Current

June 10, 2011

HARBOR DRIVE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE WINS THREE PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS

Bridge Honored by American Road & Transportation Builders Association, American Public Works Association and Urban Land Institute

 

SAN DIEGO — The 550-foot Harbor Drive Pedestrian Bridge, one of the world’s longest self-anchored pedestrian suspension bridges, was honored with three prestigious awards in as many weeks.  The awards include: Second Place in the Bridge Category by American Road & Transportation Association; Project of the Year in the Transportation Category by the American Public Works Association (APWA), San Diego & Imperial Counties Chapter; and the Award of Excellence by Urban Land Institute, San Diego and Tijuana (ULI).

The Harbor Drive Pedestrian Bridge earned second place in the bridge category at the American Road & Transportation Builders Association “Globe Awards” for use of materials appropriate for San Diego’s marine environment, mitigation of potential hazards for pedestrians crossing railroad tracks and train operations and Harbor Drive and community involvement during the planning stages.

The APWA Project of the Year award, established to promote excellence in public works projects by recognizing successful partnerships between the managing agency, the engineering team, and contractor, honored the Harbor Drive Pedestrian Bridge because it enhances walkability and provides safe passage over train and trolley tracks for pedestrians between the waterfront and East Village. The award also acknowledged efforts to minimize schedule conflicts with freight trains and trolleys along with the public outreach process prior to the design phase.

The ULI Awards of Excellence identify and promote best practices in all types of real estate development.  The awards recognize the full development process of a project – construction, economic viability, marketing and management, as well as design.

“We are elated that the Harbor Drive Pedestrian Bridge is receiving national, regional and local accolades. This downtown landmark completes an important piece of the City of San Diego’s Park-to-Bay link,” said CCDC Executive Vice President and CFO Frank Alessi.  “Staff’s hard work enabled a unique collaboration between various partners, integrated public comments into the design and succeeded in building a state-of-the-art bridge that will be enjoyed for years to come.”

The bridge was constructed as a requirement of the Public Utilities Commission due to the reconfiguration of streets to accommodate construction of PETCO Park and reconstructing a vehicular intersection at Park Blvd and Harbor Drive.  It was designed by Ty Lin International and Safdie Rabines Architects and constructed by Reyes Construction, Inc.

The Harbor Drive Pedestrian Bridge is a uniquely funded private/public project and a collaboration of local, state, regional and federal agencies and programs including: CCDC, on behalf of the City of San Diego’s Redevelopment Agency; City of San Diego; California Transportation Commission; the Federal Highway Administration; California Department of Transportation (Caltrans); State Transportation Improvement Program; SANDAG; JMI Realty Inc.; and the Unified Port of San Diego.

For more information on the Harbor Drive Pedestrian Bridge, please visit www.ccdc.com.

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CCDC is a public, nonprofit corporation established in 1975 by the City of San Diego to plan and facilitate the redevelopment of the 1,500-acre downtown area.