Smith Point Bridge Replacement Project To Cost Suffolk $112M: Report

SHIRLEY, NY — The Smith Point Bridge replacement project, including the construction of a new fixed bridge with a fishing pier and a pedestrian walkway with an overlook, will cost the county's coffers $112 million, Newsday reported.

The project’s cost came in around $75 million in 2021, but now that has gone up due to inflation and the inclusion of a 12-foot-wide pedestrian path, County Department of Public Works Commissioner Joseph Brown told the outlet.

The Suffolk Legislature's Budget Review Office's report on the 2023-25 capital budget estimates about $90 million in federal monies will be used to fund the project, the outlet reported.

Legis. James Mazzarella, whose district includes the hamlet of Shirley, told the outlet that the project "is not just the bridge.”

"It’s really an amenity and it's an added benefit,” he said.

For more in Newsday, click here.

The bridge was erected in the 1950s and joins the south shore of Shirley with Fire Island National Seashore and Smith Point County Park.

The project, which will begin construction in 2024, will also include new recreational courts and bathrooms for the park, according to roadsandbridges.com.

Officials are hosting a "construction awareness information session” on Wednesday at William Floyd High School in Mastic Beach at 7 p.m.

It will feature Brown, as well as County Executive Steve Bellone, Legis. James Mazzarella, and a project consultant from Hardesty and Hanover.

The high school is located at 240 Mastic Beach Road in Mastic Beach.

Community members interested in attending are asked to RSVP to public.works@suffolkcountyny.gov.