Is it Tappan Zee or Mario Cuomo Bridge? Could be both under bill that NY Senate passed

A proposal to restore the Tappan Zee name to the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge was set to fail again as state lawmakers neared the end of this year's session without taking up the bill.

But a wording change in the final days struck a compromise many lawmakers could embrace: merging the original and current names of the Hudson River crossing into the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Tappan Zee Bridge.

And with that amendment, made last week by Sen. James Skoufis of Orange County, the bill sailed through the Senate on Tuesday in a 51-11 vote.

The Assembly version of the bill has been modified in the same way, although it's unclear if that chamber will vote on it before the session is scheduled to end on Thursday. It must pass in both chambers and be signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul for the name change to take effect.

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Skoufis cheered the success of the compromise, noting lingering resentment over the back-room maneuvering in 2017 to name the rebuilt Tappan Zee after then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo's father, a three-term liberal icon. The new name was bestowed in an end-of-session bill on the $4 billion replacement bridge that partially opened that year.

“The name change remains a grievance for many local residents who value our region’s history," Skoufis said in a statement on Wednesday. "And I am grateful to colleagues on both sides of the aisle for recognizing what a point of pride the Tappan Zee name is for us in the Hudson Valley."

The merged name would resemble the official name the bridge actually bore for many years, even if local residents and drivers didn't know it. It was officially the Governor Malcolm Wilson Tappan Zee Bridge, after the name it was given when it opened in 1955 was expanded to honor the Republican who served a single year as governor in the 1970s.

Who voted for, against the bill?

All but one of the 11 senators voting against the compromise bill were Republicans. But other Republicans supported it, including two from the Hudson Valley: Sen. Bill Weber of Rockland County and Sen. Rob Rolison of Dutchess County.

The sole Democrat voting in opposition was Sen. Pete Harckham of Westchester County, who also hails from the area most interested in what to call the three-mile double span between Westchester and Rockland. Harckham's stance may stem from the pertinent job he held before winning his Senate seat: he worked for the younger Cuomo as director of intergovernmental affairs for the bridge reconstruction project.

The bill's main Assembly sponsor is John McGowan of Rockland, who couldn't be reached on Wednesday to discuss its prospects in that chamber. A petition to restore the Tappan Zee name, which honors both the Native American and Dutch roots of the area, now has 263,000 signatures.

Chris McKenna covers government and politics for The Journal News and USA Today Network. Reach him at cmckenna@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on New York State Team: Tappan Zee again? NY bill merges Tappan Zee, Mario Cuomo bridge names