Port Looking For Money To Light The San Diego-Coronado Bridge

 

FINK Bridge Lighting Concept from Port of San Diego on Vimeo.

 

 

 

The San Diego Unified Port District has approved a funding plan to light up the San Diego-Coronado Bridge. The video shown above indicates what it might look like by 2015. The year 2015 was chosen as the target completion date in tandem with the 100th anniversary of Balboa Park's Panama-California Exposition. The project is a partnership between the Port of San Diego and Caltrans, which operates and maintains the bridge.

 

The Port has set aside $75,000 to mount a fund-raising drive that needs to collect between $6 million and $8 million to complete the project. A professional fundraiser will be hired by the Port at a cost of $25,000-$50,000 and the San Diego Foundation will receive $25,000 to act as the fund manager. The cost of design is estimated at $750,000 and the rest of the money will go toward design development and installation. No amounts for maintenance of the lights were called out in the proposal.

 

The project was designed by the Peter Fink Team. The Port website states "The Peter Fink Team is a combined European and North American Team led by artist Peter Fink of FoRM Associates in collaboration with Speirs and Major Associates and Buro Happold. The team has the practical experience in large-scale lighting projects and an extensive award winning track of creativity."

 

Mr. Fink explains in his proposal that the bridge's pillars would be illuminated from below with colored lights that could change daily or by the seasons or holidays.  The design also describes a lighting system that operates in tandem with the rate of traffic traveling over the bridge— the greater the  traffic, the brighter the lighting intensity.

 

"You will be able to see this bridge from all five of the member cities," said Port Commissioner Lee Burdick. "There will be incredible vista views."

Comments

[Susan Heavilin]

I don't get it. In a time that we need large sums of money to fix our aging infrastructure, we're going to spend $6-8m for lights on the bridge? With no funds set aside for a maintenance plan? Does this remind you of the fiasco we got into with the School Pool? I personally like the way the bridge looks at night and it can be seen from wherever the bridge is in sight.

This lighting intensity according to the rate of traffic on the bridge does not bode well with me. Wouldn't that be an indication to possible terrorists for the best time for a bridge strike? I like the bridge just as it is, and think this idea is a bit overkill for our small community. Maybe I just need to be enlightened. Opinions anyone?