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Bedford Street was to be closed at 7 p.m. with the move scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. The house was expected to reach High Ridge Road soon and then it would take hours for the house to be moved as it slowly crawled along High Ridge Road.
On Sunday, the move had been scheduled to begin at 5 a.m. and end by 9 a.m. with the historic house's two sections placed at the Stamford Historical Society at 1508 High Ridge Road. The move is occurring as the city goes forward with plans to build a new police station that would include the lot at 713 Bedford St.
However, it was discovered Sunday morning that the vehicles needed to pull the roof and the house in tandem weren't licensed for Connecticut, forcing the movers to take only the roof. Instead of starting at 5 a.m., the go-ahead to move the roof was given shortly after 6 a.m. The roof was successfully moved to 1508 High Ridge Road around 11 a.m. despite two holdups along the way, including one incident in which hydraulic oil leaked out on to High Ridge Road.
The permit for the move allowed a maximum weight of 120,000 pounds for the lower section. But it was discovered that it well exceeded that. After a call to the state's Department of Transportation commissioner, the weight limit was allowed to go to 180,000 pounds.
Connecticut State Troopers weighed the lower section of the house by placing scales under the dolly's wheels around 5:30 p.m. Sunday. They first recorded a weight of 177,900 pounds — just under its limit of 180,000 pounds — resulting in a whoop of joy by one of the moving company officials.
However, the troopers doubled-checked their numbers and discovered the actual weight was 189,900 pounds. Also, they discovered that three of the dolly's four axles were above their individual weights.
A senior state trooper informed officials of the company responsible for the move that the house was too heavy and couldn't be transported at that time. On Monday, the lower section rested on its heavy load dolly in a parking area reserved for police vehicles in front of the police station.
On Monday, work was done to further reduce the weight of the lower section by removing anything possible.
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