A plan to build a crossing bridge over Second Street was met with nods of approval from the Henderson City Commission who Tuesday OK’d work on the project to continue.
Representatives of Holy Name Church and School, who approached the city about the bridge last summer, say the crossing bridge would allow their 400-plus students to safely cross Second Street. HNS students make the trek from school to church at least once a week.
But Holy Name representatives say it’s not just about the schoolchildren. School President Julie Eadens said officials at the school see the pedestrian and vehicle traffic every day, which is increasing. She said there’s also “the increased need of safety” of the whole community.
She said HNS students will use the bridge but it’s also about “the community as a whole (to) create a safety point.”
Nicole Frields, the chief operating officer of the WARM Center, spoke in support of the crossing bridge, saying that residents of WARM are not allowed to have a driver’s license and so they walk everywhere in Henderson. That path includes crossing Second Street to reach the Recovery Resource Club of Henderson’s office on First Street.
Eadens told the Hendersonian that church and school officials first met with then-City Manager Buzzy Newman in August 2024. She said Newman advised them to prepare a plan that can be shown to city commissioners.
Holy Name contracted with Lexington’s Palmer Engineering to create the conceptual plan which was shown at Tuesday’s city commission meeting.
Steven Sewell, of Palmer, presented the $3.6 million plan at the meeting. In it, two 23-feet tall brick towers would be placed on either side of Second Street at its intersection with Adams Street. The bricks would match that of the church and also the new fire station, which will be built at the location of the former Immanuel Baptist Temple on the west side of Adams Street.
The bridge would span 104 feet from tower to tower, Sewell said.
Plans call for both elevators and stairwells in the towers, and the bridge would be a steel truss, with either weathered or painted steel and could be either enclosed or open, Sewell said.
The bridge could serve as a gateway with a sign on it welcoming people into the city, Sewell said.
Holy Name paid for the conceptual plan from Palmer. Officials at the church and school say they won’t fund the entire project.
The next step of the project, according to Eadens, is to meet with state Sen. Robby Mills to determine if there are any funding opportunities in the next budget the state General Assembly will piece together. Legislators will convene next January to create the biennial state budget.
Ben Johnston, who spoke at the meeting on behalf of the project, said those connected with the project didn’t come to the commission to ask for funding, but only for a nod of approval so they can continue working on the project. He said that the project would seek funding from several sources, including the state if possible.
“It would be a community partnership,” Johnston said.
Assistant City Manager Buzzy Newman said there are stormwater drains at the corner closest to where the fire station will be. Officials indicated it would not be a problem to put one of the towers at the corner.
According to Palmer, the cost estimates of the $3.6 million project are:
- Design cost: $400,000
- Utility cost: $600,000
- Towers cost: $1.5 million
- Bridge cost: $1.1 million
