In the early 1960s, the State of Massachusetts declared that the old bridge crossing the Westfield River on Main St. Russell was no longer safe for foot, car and truck traffic! This created a huge problem for the 125 people working at the Westfield River Paper Company. Without a bridge to transport them and thousands of rolls of glassine paper, they would lose their jobs and the town of Russell would lose $100,000.00 in taxes!
People working at the mill, including myself, were asked to contact their state representatives and plead that the state would replace the old bridge with a new one. This was done and the lifeblood of our small town was saved for a while! In 1994, the mill was declared unprofitable; the mill closed its doors and a million dollar bridge spanning the Westfield River became a bridge to nowhere.
In 2004, a biomass plant that would convert wood chips and river water in to electricity was proposed. Unfortunately, it would have meant that between 160 and 200 trucks would have gone down Main St. Russell each day! The very people that had worked in the paper mill now opposed this new industry and the state agreed that the proposed truck traffic would be dangerous to their health!
A group of environmentalists came up with a great idea that no one took seriously! Use the electricity that is generated by the hydro plant to heat a huge bank of greenhouses to grow flowers, vegetables and perhaps a microbrewery, using homegrown hops! This would have provided jobs for high school graduates who move out of the area, plus tax relief for our taxpayers! This would have revitalized our town and a bridge to nowhere would have become a bridge to prosperity!
Bill Hardie, Russell, MA
