The Long Island Bridge was an infrastructure that had been built as a pathway to an addiction facility located on Boston Harbor Island. The mental facility housed 450 beds for the homeless, and 60 beds for those with addictions. The bridge was closed by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation in 2014 after an inspection showed that the rusty old bridge was no longer safe for travel. The demolition of the Long Island Bridge in 2015 happened with significant and adverse effects on the residents of Long Island. The island accommodates the rich and the poor, and was used as a rehabilitation center. The closing of the bridge displaced hundreds of homeless people who sought refuge on the island, people suffering from addictions, and also employees. The Long Island residents who were displaced were given only three hours to leave the facility and were sent out onto the street.
The city tried to acquire enough money to replace the lost beds on the island, but was unable to fully recover the resources that were lost when the bridge was closed. In addition, many residents are concerned about the hefty price of reconstructing the bridge. According to the City Wealth Project, the bridge places an estimated price tag of $40 million to $100 million. Also, Commonwealth Magazine has found that the Walsh administration has earned $58 million in funding. However, there is a shortage of $20 million. These missing funds raise issues regarding the source of necessary funding. Commonwealth’s article states that Chris Osgood (Chief of the Streets, Transportation, and Sanitation) said that the missing $20 million will have to come from the city, and that they are currently searching to see how it will fit into the city’s long-term capital plan. In addition, many Bostonians believe that there are many other problems that should be resolved before reconstructing the new bridge, such as enhancing the livelihoods of all Boston citizens, improving Boston’s schools, or promoting more moderate income housing.
The vision of building a new bridge is unclear because this has been met with numerous challenges since many people are seeing Walsh's plans as being off track. Mayor Walsh has not been the only official to have spoken about the Long Island Bridge. Officials in Quincy, including the mayor and city councilors, are arguing against the rebuilding of the Long Island bridge because traffic would have to travel through Quincy to get to the bridge. They are not against the rebuilding of facilities since they would assist with the addiction and homelessness problems, but they propose that Mayor Walsh explore methods of water transportation instead. However, the advocators of building the bridge, including Sue Sullivan, the director of Newmarket Business Association, said “It’s not right that these people are out here, day in and day out, not being taken care of.” She also believes it is dangerous because many homeless people and drug addicts wander around aimlessly. This poses a risk for many students, city dwellers, and families. In addition, other Bostonians agree with Walsh’s decision because they think that there are many homeless people on the street and around the downtown that would encourage drug temptation, so building the bridge will bring back the “recovery program” that would provide the chronically homeless with a place to live and better themselves. According to Boston Magazine, residents of the island felt like they were homeless from the homeless shelter. The article, “One Year Later, Long Island’s Homeless Demand Dignity at City Hall,” takes a look at Brenda Jarvis’ viewpoint. Jarvis talks of how Boston is such an amazing city that comes together in times of need, like the Boston Marathon, but Jarvis felt like the city abandoned those who were displaced due to the closing of the bridge. It seemed as if nobody even knew that the bridge was closed and hundreds were without the help that they needed. Residents of Boston were not addressing the need for a replacement to the facility on the Boston Harbor Island. Instead, they were discussing the problem of too many homeless residents on the streets of Boston and the problem of too much traffic through Quincy if the bridge was to be replaced. Quincy’s mayor, Thomas P. Koch, said that his city should have an opinion as Boston moves forward with plans to build the new bridge. He states that building the new bridge would cause an influx of traffic. In the past, in order to get to Long Island bridge, drivers had to go through Squantum neighborhood of Quincy. The residents there were concerned about the traffic that traveled through the city after the bridge was built. Thus, Koch proposed water transportation instead of building a new bridge.
Although Mayor Walsh initially decided to cut funding for the bridge, the city of Boston is currently preserving the Long Island Hospital. This promotes the idea that Boston selectively preserves its artifacts, as the city chose to destroy a bridge that was monumental to its well-being. Today, taxpayers pour millions into the abandoned hospital. This funding provides oil to heat the building, electricity, transportation for workers, waste services, water, sewers, and an exterminator. The destruction of the Long Island Bridge has prevented taxpayers from being able to utilize resources that their paychecks go towards, even if it is a useful and lifesaving opportunity for many.