Is it possible?
Has the City of Benwood finally accomplished the final task necessary for the former Bellaire Toll Bridge to be dropped into the Ohio River and sold for scrap?
Operations Director – and Marshall County Commissioner – David McLaughlin believes so.
That’s because McLaughlin himself has secured a verbal agreement with the last known owner of the span that was closed to all traffic 35 years ago.
“We were told by the federal government that it’s too bad it’s a private bridge because if it wasn’t, they’d be able to help with the funding,” the city/county official explained. “Well, we’ve overcome that problem.
“So, the lady’s name is Crystal Chaklos, and she was the president of KDC Investments, and KDC Investments was technically the owner of the bridge. That company is now a defunct West Virginia company, but she still has had the final say on the bridge. Even today, as the last officer of that company, she still has final say, and she is saying she’s fine with it coming down.”
The bridge was purchased in 2003 by KDC Investments, and owner Lee Chaklos had a plan that involved an explosive demolition with a national TV audience watching. However, that plan led to extensive legal battles and fines, and Chaklos was even sentenced to federal prison because of the bridge’s condition and his failure to demolish it.
A number of private entities have also filed liens against the bridge’s scrap value due to broken business deals with Lee Chaklos, and officials from Ohio’s and West Virginia’s state road departments have stated they do own than span so they are not responsible for its future.
But that could change, according to McLaughlin.
“When I finally contacted Mrs. Chaclos, she was very pleasant about everything, and she told me right away that she’d sign it over immediately to whoever needs to own it so we can get some help with the demolition,” he revealed. “She asked me to send her a paper so she could sign it, but I can’t do that yet because the little city of Benwood isn’t in a position to take ownership of that bridge without the funds to do the right thing with it.
“If we would sign that paper today and we got the bridge, we’d be responsible for everything and anything that would happen, and we can’t do that,” he said. “We need at least a promise of funding. We need someone on the federal level who says, ‘Now that you’ve accomplished the task, we will help you, and this is how we will help you’.
“Then, yes, we’ll sign that piece of paper.”
A Very Long Story
The Bellaire Toll Bridge was opened in 1926, and it cost 5 cents to cross it one way. In 1971, the toll was increased to 25 cents for one way and 40 cents for round-trip travel. The opening of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge in Moundsville in the 1980s reduced traffic, and tolls were increased again to 50 cents one-way and a dollar to travel to and from.
The span was finally shuttered in 1991, and the approach ramp was razed to make way for the new Ohio Route 7 bypass around Bellaire. The bridge has had several owners since, but it is the city of Benwood that’s been dealing with falling debris and continued vandalism with no end in sight.
“This whole situation makes you wonder if it’s going to take something tragic to happen to finally get people’s attention,” McLaughlin said. “We’ve reported the debris that’s been falling from it, and the concrete that’s fallen onto the (Benwood) street underneath, but that’s not attracted enough attention.
“Someone somewhere needs to understand that the little City of Benwood and its 1,175 people do not have the money to tear down this bridge. If we did, we would,” he said. “It’s going to state and federal resources, but it’s not attracting the attention it needs. We can’t even get a call back, let alone a ‘No’.”
And McLaughlin has called – and called and called and called.
“It took us a while to locate Mrs. Chaklos because she’s moved around, but as soon as we heard what Mrs. Chaklos was willing to do, we contacted people in Charleston and in Washington. We let them all know,” McLaughlin said. “And we’ve called back more than a few times and all we’ve heard are crickets. It’s been really disappointing.
“I know she’ll sign it over to whoever, the state or to the feds, so this can finally get taken care of,” he said. “That bridge hasn’t been inspected in decades, and no one knows what condition it’s in. And yet, we can’t get a call back from the people who can help and who can protect the public from a possible tragedy.”
(Cover Photo by Mechelle Robinson)
