High Main Street Bridge over the Great Miami River
Hamilton, Ohio
The High Main Street Bridge replaces a concrete arch that had stood for ninety years in the center of Hamilton's monumental civic buildings. Normally in a situation like this it is preferable to design a contemporary bridge that fits the historical context of the site. However, when communities insist, as in this case, on a more traditional structure the best of modern technology can be used to create a bridge that directly recalls the previous bridge. Mr. Gottemoeller led the community involvement process and developed the conceptual design and the aesthetic details for the new bridge.
The old bridge had graceful elliptical arches and was extremely thin at its midspans. For the new bridge custom precast concrete girders are used to emulate the curves of the old arches. The girders are tied together with steel post-tensioning cables to keep the midspans very thin. The end spans were designed as half-arches to allow new river walks on both banks. The details of the girders, overlooks and railings emulate the architecture of the Soldiers, Sailors & Pioneers Monument on the east shore, symbolically extending its presence to the west bank. The railing includes bronze medallions depicting events in Hamilton's history.
The west abutment includes raised overlooks with seating, flag poles and lighting. The west bank itself was regraded to create a pair of small amphitheatres flanking the overlooks that provide visual and handicapped access to the river. They can also be used for civic celebrations, the annual art festival and the 4th of July fireworks. All of these features are aimed at integrating the new structure into not only the physical fabric of the monumental district but also into its daily life. The bridge was completed in 2007 at a cost of $13 million.
"A bridge is a bridge, but our new span is far more than that. It is, truly, a remarkable work of art."
Jean Chamberlin, Hamilton residentThe bridge was awarded the Eugene C. Figg Jr. Medal for Signature Bridges at the 2008 International Bridge Conference in Pittsburgh. The Figg Medal recognizes “outstanding achievement in bridge engineering, which through vision and innovation, provides an icon to the community for which it was designed”.