After over a year of patiently waiting, residents of Bankers Hill will regain a major transportation connector when the First Avenue Bridge reopens on Monday.
Everyone is welcome to attend this long anticipated re-opening which will take place at 10am Monday, February 22. Join councilmembers Kevin Faulconer, Todd Gloria and community leaders Leo Wilson (Chair of Uptown Planners and the Bankers Hill/Park West Community Assocation) and HBA president Nancy Moors as they cut the ribbon to again allow travel to flow between Bankers Hill and Downtown. This steel truss arch bridge spanning Maple Canyon was originally constructed in 1931under the Improvement Act of 1911. The bridge was completely assembled on the floor of its Ohio fabrication plant, dismantled and shipped to San Diego. Initially known as the “Peoples Bridge” (because it was erected by demands of local property owners), the old bridge needed lots of work and seismic upgrades to prevent collapse during a catastrophic 
earthquake. The much-used span has been certified as a historic structure by the City of San Diego Historical Resources Board and the California Department of Parks and Recreation.
The 14-month project provided a seismic retrofit and rehabilitation of the bridge deck, removal of existing lead paint, installation of historic street lighting, utility relocation (where needed) and repainting the structure to its original color. Last August (after lower than usual precipitation) the SD Uptown News reported that “rain delays” would affect its completion which was initially planned for last November. The project was to have begun in mid-2007 with an estimated timeline of six months to a year. The project now satisfies the state’s criteria of “no collapse” during a seismic event. With $300,000 in state bond funds, the project’s cost estimate was $12,700,000.
