Not if we can help it! Rip out the poster on page 12 of this week's Wire and hang it up somewhere, anywhere, today! Rally your friends to attend the next NH-Maine Connections Study meeting at Portsmouth High School Little Theater on Thursday, Feb. 25.

It’s time to turn our attention to this study, which is expected to select its preferred alternative by April and determine the fate of the Memorial and Sarah Mildred Long bridges. Our application to repair these aging bridges was not among the successful federal stimulus grants announced last week, so this study is key to making sure we have bridges that make sense to people who live, work and play here.

The group has been meeting for months, and the meeting on Thursday is among the few remaining public sessions scheduled for public input on the process. At 5:30 p.m., you can see the work that’s been done to date. At 6 p.m., the study committee will outline the three main options still under consideration.

One choice that has been taken off the table is the elimination of the Memorial Bridge. It will stay open—perhaps for all traffic, or it may be downgraded to a bridge for cyclists and pedestrians only. If this is the case, it would force the construction of a four-lane version of the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge, which would require taking of some amount of land in that neighborhood.

Any change will have significant community impact. So whatever comes next should be shaped by you.
Keep asking questions and make sure those conducting the study are exploring all the options and a providing a complete and accurate scope of estimated costs.

Let’s keep our minds open, but let’s also keep this project moving forward. When the study is completed in June, let’s make sure we are prepared to take the next steps.

Ultimately, we will get federal funding for most of this project, with the rest split between Maine and New Hampshire. The state of New Hampshire has maintained funds for the project. It’s time to make the Memorial and Sarah Mildred Long bridges a priority for Maine. That’s been a challenge for some time. How can we change that? Think about this year’s Maine elections, and ask your candidates what their priorities are.

OK, so maybe a monster isn’t the worst case scenario. We’re actually more frightened by the prospect of a bridge that’s declared unsafe and held in the “up” position (that is, closed to all traffic) while we talk in circles. We urge you to attend the meeting on Feb. 25, and stay involved in the process.

And special thanks to Bill Paarlberg for providing the appropriately alarming poster on page 12. Bill is co-founder of Portsmouth’s original alt-weekly, “re:Ports,” and has always had a keen eye for the monsters of Portsmouth. A few he’s collected hang in selected locations at Ceres Bakery, and the entire rogue’s gallery will be showcased this August when the Discover Portsmouth Center hosts the exhibit “Bill Paarlberg: Illustrating Portsmouth.”