The Massachusetts Department of Transportation has begun the permitting process to begin building the permanent Lagoon Pond drawbridge.

Drawbridge facing Vineyard Haven
— Alison Mead

Melinda Loberg, chairman of the Tisbury and Oak Bluffs drawbridge committee, said this week that the state needs four key permits to begin advertising for bids in the fall as planned. The state expects to receive all the permits by the end of September, she said.

Since January 2010 Islanders have been traveling on the $9 million temporary drawbridge spanning Tisbury and Oak Bluffs. The temporary drawbridge took six years to complete; the federally-funded $34 million permanent drawbridge is expected to take at least two years to build.

The four permits needed for the permanent bridge project include a water quality permit from the state Department of Environmental Protection, a permit from Coastal Zone Management, a fill permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and a permit from the U.S. Coast Guard.

The Coast Guard released a public statement on Tuesday acknowledging that the application had been received.

Mrs. Loberg said the Coast Guard permit for the temporary drawbridge expires in 2013.

Drawbridge on Martha's Vineyard is up in Vineyard Haven
— Alison Mead

“So no matter what, they are going to have to ask for an extension,” she said. “But it also means that the Coast Guard has every incentive to permit the permanent bridge so they do not have the temporary bridge over the channel indefinitely.”

In February, design elements such as railing, lamps and the bridge facade were still being debated by the two-town drawbridge committee. Mrs. Loberg said design and engineering is now completed for the project.

In October, state transportation officials and engineers will host a public comment session on the Vineyard with final plans for the bridge. An exact date has not been set.

“From the very beginning of the project, Islanders have been concerned whether or not a permanent bridge will get here or not,” said Mrs. Loberg. “I have to say that in spite of all that incredulity, the state has followed their timeline pretty closely.”