Repair, Stabilization Work on Johnson City Workers Arch Delayed

Johnson City officials have spent years discussing the need to rehabilitate the century old Endicott Johnson "Workers Arch" at the village's border with Binghamton.

The project is ready to go but it's not going to get started anytime soon.

Village Mayor Martin Meaney said "we were hoping to begin construction on it this summer and have it completed before the construction season ended."

Meaney said it's been tough finding companies willing to bid on the project. He said the money for the planned work has been secured.

The mayor said "the arch is a priority for us." He said "it defines our village" and serves as "a nice gateway" to Johnson City. But, he added, "when it's crumbling, it doesn't look good." He said when people enter the village and "see crumbling infrastructure, the optics are bad."

Meaney said the village monitors the arch structure closely. He said officials pay "close attention to it to make sure that it's structurally sound." He said although some of the façade is crumbling, the arch is "not going to come crashing down."

About 250 stones were removed from the arch in 1976 because of safety concerns. State transportation department officials expressed frustration about the structure because its foundations were located so close to Main Street traffic.

Although there was some discussion about the possibility of removing the arch, most Johnson City residents opposed the idea. The Workers Arch was reconstructed in 1982.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com or (607) 545-2250. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.