The viaduct needs our help

Just a few blocks south of the El Dorado’s Union Square, the Arkansas Highway Department has plans to remove two historic 1920s era viaducts — bridges over railway lines — as part of the widening and renovation of Arkansas Highway 82.

The main viaduct and the smaller one just east, both on Hillsboro Street, which is Highway 82, are slated to come down and be replaced.

These viaducts, or bridges, are on the National Register of Historic Places. They are an example of numerous other historic structures in towns across the state and nation that are similar and which have a crowd clambering for them to be taken down.

The new bridges on the Arkansas River always illicit a call to take the old ones down. But for what reason?

If those bridges were left and repurposed into attractive venues, it would save millions of removal dollars and actually add to the attractiveness of the area.

In Europe, old bridges are a draw in themselves. We seem to have a case of being shortsighted, and it shows not only in the removal of these bridges, but in what some call “urban renewal,” which means to whatever is old, whether it is historic or not, should be taken down.

What if the Europeans had taken down every bridge that they didn’t use for the purpose they were built?

If you have even glanced at the Internet or visited any European or Asian country, you will find historic bridge after bridge, no longer in use, but still proudly standing as historic structures. Sometimes the ancient bridge is one of the feature attractions of a city.

What if the city of Venice, Italy had taken down the Rialto Bridge? Of course it would have been a monumental historic loss!

Do we, as a country, state or city have historic bridges or buildings in danger of being taken down? Of course we do! Just think for a minute about the El Dorado viaducts.

What would we accomplish if we demolished both viaducts and then added two new ones in their place? One, we would lose an irreplaceable piece of history, waste several million dollars and, really, it accomplish absolutely nothing. In fact it would be millions spent, and it would reduce — not improve — our

quality of life.

Just the sparkling red and green, big poinsettias that the City of El Dorado installs at Christmas are enough to keep the viaduct in my opinion, but what if instead of taking it down, we spent the $1 million — the estimated cost to take it down — to ultra-decorate it? It would light up the south part of town like the Eiffel Tower!

Of course, several additional millions would be saved by not constructing a new viaduct.

A little deeper look at the El Dorado viaduct will give you an idea of how ridiculous the removal and replacement is.

The main viaduct was constructed in 1925, and if you live in South Arkansas, especially in Union County, you are very familiar with it and Highway 82. Old Highway 82, which connects South Arkansas with Texas to the west and Mississippi to the east, has been there for ages.

If you haven’t noticed, they are slowly working on the old former Indian trail, and based on their snail-like speed, they will be working on it for years and years to come.

Actually, Highway 82 seems to be on the end of the Arkansas Highway Department’s improvements list and they are going to finish up most of the rest of the state before L. A. (Lower Arkansas) gets much work on the needed widening done.

We drove from El Dorado to Columbus, Mississippi recently, actually coming and going in heavy rainstorms. The portion from El Dorado to Lake Village is an embarrassment to the State. The wallowed out two lane road made meeting an eighteen wheelers and a spray of water from the roadway a flirt with instant death, but sorry roads in L. A. are just business as usual; anything south of Sheridan always seems to be on the bottom of statewide lists whether those lists are public works, boards, or commissions.

Just check the Governor’s appointments and the makeup of the current boards and commissions. In my opinion, that’s why Highway 82 is on the bottom of the Highway Department list of four lane expansions, and that’s why it is taking so long.

But let’s look a little deeper into why the viaducts were constructed, and see if there is any reason to replace them.

The main Highway 82 Viaduct and the secondary viaduct were constructed to help traffic congestion caused by the 1920s oil boom. Based on a cursory look, the 97 year old structure is still in excellent shape, but as part of the Arkansas Highway Department’s Master Plan for Highway 82, it is going to come down, and another one will go up in its place.

Why? Well, that’s just the way things are down at the Highway Department, and

you don’t ask questions about things such as landscaping, historical considerations and litter control enforcement.

Estimates of $1 million just to take it down have been floated around and only God knows how much a new one will cost, but… Why?

You really aren’t talking about just the El Dorado viaduct, but significant urban bridges all across the state. Many of these structures are in good shape, especially if they are repurposed to be used for non-vehicular traffic. There are hundreds of examples all across the country.

In New York City, the High Line, a 1.45 mile long elevated linear park greenway and rail trail created on a former New York Central Railroad spur on the west side of Manhattan is an excellent example.

In 1925, there were 22 daily arrivals and departures from El Dorado train stations, and Hillsboro was one of the few crosstown streets. El Dorado desperately needed the two viaducts. The county’s population had exploded to an estimated 100,000 with 40,000 living within the city limits of El Dorado.

But now? Of course it’s not needed! How many trains pass through El Dorado today? You can count them on one hand and have fingers left over, and you have multiple street crossings both north and south of the viaduct. It is obvious we do not need a new viaduct! If you are in a hurry to get around the south end of town, take the 82 South Bypass.

Of course, since the Hillsboro Street Viaduct is on the National Register of Historic Places, are we going to destroy a National Register entity and waste at least several million dollars, and then spend millions more to put in an unneeded new one?

Surely not! But don’t hold your hat on this one, because both viaducts are on the books to come down.

Instead of removing them, the Arkansas Highway Department should put in a roundabout at Washington Avenue and Hillsboro Street and just leave the two viaducts.

This is a great opportunity for the new mayor and city council to show some leadership, and demand the highway department leave the existing viaducts and construct a roundabout instead.