Merritt Parkway Named to World Monuments Watch List
The World
Monuments Fund (WMF) has listed the bridges of the Merritt Parkway to its biannual World
Monuments Watch List.
According
to the WMF, “…the
Merritt was designed with 68 bridges ranging in design from French Renaissance
and neoclassic to art deco and rustic. The preservation of these many distinct
bridges may be at risk due to necessary infrastructure work required to
maintain the Merritt as a major thoroughfare. Balancing the functionality of the
parkway while protecting the aesthetic qualities that make it unique pose
challenges still to be addressed.”
The WMF is a New York-based
nonprofit
organization dedicated to the preservation of historic architecture
and cultural heritage sites worldwide. Its Watch List, published every other
year, is intended to raise awareness for important sites. The organization’s
website says, "Not all sites on the Watch
are in imminent danger. Many face challenges on the horizon, providing the
opportunity to engage in dialogue and decision-making now, so as to avoid
problems in the future."
"We're thrilled to have it be listed," said Jill
Smyth, executive director of the Merritt Parkway Conservancy, which nominated
the Parkway for listing to help promote the need to preserve its bridges as
well as its landscape. In addition to the bridges, the conservancy is currently
addressing tree removal by the Department of Transportation along the road.
"There's always that fine balance between preservation
and incorporating what [transportation officials] believe is needed for a safe,
modern design for a highway," Smyth said.
In addition to the Merritt, the WMF’s
list includes a monastery in Bhutan; gingerbread houses in Port-au-Prince,
Haiti; two New
Orleans sites damaged by Hurricane Katrina; and the cultural landscapes
of Hadley, Massachusetts.
