Humboldt Avenue Bridge Graffiti

It took almost two years but last Wednesday the Humboldt Avenue bridge in Milwaukee officially reopened.

From 620 WTMJ:

Months after its originally scheduled November 2009 completion date, the re-opening was celebrated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony involving Milwaukee public officials. The new bridge, which cost $8.5 million to build, takes Humboldt Ave. over the Milwaukee River to Commerce St. The bridge is expected to last 75 years.

Over the past 22 months, controversy over the construction of the bridge had been an issue for many city officials. Since the construction made it difficult to get to several of the businesses in the area, many of them suffered financially.

...The new bridge is 44 feet wide - the old bridge was 28 feet wide - and has two scenic look-outs on the bridge over the river. There is also a new pedestrian stairway that goes from Commerce St. to Riverboat Rd.

"I think this is not only a vibrant area on its own but it's really a connective tissue between many vibrant neighborhoods in the city." said [City Engineer Jeff] Polenski.

The $8.5 million bridge was finally open for business. It was a moment that was two long years in the making.

It took just a week for thugs to deface it.

Video, from FOX 6 News.

WITI-TV, MILWAUKEE - The Milwaukee Department of Public Works(DPW) is clearing graffiti off the new Humboldt bridge, only days after the bridge was officially opened.

Residents, business owners, and city leaders gathered to celebrate the bridge's opening in June. Now, the sound of applause is replaced with the sound of a power washer. Some of the same neighbors who attended the celebration are frustrated with the graffiti.

No one is sure when the taggers hit the bridge, but the spot they chose to hit is a tough spot to stage a cleanup. DPW Worker Dennis Hermann says, "It's dangerous. We have to come down a sloping hill, and those rocks are loose, and it's very dangerous for footing."

The recycled glass mixture the city uses is good for removing graffiti, but also damages the decorative finish on the bridge.

It took DPW crews only a few hours to clean up the mess, but neighbors say it's only a matter of time before the taggers come back.

Why bother trying to build an attractive bridge when thugs are just going to make it an eyesore?

Some people have no conscience. It's hard for me to grasp the mindset of the thug or thugs responsible for the damage.

The FOX 6 report states that the bridge is so new crews on the north end of it are still working on completing the design of the decorative finish.

It's sickening.

I found something to be a bit weird during the exchange between reporter Tami Hughes and anchor Mary Stoker Smith following Hughes' video report.

Stoker Smith referred to the thugs as "graffiti artists."

They aren't artists. They're criminals. Defacing a bridge isn't artistic expression. It's illegal, not art.