Saturday ceremony to brighten up bridge

Southeast Missourian

The final aesthetic touch to the new Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge will make its first official appearance Saturday evening and is expected to garner glowing reviews.

The 140 decorative lights outlining the bridge will spark to life during a ceremony from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Knights of Columbus Hall on Spanish Street, a short distance from the bridge.

Area lawyer John Layton and Dr. C. Nelson Ringer suggested the idea of outfitting the bridge with decorative lights to the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce in 1993.

"It's finally here," Ringer said. "It'll be extremely bright and should be visible for about 10 miles, particularly on the Illinois side."

Large, 1,000-watt lamps will illuminate the 300-foot towers, which now dominate Cape Girardeau's skyline. Smaller 400-watt bulbs are base-mounted on the side of the bridge to shine upward, illuminating the 128 cables supporting the bridge.

About 300 people may attend the ceremony, which will recognize those who donated money to install lights on the $100 million bridge. The donation project was organized by the chamber.

Donors can witness the illumination from a special vantage point -- the old Mississippi River bridge. They will be guided there by representatives from the Missouri Department of Transportation, Ringer said.

Others wanting to witness the event can find good vantage points elsewhere in downtown Cape Girardeau, including the Old Town Cape Boardman Pavilion across from Hutson's Furniture, Murtaugh Park across from Old St. Vincent's Church, Riverfront Park and Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus.

The lights will run from dusk to midnight daily. Towboat captains will be able to send signals automatically turning off the decorative lights when they pose a navigation problem. Street lights and navigational lights will remain on all night.

The chamber requested donations of $2,500 for the larger lights and $250 for the smaller ones. Because of the strategic placement of the lights, drivers should not be distracted.

Two large plaques will be on the western side of the bridge with names of donors and memorials offered by some.

The chamber is also offering prints of an artist's rendition of the completed bridge to help reach the campaign's goal of 20 percent local funding. The prints are selling for $200 each.

The money raised through the lights paid for about $110,000 of the total cost of the project, while the remainder, about $400,000, is coming from a federal enhancement grant.

The Missouri Department of Transportation will maintain the lights.

mwells@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension