Peter King of the state Department of Transportation appeared before Community Board 6’s transportation committee last night, October 16, and discussed the steps in the long process that will lead to the rehabilitation and possibly the complete reconstruction of the triple-cantilever structure of the BQE. That is the portion that runs from Sand Street to Atlantic Avenue and supports two roadways and the Brooklyn Promenade on three different levels. Its length is 0.4 miles and it serves 160,000 vehicles per day.

Of primary interest to the CHA is its possible impacts on the future Brooklyn Bridge Park. We were pleased to learn that DOT and the Brooklyn Bridge Park Development Corporation are now actively communicating about their future needs and plans. At this point, there is still a range of construction alternatives that DOT will consider. Much of King’s presentation was devoted to describing the public process, (scoping, environmental impact statement, etc.) that will occur.

During the Q & A, he noted what he called ‘opportunities for interference’ between the park and the roadwork. If the DOT winds up entirely replacing the triple-cantilever with a new triple-cantilever or an entirely new covered roadway, two options that will be considered, how will the materials be delivered other than by barge and through the park? King said he did not know. Stay tuned.