Bridge-lighting advocates move toward their goal

That new bridge of ours looks spiffy in the sunshine, iconic in the rain.

But come nightfall, its cables and towers fade away. It could be any old span, dotted with street lamps and streaming with headlights.

The bridge is not finished.

It needs illumination.

People following its construction knew that the minute Tacoma Narrows Constructors flipped on the catwalk safety lights and inspired a communal gasp. When the builders changed to holiday colors, and then to Seahawks green and blue, the gasp advanced to a clamor for the permanent lighting that was not in the contract.

In December, Desa Gese Conniff and Bill Beecher responded, forming Narrows BridgeLights.org. Local activist Solar Richard joined, along with an engineer, a lighting contractor, artists and fundraisers.

They researched costs, design and types of lights on other bridges, and then settled on LED technology and solar power.

They collected endorsements from local governments and service clubs. They won $1.5 million from the Puget Sound Economic Development Fund. They turned themselves into experts on grants and demonstration projects. And with the help of Graphic Services, Ink Inc. and Freeway Trailer Sales they set up a display for opening day, with examples of lighting, pictures of bridges and 1,000 comment cards.

A thousand cards, they thought, was a sunny estimate. They were off by 500. In the middle of the event, they were dispatching people to Kinko’s and resorting to notebook paper.

“It makes everything so pretty!” wrote Kerrie Bush of Tacoma. “It puts a smile on my face!”

“We have a world-class bridge,” wrote Liz Paterson of Tacoma. “We need to treat it that way!!”

“After all this work, I want to see my taxes every night!!!” wrote Fran Phelan of Lakewood.

(The box of comments rattles with multiple exclamation points!!)

Light fans wrote of seeing them from airplanes, boats and trains. They talked about the tourist draw and the images of Tacoma that would pop up on traffic cameras and the Internet.

They yearned for the beauty that came down with the work lights. They called them magic and spoke of how they loved them during the winter.

Out of a sample of 700 cards, only one person asked how lights would be paid for, and only two said they did not want them.

Sure, it was a self-selected sample. The people who walked, rolled and strolled the new bridge Sunday were there because they’re excited about it. But the margin, 1,500 to six, if the pattern prevails, is overwhelming.

It will come in handy as the light team goes for the money to complete the job.

Already, they have the state’s specifications for the project, and an engineer on their team.

Already, they have a bid on the lights. It’s lower than the initial $4.5 million estimate. Though Conniff does not know the exact figure, she’s heard the $1.5 million they now have could light one bridge. That does not include the solar panels for the whole system.

Federal regulations require energy companies to develop green power, and Beecher said the team will apply for funding of the solar panel system as a demonstration project.

They’ve contacted federal legislators.

Along with green power and tourism, they’ll emphasize the very things the bridge walkers noted: Beauty, cheer, whimsy and the icon factor.

Though hundreds of people have offered to donate, the group is not set up to take money for a state asset. They can, however, sell the T-shirts that will soon be available on their Web site, NarrowsBridgeLights.org.

What a great idea: Hundreds of walking billboards out to complete our bridge.

Kathleen Merryman: 253-597-8677

kathleen.merryman@thenewstribune.com