In my very first blog post ever I made this statement :"the pretty banners the city placed over the rusty old 15th St. bridge would have a lot more impact if the bridge was at least painted first. It's kinda like turd-polishing. More on turd-polishing later. "
I was surprised when some fellow bloggers got all aquiver over my reference to turds. Not very sophisticated language for a lady bloggette? Oh, that Mrs. Dottie has such a potty mouth! Well, I like to call em' how I see em'.
Anyway, the 15th St. Bridge has finally been painted a pretty designer shade of spring green to match the lovely banners. It looks much better now. So what was the hold-up? Maybe they couldn't decide on a color?
I read that the bridge will need to be completely reconstructed one day, and that the structural repairs they just did in June were only a temporary fix. Makes me wonder why they let it get so rusty for so long? There's a rule I like to follow in my household when it comes to doing the dishes and general straightening up: "daily maintenance prevents pile-ups."
Is this fresh green paint just another coat of turd polish? Well, at least it looks better.
Public Notice FYI : the 15th St. Bridge will be closed Tuesday August 5th and Wednesday August 6th for additional structural repairs.
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11 comments:
Woo! Yeah! Turds! Alright!
last year when i complained about the bridge on bernie's blog, a very authoritarian anonymous apologist came on and said i didn't know what i was talking about; because the bridge is so close to the water works, the bridge couldn't be scraped because of lead paint, blah, blah, blah,
i knew the bridge had been painted often, and the water works was there long before the bridge. so from now on, when i refer to AAA, it's a authoritarian anonymous apologist
I recently crossed paths with a town planner from out of the area who begged me to do whatever I can to light the 8th St. Bridge. He pointed out that this bridge is a historic trolley bridge and more needs to be done to respect its architectural and historic significance. He pointed out that lighting it's architecture would be a start.
That got me thinking about how important the Brooklyn Bridge is as a visual icon to the people of NYC (and beyond). Perhaps the 8th St. Bridge is an under-sung asset of the city.
Also, the approach to Allentown from the South Side on 8th Street is an important gateway to the city. Pete Lewnes and the 7th St. Main Street Program are doing so much to improve the gateway from the north (thanks, Pete!), but more could be done to beautify 8th St. as the gateway from the south.
As an important entrance to town, perhaps we should be thinking about street trees, uplighting the bridge, replacing the cobra-headed lights on the bridge with something more decorative. These are no more than long-term dreams, but if you agree, perhaps the place for these ideas to dream is the City's Comprehensive Plan.
And, that reminds me that I made a pitch at the last Chen Arts Group for people to check out the City of Allentown's Comprehensive Plan on line and send comments to the City's Planning Department. The City's website is: www.allentownpa.gov
Once you get on the website, go to the search function and type in comprehensive plan, and up it will come. It is still in the formative stages, not yet approved by City Council, so now is the time to get your comments in.
Also, while you are there, check out the city events calendar for fun things to do in Allentown. Since Tara Prelovsky has been managing the events calendar, there is one central place to find out what is happening with arts events and community celebrations. Artists can contact her for posting information about public art events that you may know about that are not listed.
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joyce, i agree with you that the 8th st. bridge is an icon of allentown. perhaps you could use your influence at city hall to have the weeds and saplings removed from the bridges' roadbed. the roots grow into the cement, which in turn creates spaces for water which freezes in the winter. allentown needs some elbow grease. everything need not be committees, plan, grants and bureaucrats.
Joyce,
Thanks for commenting.I read parts of the comprehensive plan on-line. It mentions the Musselman bldg as an arts center. That's where we are meeting for our next Chen-Arts get together. Maybe something can happen there in the future as far as gallery space.
I think if Tara connects with Joe at the City Arts blog(which needs to be updated), and Joe links to my blog, we can get more info out there about arts events in Allentown.
As far as the bridges go, I agree that respecting the historical significance of the architecture is important, but I also agree with Michael that some elbow grease and general maintenance is necessary. And would it be possible to have trollies again, I see them in Bethlehem and Easton, but I guess they are trolly buses?
15th Street Bridge definitely looks better. But I hate those metal grates to begin with. It's hard to hang onto the wheel with being pulled all over the place!
I agree 8th St. Bridge is a real icon. An artist friend of mine did some great paintings with the underbelly of the bridge prominently featured, and he's not originally from here. It does seem to leave an impression on anyone who sees it. Wasn't that a WPA project? Amazing stuff...
Sarina,
8th St. bridge could have been a WPA project, I think Lehigh Parkway was.
the 8th bridge predates the wpa projects by 30 years or more. it was built by the predecessor of the lehighvalley transit co. as a toll and trolley bridge
Thanks A-town historian.
So what's the excuse for not pulling weeds and removing saplings from this bridge's roadbed? If it's an historical icon it should be taken care of. More blah, blah blah?
among the notable wpa projects in allentown; union terrace with its ampi-theater, lehigh parkway with its stone walls and stepped structure, and fountain park with its walls and steps. these structures must be periodically repointed, they are priceless. i successfully lobbied during heydt 1 to have needed repointing done then. there was a construction, a stone landing on the creek, which was allowed to decline and was eventually covered up. several other unreplaceable features have been lost in our park system, not the least of which was the trexler green house. unfortunately a park "czar" was allowed total control for a decade or so, a story i hope to blog about in the future.
WPA was an FDR project. One of many FDR programs that are priceless in their enduring genius. Just thinking of FDR makes me beam with pride at being a Liberal Democrat. Once one gets beyond the Founding Father Presidents, and Lincoln, Franklin Delano Roosevelt is The Best U.S. Prez of the Modern Era, in my perception.
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