A couple of Sundays ago the new South Park Bridge celebrated its opening. Ceremonies included fire works, parade (photos to follow) and the usual dignitaries. I had been following the project since it started in 2011 and even before. Some of my ‘before’ photos can be seen here, on the King County website. John Stamets, the official photographer for the bridge project, passed away suddenly two weeks before the opening ceremony. Follow his chronicle of the bridge project here. I was fortunate to attend some of the community meetings where John’s Powerpoints were presented. He was great fun to listen to and learn from. He led a rather extraordinary life and I think there is a link to his bio on the page I just linked to. Although the bridge closure and replacement was difficult on the residents and businesses of South Park, I think the people in charge of making it happen and working with the community did an outstanding job. Tim, the chief engineer on site every day, kept his cool and sense of humor throughout all of the setbacks and community frustrations. Ashley DeForest and DeAnna Martin, as Community Relations Managers,  were great in dealing with the community and keeping everyone informed. I think the project was lucky to have these individuals working together, along with John Stamets. Tim, the chief engineer, decided to make this his last project and he has or is in the process of retiring. Not many new bridges get built, so I think he felt this was a great way to go out.