Observations - June 23rd
Dipcraft Manufacturing
On June 23rd at 1:00, Carl, Mary Ann and Julina met with Mike Tobias of Dipcraft Manufacturing. The Dipcraft site is located right next to the Rankin Bridge in a number of buildings that hold sheets of fiberglass ready to be shipped out.
Because of his business’s proximity to the Rankin Bridge, Mike is concerned about the environmental effects of the rehabilitation project, particularly during the repainting phase. Bridges are commonly painted with lead paint to inhibit rusting and corrosion, which is both a necessary part of maintaining bridge integrity as well as a danger to the environment and people’s health. Allegedly, the painting company plans to hang tarps from the bridge down to ground level to contain the particulate matter, but this has yet to be confirmed.
Last Time…
According to Mike, the bridge was last painted over 20 years ago. The painting company at that time had no concern for environmental protection: paint ended up all over the place, including on cars below and in the Monogahela River. While he doesn’t anticipate the same carelessness this time around, Mike is curious as to how the County plans to ensure clean air for the nearby businesses, residents, and the environment.
The Work Begins
While taking a tour of the Dipcraft buildings and site, we noticed two construction workers in safety harnesses making their way toward the bridge.
They climbed up into the trestles and began walking out toward the river.
We don’t know what they were doing or where they were going, but we speculated that these were the very first steps of the project.
Enterprise Zone Corporation of Braddock
We found out that Mike is an active member of the Enterprise Zone Corporation of Braddock, which encourages environmentally friendly businesses to set up shop in the Tri-Boro area. Documenting the Rankin Bridge may be an opportunity to help them make the neighborhoods more visible to these types of green businesses.