As a part of my excursion in the thousand degree humidity and hundred-and-fifty-percent humidity, I took some photographs of the Henley Street Bridge construction. The photograph above is a bit misleading, looking as if the top structure is nearly back in place. As you can see from the other photographs, there’s a long way to go.
The official TDOT update site still indicates a hoped-for date of June 2013 for completion, meaning we still have about another year if all goes as planned. According to the site, the greenway continues to be closed along the river during work hours.
Hopefully it will be completed no later than planned. I know the businesses in south Knoxville have been impacted negatively. I don’t seem to make it to Disc Exchange as often as I have in the past, though it’s really not that much further. Traffic is noticeably worse on Gay Street, particularly during rush hour and it will be nice for that to return to lower levels. The downside for pedestrians is that Henley Street will, once again, become treacherous to cross. It will be nice to see the riverscape restored.
Also of note, First Baptist Church has a shiny new copper cover for their steeple. Apparently the old covering suffered hail damage and had to be replaced. It’s interesting, that same hail storm damaged some of the stained-glass at Church Street United Methodist a block or so away. I guess sometimes heaven holds sway and sometimes there’s hail to pay.
