Bend, Ore. – Its been more than a decade since the Bill Healy Bridge was built in southwest Bend.
The $6.7 million project which connects Reed Market Road and Century Drive, opened in 2013 after years of debate – primarily between residents hoping to further growth or to slow it down. Proponents said the crossing was necessary to ease traffic congestion on the west side – others wanted to preserve the Deschutes River canyon and push residents to use other transportation options other than cars.
Plans for the bridge started to gain traction as Bend started to grow, especially with more and more development going up on the west side. In 2000, High lakes Elementary opened, and developers proposed projects like Northwest Crossing. A year later, in 2001, Summit High School opened, but there still wasn’t a away to get across the Deschutes River in Bend.
Today, more than 4,000 cars per day drive over the bridge, which has become a crucial crossing for those travelling through south Bend.
In 2016, its hard to imagine Bend without the bridge as the city continues to face rapid growth.
