Camano Gateway Bridge opens to traffic

(Above) Boy Scouts Color Guard from Troop 46 (L to R) Curt Maile, Austin Stonnell, Samuel Jacks and Gunner Guddal led the procession across the new Camano Gateway Bridge with flags to begin the official dedication Wednesday. (Right) A commuter crossed the new span linking the island to the mainland Friday morning. Sixty years ago, when the General Mark Clark Bridge opened, Twin City News writer Grant Freer welcomed it as “a fine new gateway to Camano Island.”

It’s especially poignant, then, that at last Wednesday’s ribbon cutting and dedication for its replacement, Island County Commissioner John Dean announced he and the other commissioners “unanimously recommend the new bridge be named Camano Gateway.”

His announcement was greeted with cheers.

The Friday morning opening of the bridge certainly marked a big event in the community, and last Wednesday’s ceremony recognized this significance.

PHOTOS BY JEREMIAH O’HAGAN | STANWOOD/CAMANO NEWS “Wow!” Dean said. “There’s nothing like 20,000 people living on a cul-desac island and having to get on and off each day. On behalf of all Camano people, residents and visitors, thank you.”

“It’s really a great day for us as a community,” agreed Senator Mary Margaret Haugen (D – Wash.), who was largely responsible for the transportation bill that funded the structure as part of an $84 million safety project.

Haugen remembered the old bridge as “a wonder at that time,” but recognized the need for a replacement.

“For those of us who live on Camano,” she said, “this is our lifeline.”

Stanwood Mayor Dianne White said the project “will serve our citizens and visitors for many decades.”

(Above) Senator Mary Margaret Haugen cuts the ribbon during the Camano Gateway Bridge dedication Wednesday. (Left) Artist Debbi Rhodes stands by her art planned to adorn the bridge. Both White and Haugen credited Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) workers, contractor Parsons-Kuney and various subcontractors for a job well done.

“I appreciate the courtesy the workers have shown to the businesses and citizens directly impacted by the project,” White said.

Haugen gave “a special thank you to the guys working on the bridge.”

“You did a fantastic job in not the best work environment,” she added.

Parsons-Kuney’s project manager, Greg Pindras, credited Mark Madison, safety manager on the project, for more than 200,000 injury-free man-hours spent on the project.

He also gave special recognition to Wayne Harrington, bridge superintendent.

PHOTO BY JEREMIAH O’HAGAN | STANWOOD/CAMANO NEWS “The bridge wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for this guy,” said Pindras.

WSDOT employed a strategy known as “design/ build,” in which the designer and contractor work closely together. This approach allows projects to be completed quickly and efficiently.

The project, however, wasn’t simply about efficiency.

Design Stanwood recognized this in a letter to the project’s leaders, and thanked them for their “willingness to adapt construction schedules to city event plans,” including high school prom, graduation and the Twin City Idlers car show.

“Considering the scope of the project, citizens of Stanwood and Camano have been blessed with one of the least disruptive major highway construction projects in recent history,” the letter read.

Dean said he appreciated Parsons-Kuney’s effort to add art to the bridge.

Debbi Rhodes, of Camano Island, was selected to craft four sculptures: an eagle, heron, orca and salmon — one to adorn each corner of the bridge.

“It’s a really big deal to me,” said Rhodes, who unveiled the sculptures Wednesday, even though they won’t be installed just yet. “The bridge is big, but being able to put my stamp on it is huge.”

Also present were the grandchildren of Bert Lawson, who tended the first wood and steel swing bridge built in 1909. Lawson lived next to the bridge for years, opening it to boats that chugged and sailed the river.

The weathered remains of his house still slouch beneath the shadow of progress.

And, when Haugen cut the ribbon last Wednesday, she did so in the presence of Lenore Moa, who cut the ribbon in the 1950 dedication of the General Mark Clark Bridge.

Karen Prasse, of the Stanwood Area Historical Society, said Moa told her a local banker, Lloyd Amundson, was supposed to find a young person to cut the ribbon. Amundson came over to Moa’s father’s bakery and asked her to do the honors.

At the time, Prasse said, Moa was 17. She cut the ribbon twice — the first time, the photographer wasn’t ready.

Louise Wenberg Luce also remembers the grand opening of the General Mark Clark Bridge.

Luce was married to the son of Representative Oscar Wenberg, who was responsible for the bill that funded the project, and she remembers riding in one of the first cars to cross the bridge. Her sentiments from years ago returned as she read about the new bridge in the NEWS, she said:

“I’m glad I’m alive, and happy to know this big thing is taking place.”

Staff Reporter Jeremiah O’Hagan: 629-8066 ext. 125 or ohagan@scnews.com.