Want A Bridge?

Psst… anyone interested in buying a bridge for the price of a bagel? New York City has one for sale for the low, low price of just one-dollar!

Yup, it’s true. It’s the Willis Avenue Bridge and it connects Manhattan to the Bronx across the Harlem River. Even better? If you buy it, you’ll get delivery of the bridge anywhere within fifteen miles of its present site, at 125th Street and the Harlem River.

The bridge was built in 1901 to accommodate the traffic that resulted from a boom in industry in the Bronx. Currently, some 75,000 vehicles pass over it each day, providing easy access to the changing landscape of my East Harlem neighborhood.

The city wants to replace the bridge because it’s corroding. In an interview with The New Yorker, Iris Weinshall, the commissioner of the city’s department of transportation, explained that normally the city would dismantle a property like the bridge but because a portion of the funds for the new bridge is coming from the federal and state governments, the city is required to try and find a new use for it.

The Willis Avenue Bridge is a swing bridge – it opens to traffic on the river – so it comes in two sections: the longer piece is 301 feet and pivots horizontally to allow boats to pass. The fixed portion is 244 feet long. If you buy the bridge, it will arrive to you via barge in two sections.

Commissioner Weinshall says she hasn’t received any calls on the bridge yet. Maybe she will now…