Select Board recommends truss-style option for State Road bridge, asks public for color input

The Great Barrington Select Board voted 4–1 on July 6 to recommend a truss-style aesthetic (Alternative 2) for the State Road (Route 7) bridge to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, while asking the public for additional input on final color and details.

Town Manager presented two design concepts MassDOT shared after a November public hearing: a stone-faced option with a decorative railing and visible street lamps, and a truss-inspired option that hewed closer to the bridge’s historical truss lines. The town posted renderings on the DPW bridge page and opened an online survey so residents can register preferences before the state completes 75% design work.

Board members debated trade-offs: some favored the stone-faced option’s historic streetlamps but worried it would obscure views of the river; others said the truss-inspired Alternative 2 better paid homage to the bridge’s historic character while modernizing the structure. The board discussed salvaging a piece of the old bridge as public art and clarified that color and final detailing could be decided later.

After discussion, a board member moved to recommend Alternative 2 to MassDOT; a second followed and the motion passed 4–1. The board’s recommendation covers style only; the Select Board will continue outreach and the town manager said he would push a press release and distribute the survey link to town outlets and libraries. The town emphasized that MassDOT remains the final decision-maker for engineering and construction schedules.

The Select Board’s recommendation is advisory to MassDOT; the town manager noted MassDOT offered the additional community input window as an uncommon concession. The next procedural step is collecting public responses through the town survey and reporting aggregated feedback to MassDOT before the agency advances to final design.