A salute to Bay Ridge’s bridge, which is the Verrazzano with two Zs
Eye on Real Estate
You’re never too old for a spelling lesson.
This one comes courtesy of Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Bay Ridge residents, Brooklyn writers, pay attention: Two Rs and two Zs.
It’s V-E-R-R-A-Z-Z-A-N-O now.
For a half-century, everyone has been spelling the name of the iconic bridge between Bay Ridge and Staten Island without the second Z. The genesis of this typo was an incorrect notation on a contract, or so the story goes.
The governor recently signed legislation that changes the 13,700-foot span’s name to match that of Giovanni da Verrazzano, the Italian explorer who discovered New York Harbor in 1524.
The transit agency expects the signage changes will cost $200,000 to $250,000.
Don’t expect the spelling to be corrected all at once on the 96 signs that point the way to the bridge, though. MTA officials said this will be done as the signs are replaced “under a normal schedule of maintenance,” a spokesman for the MTA said when Cuomo signed the bill.