Bring Back the Michigan Ave Bridge over the City Ship Canal

[moadib]

Bring Back the Michigan Ave Bridge over the City Ship Canal

That would reconnect the downtown and the 1st ward with the Inner Harbor and the Outer Harbor.

[WestCoastPerspective]

Its a start....I'd like to see the bridge near Waterfront Village over to the Coast Guard Station. It would be for local traffic. Another bridge would be necessary to handle Skyway traffic if that ever comes down.

[citymouse]

General Mills is up in arms about that bridge.
It makes a lot of sense to bring it back, but they have been using that dead end of michigan since 1959 as if it was part if thier property.
They say it would interfere with thier plant operation if it was open again to general traffic.

[crlachepinochet]

How many people still work at General Mills?

[moadib]

Im sure there are ways to satisfy General Mills and still get that Lift Bridge.

No one wants another industry to leave Buffalo or another person to loose their job.

We should be working with General Mills to see what other product lines they could bring to Buffalo.

That being said, I think we need to hear their concerns and see how they can be addressed but mitigating those concerns should not prevent the reconnection of the Inner & Outer Harbor because General Mills is a member of the waterfront community and they dont want to be the reason for obstructing waterfront development!

THAT WOULD NOT BE A GOOD STEWARD (GUARDIAN) OF THE CITY OR WATERFRONT DISTRICT!

[citymouse]

Take a ride up Michigan and you will see exactly what the situation is.
I am not sure of the number but General Mills is one of the city's major employers.

[dcoffee]

I took a ride around the Michigan st. and outer/inner harbor area recently just to see it with my own eyes rather than on a map. The Michigan avenue bridge seems like the only plausible way to reconnect the outer harbor to downtown, though I can definitely see why General Mills has a problem with it, what is supposedly a public street seems more like their private driveway.
As for building a bridge to the coast guard from the Marine dr. appts, I was thinking the same thing, it might be difficult to alter traffic patterns in the area but maybe we could have an elevated pedestrian and bike bridge like that in Delaware park. Does anyone know how much ship traffic still uses that part of the Buffalo River? How much would a new bridge interfere with shipping?

[citymouse]

Grain boats use that waterway. I am not sure how many, Maybe about six or seven during the season.
The fire boat also regularly uses it.
Quite a few time The cement plant at Ohio and Ganson has a boat docked there, they probably are the most regular.
Also the boat that delivers sand through the city ship canal (you can see the piles when you approach the sky way from the south)uses it.
I think that pretty much sums up the comercial traffic.
The big problem is the tall masted sail boats that are docked in the city ship canal south of where the restored Micigan Ave. bridge would be. It would be Impratical to let them dock there if the bridge was put in. Ther are quite a few, amybe about forty or fifty.

[moadib]

ITS A LIFT BRIDGE, IF BOATS NEED TO PASS YOU LIFT THE BRIDGE

HOW LONG IS IT GOING TO TAKE TO LIFT, LET THE BOAT PASS AND LOWER THE BRIDGE?

GUYS THIS SHOULD NOT BE A BIG DEAL...