Bridgeport, CT — A nondescript building sandwiched between a print shop and a bakery on this Bridgeport's Main Street is rapidly becoming a public battleground over abortion.
More than a year after the city seized the Summit Women's Center abortion facility on Middle Street to make way for a courthouse project, the abortion facility is preparing to move a few miles away to Main Street. City planning officials helped find the site and obtain the necessary approvals.
Since the new address became public last month, however, pressure from pro-life advocates has caused city officials to subtly urge the abortion business to reverse course.
National abortion advocates charge that forcing the abortion business to change plans now could force it into bankruptcy.
''Finding appropriate sites … is increasingly a problem throughout the United States,'' said Vicki Saporta, president of the National Abortion Federation. ''Opponents haven't been able to make abortion illegal, so if they make it impossible for a clinic to open, they have achieved their goal.''
The prospect of a huge abortion debate so rankles City Council President John Fabrizi that he is appealing the zoning enforcement officer's approval of the site.
''Economically, I don't know what the city was thinking,'' Fabrizi said. '' … this kind of clinic brings a lot of controversy, and it's potentially explosive. ''
City spokesman Joe Gresko said the ''underlying idea'' was to help Summit find an available property that was already zoned for “medical” use.
''We're in a precarious position in that whatever we do seems to upset one side or the other,'' Gresko said. ''Is Bridgeport the only city with an abortion clinic? No. Summit has taken on a special place in the agenda of the pro-life movement.''
Last week, city officials raised the possibility of allowing Summit to remain in its current location, according to Jennifer Jaff, the clinic's Hartford attorney. ''It turns out they don't need that corner for the courthouse,'' she said.
Summit has occupied the building on a largely abandoned section of Middle Street for more than 20 years, and the property is sorely in need of repair. The city provided $300,000 to cover relocation costs – most of which has already been spent renovating the new site. Now, Summit can afford to stay at Middle Street only if the city covers the cost of renovating the old building, Jaff said.
In addition, Jaff insists that the city must provide an adjacent parking lot comparable to the one at the new location. Because the Middle Street abortion facility fronts a sidewalk, women seeking abortions must park in a parking lot across the street — which elicits complaints from abortion advocates. The Main Street facility is separated from the sidewalk by a private parking lot, Jaff said.
The city has yet to respond to Jaff's demands, and the abortion business is proceeding with plans to move to Main Street this summer. Pro-life advocates say one of Bridgeport's busiest thoroughfares is no place for an abortion facility.
For full coverage on this story, see The Boston Globe
(This article courtesy of Steven Ertelt and the Pro-Life Infonet email newsletter. For more information or to subscribe go to www.prolifeinfo.org or email infonet@prolifeinfo.org.)
