Stewart Street Bridge, Dayton, OH

Founded at the confluence of four rivers, Dayton needs many bridges.  The bridges, taken as a group, provide much of the civic character of Dayton.  In the past the typical Dayton bridge consisted of multiple earth-filled concrete arches. As these bridges are replaced the challenge is to create new civic assets of equal quality within the resources of local budgets.

Dayton’s rivers are mostly wide but not deep, allowing fairly short spans, well within the range of standard precast concrete girders.  These have such overwhelming cost advantages that they are the default choice for new superstructures. Adding visual character to precast girder bridges without breaking the budget requires creative thinking about the other parts of the bridge: the piers, parapets and railings.  Most recent replacement bridges in Dayton include details aimed at making a precast girder bridge look a bit like an arch.

At Stewart Street the city decided instead on a new approach.  The bridge is adjacent to the University of Dayton’s new research campus, so the city decided to create a bridge with a contemporary appearance but the rhythm and scale of the traditional arch bridges.  A V-shaped pier provides a repeated, standardized, easy-to-build element that economically meets this goal.  The triangular openings in the cross wall lighten the visual weight of the piers and make them more transparent. A cast-in-place concrete fascia covers and unites the edge girder and the barrier and recalls the monumentality of the traditional concrete arches. Its upper facet catches the light, creating a striking horizontal band sweeping from bank to bank, interrupted just briefly at the piers.   Even the lighting poles pick up the angular theme.

With the new Stewart Street bridge Dayton has found a way to bring its tradition of monumental civic bridges into the 21st century.