Posted Nov 29, 2007, 7:56 AM
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Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: San Antonio
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[SA] East Downtown's Hays Street Bridge to get new life
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Downtown skyline in the background
Quote:
Hays Street Bridge to get new life
Web Posted: 11/29/2007 12:15 AM CST
Elaine Ayo
Express-News
The city of San Antonio and Union Pacific have reached an agreement allowing the city to take charge of the historic Hays Street Bridge, rejuvenating a community group's efforts to turn the now unused bridge into a hike-and-bike trail.
The agreement, reached earlier this month, will allow the hike-and-bike plans to move forward nearly five years after the group and city staff first secured grant money to fund part of the project.
"I don't know if anyone associated with the project ever lost faith. I know I never did," said Brian Chandler, who originally joined the project as a member of the city's planning staff and now sits on an ad hoc committee, called the Hays Street Bridge Restoration Group, after entering the private sector.
On Wednesday, UP and the city will host a signing ceremony at Hays and Cherry streets near the bridge.
"Maybe I was just naive, but once we had the commitment of funding, (I thought) surely those who have the power would make sure this funding doesn't go by the wayside," Chandler said.
In 2002, the project received just under $2.9 million in grant money from the Texas Department of Transportation through the federal Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century. The grant comes with a 20 percent matching requirement, and the group has so far raised $257,000.
The project was originally budgeted for just under $2.9 million when the group applied for the grant, but rising material costs have city staff re-examining the project to try to cut costs, said Douglas Steadman, the structural engineer who led the effort to get the bridge designated a Texas Historical Civil Engineering Landmark for having a 225-foot Whipple-Phoenix truss, the last one remaining in the state.
"There's an estimated shortfall of about $500,000, (but) rather than cutting back, we need to raise additional money," said Dignowity Hill resident Nettie Hinton, who circulated a petition in the late 1990s that helped save the bridge from being dismantled.
Proponents of the project said the bridge itself has fared pretty well, but the concrete on the lower areas over the road has chipped away, revealing that the steel supports and the wood planks on the structure have rotted and need to be replaced.
The work to renovate the bridge began about eight years ago when its historic wrought-iron trusses and symbolic status as a gateway to the East Side brought together a diverse group of supporters, including engineers, preservationists, longtime residents and bike enthusiasts.
But safety concerns stalled negotiations between the city and UP, which runs an average of 30 to 50 trains per day under the bridge, said UP spokesman Joe Arbona.
"Both the city and the railroad wanted to make sure all the safety issues were addressed," Arbona said.
As part of the agreement, the city agreed to take charge of maintaining the bridge so the railroad corridor remains unobstructed and to ensure nothing will fall from the bridge onto the tracks.
While the city and UP negotiated, the Hays Street Bridge Restoration Group focused on raising funds for the project and had an additional 1.69 acres of land adjacent to the bridge donated to the city for a potential park in 2005.
"We could have lost a lot of steam, but ... there was so much resiliency" among the members, Chandler said. "They kind of kept the momentum going and kept up interest that made sure that the project wasn't forgotten."
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