Summer: One of a few special bridges along the way by Jane Ahrens 7July14
June 29, 2024
Dear Islanders,
It’s been a busy winter of repair and maintenance on the Rec Path. Over the last two years, Craig Schultz and his crew have repaired the bridges near Grey Gulls as well as the Crisp and Burr bridges that overlook the Oyster Pond. Upon close inspection of the cross beams supporting the bridge panels, rot was discovered, and major repair and replacement were warranted. Over the last several months Craig and his crew have worked diligently on the repair work. About a month ago we received an invoice of 350000 dollars. We were surprised by this amount, though our board agreed that the work had to be done. The bridges are 15 years old and, though treated wood was used in the original construction, extensive moisture caused rotting in the cross beams which had to be replaced. Craig Schultz has applied a protective membrane on the exposed beams this time, and hopefully, new repairs should not be necessary for at least 20-25 years. The bridges past the Oyster Pond do not have the same deterioration, and future repairs to them should be minor.
After three years of waiting, Jim Wray from B&W Contractors finally came to the island the week before Memorial Day and paved Wilderness Road up to the detour, where we also removed some boulders and trees to improve visibility. Since the detour goes through the Waste Management District property we have collaborated closely with them on this project and wish to thank Kate Stevens, Sarah Malinowski, and Dave Burnham for their cooperation and support.
Jim Wray was also able to repair the tarmac in some root-related trouble spots on the Path. Fortunately, this invoice was based on pre-COVID pricing and was done for $80,000, so the total for this year’s projects is $430,000. In addition, our annual expenses for maintenance by Courtney Allan, as well as insurance, accounting, and auditing and book keeping managed by Yaritza Gello are now $50,000 a year.
Therefore this year’s expenditures are close to $500,000 which leaves us approximately $600,000 left in the Foundation account. With projected annual costs of $50-100 thousand dollars, we think it prudent to restore the account back to over $1,000,000. As you may know, in the past, the top 20 of the approximately 200 donors represent 75 percent of the 5000000 dollars that has been raised by the Rec Path foundation. Those donors hopefully can be replaced by the next generation.
If you and your family use and appreciate the Path, we ask that you consider a larger donation than usual because of these recent high outlays. At this time we decided to launch a campaign with a target of at least $500000. Attached please pledge and donation instructions.
Thank you in advance for your support and we wish you a wonderful summer.
Sincerely,
John McGillian
