The City of Owensboro is awaiting the go-ahead from the state before construction can begin on the new lighting system of the community’s iconic blue bridge. Assistant City Manager Lelan Hancock is still striving for a bridge-lighting ceremony before Christmas.
The City must be approved for a permit through the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) before any of the color-changing lights can be installed.
“I don’t see any major holdups. We should receive approval for a permit by mid-July,” Hancock said.
Hancock told city commissioners his plan was to light the bridge and the downtown Christmas tree simultaneously during early December. Although Hancock isn’t expecting any interference from the state, his original plan was to open bids for installation by July 15.
“Each day we wait jeopardizes meeting that December goal,” he said.
Hancock says the bridge-lighting project will take three to four months to complete. Construction crews will work through the summer, fall and early winter as they install LED-like lights throughout the bridge’s structure.
Lights on the bridge were turned off permanently in 2013 after an accident during the bridge repainting resulted in the electrocution and death of a contracted painter.
The family of the painter, who was from Texas, filed a wrongful death suit against the City, which was settled by insurance attorneys in 2018 for $800,000. During the time of the wrongful death case and finalization of the legal settlement, no work could be done to relight the bridge.
“That is finished and over with,” Hancock said of the lawsuit. “As unfortunate as that is, the court case is settled.”
Once the City receives the KYTC permit, Hancock hopes things will move as quickly as possible.
“I’m hoping the contractor will be ready to go,” he said. “They’ll be working up until it starts to get really cold, but before the worst of the weather hits. We have everything ready to go on our end, including traffic control. I feel like they should be able to be pretty productive once everything gets going.”
