Washed out bridge restored

Economic impact will be considerable

By TOM KANE

HAWLEY, PA - A railroad trestle, which has been washed out since the floods of June 2005 and June 2006, was restored and reopened with a ceremony, witnessed by a corps of local business owners and government officials who took the train ride from Honesdale to the bridge site on June 4.

With the restoration of the bridge and the renewed connection with the Central New York Railroad main line along the Delaware River, there is the possibility of attracting new businesses to the area.

“One business, Ideal Steel Company, has firm plans to locate along the railroad in White Mills once the bridge is opened,” said Bob Suhosky, chairman of the Wayne Industrial Development Authority (WIDA). “In fact, the railroad was purchased from the Lackawaxen Honesdale Shippers Association by Paul Brancato, the individual owner of the railroad and the vice president of Ideal Steel.

Ideal Steel is a fabrication company that assembles steel into final products like fire escapes, Suhosky said.

He said that his group has also had conversations with several gas companies that are currently drilling in the Marcellus Shale fields in the state. ‘There have only been informal contacts,” he said. “When the price of oil reached $60 a barrel, most companies want to get their trucks off the road. There is a lot of interest there. We feel that gas drilling is going to be big in this area.”

The bridge, which was owned by the WIDA, was leased to Stourbridge Railroad Excursions, which conducts railroad excursions during the summer. Brancato will honor the lease and the tours will continue.

The bridge and the railroad line can now be used all year for other commercial ventures as well.

To pay for the bridge repairs, WIDA received a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) and another grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The project also received grants from the Wayne County Commissioners, Congressman Chris Carney, the Borough of Hawley and the Palmyra Township supervisors.

“Since existing manufacturing companies are located north of the bridge, it was key that the bridge be repaired,” said Mary Beth Wood, executive director of the Wayne Economic Development Corporation.