[Johnson Street Bridge] General discussion

[mat]

Originally Posted by aastra

I always thought it was odd that the Johnston Street Bridge was on Johnson Street.

did you mean to say - "not on Johnston St.". Could be re-named Pandora St. or Wharf St. bridge!

[VicHockeyFan]

Originally Posted by aastra

I always thought it was odd that the Johnston Street Bridge was on Johnson Street.

Sometimes I ponder the same thing as I'm crossing Blanchard St.

[victorian fan]

Why it's the Johnston St bridge.

[aastra]

I suspected as much. Somebody staggered out of Slinger's Wines and asked, "Which way to Johnston Street?"

[aastra]

In case anyone has missed it, we're making fun of the whole Johnson/Johnston thing here.

The street's name is Johnson Street and the other street's name is Blanshard Street.

[Holden West]

^Just a few steps away from Fisguard St.

Gee, I shed a tear every time I see that Slinger's building.

[G-Man]

Yup that one is a real loss...

[Nparker]

On the bright side, tearing it down did create both a useless plaza of sorts and opened up the view of the iconic-if-not-yet-blue-bridge.

[gumgum]

I took these from my canoe last year:

[Rob Randall]

^Great photos!

I want to mention the importance of the bridge in relation to the time in which it was built--the 1920s--and the fact that this time coincided with the dawn of what some call "the Precisionist Movement" in American painting.

Some of America's most famous artists like Georgia O'Keefe and Charles Sheeler tackled the subject of the industrial landscape, painting stunningly detailed pictures of factories, skyscrapers and yes, bridges--even ones designed by none other than JSB designer Joseph Strauss.

It would be fair to say they have influenced modern artists as well.

Our bridge is a real link to this vanishing historical age of engineering and artistic genius.


Elsie Driggs (1898 – 1992) Queensborough Bridge, 1927
Oil on Canvas, 401/2 x 30 ¼ inches
MAM Purchase: Lang Acquisition Fund 1969.4

[VicHockeyFan]

^ That's a great piece!

[Ms. B. Havin]

GREAT photos, gumgum, and thanks for the reference to Precisionist Movement, Rob.

I cannot understand the hypocrisy of the heritage preservation crowd in Victoria (and yes, I'm looking at you, Nick Russell, Mary Doody Jones, Pam Madoff, Helen Edwards, and the whole lot of you), that they're keeping silent on tearing down this undoubtedly heritage-worthy structure.

What a bunch of hypocrites.

[aastra]

Just imagine what a simple modern bridge would look like in its place.

[Lover Fighter]

Originally Posted by Barra

I remember when the bridge was painted blue. Before that it was black and was uglier than heck. When it was painted baby blue it blended in with the sky and was much easier on the eye.

The notion that it is "iconic" [...] is balderdash. The bridge was never affectionately referred to by anybody until the issue of replacing it came up.....

I'm sorry, but I find this post absolutely infuriating. If the blue bridge is not iconic, then I don't know what is.

I've never brought up the fact that I find the blue bridge iconic because, quite frankly, I've never needed to until now. Then again, I don't think I've ever actually heard anyone from Victoria mention that the Legislative Buildings are iconic because it just goes without saying.

I have never made any effort to campaign to have it designated as a heritage structure because 1) I assumed it already was and 2) I never imagined there would be a proposal to have it torn down.

[Phil McAvity]

^The difference between the Legislature and the bridge is that the Legislature is in millions of photos and is the international symbol of Victoria. The bridge, not so much. Like, not at all.

[G-Man]

^ Tourists seem to disagree see tourist photo thread.

[Nparker]

Then let's have tourists foot the $30 million plus bill for refurbishing and maintaining the current bridge. I would rather see my tax dollars go towards something with a longer lifespan and which doesn't require millions of dollars to maintain (even as poorly as the current bridge is maintained).

[aastra]

It's actually photographed a lot. That's why we make jokes about how the tourists still haven't got the message that the bridge and the Coho and the floatplanes are actually despicable things not worth spitting at let alone taking pictures of.

Nparker, the tourists have chipped in a bunch of money for the maintenance of which you speak. The question is, where has the money gone?

The new bridge will fall apart just as fast if not faster if it's neglected the way this one was.

[G-Man]

^Yup Hotel Tax

[Nparker]

Originally Posted by aastra

The new bridge will fall apart just as fast if not faster if it's neglected the way this one was.

I would be VERY surprised if a newer, simpler bridge (simpler in the sense of its mechanics, not necessarily its aesthetics) would cost as much to maintain as one that is more than 80 years old.

[aastra]

I was trying to make a cynical (perhaps slightly unfair) point about how no maintenance on a new bridge is just as bad as no maintenance on an old bridge.

[mat]

Originally Posted by aastra

I was trying to make a cynical (perhaps slightly unfair) point about how no maintenance on a new bridge is just as bad as no maintenance on an old bridge.

Cynical, true - but a good point. Any infrastructure requires constant maintenance or it deteriorates quickly. If the City Engineering dept. had received the funding to upgrade and fix the JSB over the years (and they warned council on numerous occasions over the last decade), then we might be hearing a different tune - refurbish rather than replace.

[Nparker]

Originally Posted by mat

If the City Engineering dept. had received the funding to upgrade and fix the JSB over the years, then we might be hearing a different tune - refurbish rather than replace.

But they didn't, so replacement is the only fiscally responsible option and this time let's ensure that maintenance is done regularly.

[Nparker]

Quote:
Originally Posted by aastra
That reminds me, I've started a campaign to restore the Empress Hotel. The plan is to demolish every addition that's ever been added to the original building. You know, return it to its original state.

You make it sound as though my reasoning for why the JSB should be replaced is because it is no longer in its original state. That is simply untrue. The reason it should be replaced is because it does not make sense for city of Victoria taxpayers to invest millions of dollars into a structure that cannot have that many years of use left in it. You also site examples of privately owned buildings to support your facetious "argument". If the JSB were privately owned, then its owner would be fully within his/her rights to spend whatever they wanted to retain it. As a publically paid for piece of infrastructure, there comes a time when one must put fiscal responsibility ahead of sentimentality. That being said, if you want to start a private campaign to raise the $30 million or so needed to keep the bridge, and no taxpayer funds are required, then I fully support your efforts. Heck, I may even chip in a buck or two.

[jklymak]

^ As has been pointed out here, there is little evidence that the bridge "cannot have that many years of use in it". A refurbishment is a refurbishment - why should it not last as long as a new bridge? San Francisco refurbished and seismically retrofitted their bridge, with no talk of it being useless in 25 years, so surely we can do the same. A little more expensive, no doubt, but not $30 million more expensive. A little more inconvenient, no doubt, but there are other ways of getting to Vic West.