All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the agenda.
Thursday, March 24
- Local Housing Partnership, 4 p.m.
Tuesday, March 29
- Select Board, 6 p.m.
Conversation Starters
Stock Up, Lt. Islanders
The Lieutenant Island bridge is under construction for two weeks because of the need to make long-planned repairs, including replacing stringers at both ends and decking across the entire bridge and building a new railing system, according to the director of the dept. of public works, Jay Norton.
The repairs started on Monday, March 21 and will end on Friday, April 1. Construction will mean the bridge will be closed off and on for hours most weekdays. Residents of the island will need to pay attention or they will get stuck.
“Users of the bridge should make accommodations for the worst case scenario, like stocking up groceries in advance, medicine, etc…,” according to the schedule posted on the town’s website.
Repair hours will vary but will begin as early as 6:30 a.m. and continue until 2:30 p.m. Driving over the bridge will be allowed only before and after those times. Of course, getting across the bridge also means watching the tides, since the bridge is underwater during certain high tides.
These permanent repairs were supposed to be completed last December, but those plans were pushed aside when, in October, rot was found in the bridge’s support beams. At that time, the town imposed a 10,000-pound weight limit on vehicles crossing the wooden bridge.
Construction workers conducted an interim repair to stabilize the structure. The temporary work was done in November and the weight limit was lifted. But the permanent repairs couldn’t begin until lumber arrived.
Two more weeks of repairs will occur in April or May. Those dates have yet to be determined. But they will be posted at least one week in advance, according to Norton. —Michaela Chesin
