential candidates as guest speakers. And not to be outdone, Jay Gibson, fined for shameless calendar promotions and for having worked for three or more banks, the subject of our next Dateline Rotary International. And finally, Peter Grace, fined for violation of the violation-which-will-not-be-mentioned. Ring, ring anyone?

And now to our Rotary domestic news.

Walter Liff auctioned off 6 UNH Hockey tickets for $35 won by none other than ring man himself—Peter Grace.

New Member Ryan Neider, sponsored by Ryan Bishop, was inducted into the club. Ryan grew up in Nashua, attended UNH, involved with Special Olympics among other charitable activities and lives in Portsmouth with his wife and one-year-old son.

Sara Treacy informed us about upcoming Soup Kitchen events. Please contact her for the relevant dates.

Janice Cassidy won the 50/50 raffle—sorry, no match. Next week’s match is worth $600!

And now to our Memorial Bridge Investigative Report

Ben Porter reporting.

Our beloved Memorial Bridge saved by the grass root efforts of our local communities. The Bridge was originally built in 1923 when it was floated into position by barge. Former long-term Portsmouth Mayor and fellow Rotarian Eileen Foley attended the ribbon cutting as a child.

In January, 2008, the Memorial Bridge rehabilitation project was killed due to being $15 million over budget. A lone individual on Badger’s Island, foreseeing a bleak commuting future from his “gated community” on Badger’s Island, took the initiative and sent out a survey to twelve locals. The response grew to biblical proportions and 630 responded with an overwhelming 5:1 desire to keep the Memorial Bridge and allow the Sarah Long Bridge to fall.

Like a drop of water in a still pond, the drop became a ripple and the ripple became a wave. State and local public and private organizations were lobbied in New Hampshire and Maine to replace the Memorial Bridge. Gubernatorial candidates were invited down for an “education” and all took the bridge “pledge” to keep the bridge. Governors Lynch and Baldacci formed a joint task force to find a way. Two weeks later, Secretary of Transportation Ray Lahood presented a $20 million check to get the ball rolling on the $81.4 million project.

The new bridge will be a marvel of modern engineering. Gone will be the unwieldy cables currently exposed to pedestrian and vehicle alike. Dedicated walk ways and bike paths will replace the old worn sidewalks.

What was once a truss bridge with vulnerable gusset plates—the true weak points of a truss bridge and the cause of 20% of bridge failures—will now be a girder bridge with spliced intersections yet with the mimicked beauty of truss bridge—better maintenance, lower maintenance cost, stronger and longer lasting.

Now the grand bridge will have three identical trusses with lower heights, improved pier supports and a zinc coating to boot—no more rust. And 21 feet of closed clearance with 150 feet clearance open, just like the old bridge even though it will be shorter.

Through the marvels of modern engineering the piers will remain as environmental buffers. Seven 100 ft. bores will be drilled into each pier ten feet into bedrock and filled with steel reinforced concrete to anchor the piers and bridge—earthquake-ready and no environmental impact to the flora and fauna surrounding the piers.

The old bridge will be sheared with industrial strength shears and floated down the river to the Quincy Shipyard for lead paint removal and recycling.

Yes, the new bridge, like the old bridge, will have counterweights and cables, but the motor houses will be located under the driving surfaces at each end with the cables located outboard of the trusses and the bridge to eliminate accessibility by pedestrians.

The construction staging area will be at the Portsmouth end, presumably in part of the Prescott Park parking area. The steel components will be fabricated by the Structel Corporation in Claremont and trucked to the State Pier for assembly. The pre-assembled bridge—like the old—will be floated into place—history repeating itself.

If all goes well, the bridge will be completed July 3, 2013. Come see the dismantling event between January 30 and February 1. For those who prefer the view from a La-Z-Boy, see all the action including time-lapse photography at ww.portsmouthbridges.com or www.saveourbridges.com.

Sorry truckers—NO TRUCKS allowed. And that’s our report. Ben Porter signing off.

Ben Porter hasspent the last 61/2 years as a Badger Island resident and has previously worked as a professor at the Wittemore School of Business and Economics at UNH and as an IT specialist servicing Fortune 500 companies during his illustrious career.