Davenport_Skybridge,_Interior,_Facing_North

The Davenport Skybridge is a pedestrian

cable-stayed bridge A cable-stayed bridge has one or more ''towers'' (or ''pylons''), from which cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, normally forming a fan-like pattern o ...

that spans River Drive (Highway 67) in

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

Davenport, Iowa Davenport is a city in and the county seat of Scott County, Iowa, United States. Located along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state, it is the largest of the Quad Cities, a metropolitan area with a population of 384,324 and a ...

. It connects

LeClaire Park LeClaire Park is a public park located along the Mississippi River in downtown Davenport, Iowa, United States. It is situated between two other riverfront parks: Centennial Park on the west and River Heritage Park, a new park that is being devel ...

to a courtyard and parking ramp on 2nd Street, located near the

River Music Experience The River Music Experience is a multi-use music facility and 501(c)3 non-profit organization located on the first two floors of the historic Redstone Building in downtown Davenport, Iowa. The stated purpose of the River Music Experience is ...

. The bridge, completed in 2005, is tall, long, and features columns. It was designed by

Holabird & Root The architectural firm now known as Holabird & Root was founded in Chicago in 1880. Over the years, the firm has changed its name several times and adapted to the architectural style then current — from Chicago School to Art Deco to Modern ...

and Neumann Monson, P.C. At the south end, facing the river, is an

observation deck An observation deck, observation platform, or viewing platform is an elevated sightseeing platform usually situated upon a tall architectural structure, such as a skyscraper or observation tower. Observation decks are sometimes enclosed ...

with a view of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

, LeClaire Park Bandshell, the Centennial Bridge, and the Davenport Levee, where many

festivals A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival co ...

take place throughout the warmer months. The inside of the Skybridge contains

kaleidoscope A kaleidoscope () is an optical instrument with two or more reflecting surfaces (or mirrors) tilted to each other at an angle, so that one or more (parts of) objects on one end of these mirrors are shown as a regular symmetrical pattern when v ...

lighting. The lighting consists of 228

LED A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor Electronics, device that Light#Light sources, emits light when Electric current, current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy i ...

fixtures and 8,036 individual lights. The LEDs are capable of displaying various patterns. The lighting color and patterns can be adjusted for events occurring in the area, such as a red, white, and blue color scheme for the

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...

; red and green for Christmas; and various other patterns. The Skybridge was a component of the Riverfront/Downtown Davenport improvement program, River Renaissance. The total cost of the structure was $7 million. Iowa taxpayers provided $3.5 million in the form of a Vision Iowa grant, Rhythm City Casino paid $2 million, and the City of Davenport taxpayers spent $500,000 for its initial construction. The Riverboat Development Authority, the agency responsible for distributing some of the taxes collected from Rhythm City, allocated $1.3 million. The bridge's stated purpose is to serve as a tourist attraction with a unique vantage point of the Mississippi River, while also functioning as a safe way to cross the highway.

References

External links

Quad-City Times articles about the Davenport Skybridge
{{Davenport Cable-stayed bridges in the United States Pedestrian bridges in Iowa Tourist attractions in Davenport, Iowa Transportation in Davenport, Iowa Bridges completed in 2005 Buildings and structures in Davenport, Iowa Bridges in Scott County, Iowa Bridges in the Quad Cities Projects by Holabird & Root 2005 establishments in Iowa