BOLD BRIDGE DESIGN MAY LIE LOW

After the city of Tacoma, Wash., asked Sasha Brodsky and Ilya Utkin to devise a plan to reconnect the city to its waterfront, the architects designed a heavy-timber pedestrian bridge that combines the characteristics of a waterfront pier with the traditional railroad trestle.

The pedestrian bridge they propose extends 320 feet from the base of 12th Street with a 30-foot-wide deck. The tree-lined stone deck would be supported by five towers, with the fifth tower standing about 70 feet above the shoreline. Pedestrians could walk down to the waterfront by way of switch-back ramps. Timber latticework on the towers would serve as decorative sculpture.

When building will commence - or whether the bridge will be built at all - remains to be seen. Engineering and cost estimates have been done, says Michael Sullivan, manager of the division of cultural resources for the city. But more public interest and money are needed.