Guess Which TC Bridge Is Turning 40 This Year?
Some will remember another two-lane bridge in its place but most Tri-Citians only know of the cable bridge that stands there now.
The Cable Bridge celebrates it's 40th birthday this Sunday and what makes the bridge such a triumph is that it almost didn't get constructed.
The Cable Bridge was once called the Inter-City bridge and it was completed in 1978.
The bridge was controversial at the time but Ed Hendler (a former Pasco Mayor) spent 11 years trying to get the bridge built.
Ed's main reason for the bridge upgrade was a pretty simple premise. He wanted to make the downtown's of Pasco and Kennewick accessible to more potential customers. Hendler noticed that with the Blue Bridge, most of the traffic was headed towards the Columbia Center Mall and bypassing the old Green Bridge. Hendlert thought a new and improved bridge would bring those customers back to downtown Pasco and Kennewick for shopping.
After years of pitching the idea and working to get funding, what we know as the Cable Bridge made it's debut in 1978.
It cost $30 million to build and it set the standard for modern bridge building even up until today.
It's an amazing story, click here as Ed's son discusses his Dad's dream and legacy.