People walk on the new bridge as they make their way to the ribbon cutting ceremony.
By Josh Mitchell/Informer Publisher
Today marked a historic milestone for Marion County as the new Pearl River bridge near Goss opened.
About 100 people, including local, state and national dignitaries, showed up this morning to witness the ribbon cutting for the new bridge that went under construction two years ago.
The total project cost was $20.5 million and was paid for with funding from Marion and Lawrence counties as well as state and federal funds. The Federal Highway Administration paid for most of the project.
The bridge itself represents only about one mile of the total six-mile project. The remaining five miles is a new road that connects Highway 587 near White Bluff with Highway 13 near Goss.
The ribbon is cut for the new bridge.
The new road and bridge will open opportunities for economic development, tourism and improve response times for emergency agencies, said Marion County Development Partnership President Jerry Frazier, who emceed the ribbon cutting ceremony.
Marion County Board of Supervisors President Calvin Newsom praised the cooperation of the local, state and federal officials who made the project a reality.
“If we work together, this is just the beginning of what we can accomplish,” Newsom told the crowd.
The ribbon cutting today was just for Phase 1 of the three-phase project. Lawrence County Board of Supervisors President Steve Garrett said he looks forward to future phases being built in his county. “We need to get the second phase over to Highway 27,” said Garrett.
Mississippi Department of Transportation Executive Director Larry "Butch" Brown addresses the crowd.
With money tight, it is uncertain when work on future phases will begin, said Newsom. Phase 2 will connect Highway 587 with Highway 27 in Lawrence County, and Phase 3 will connect Highway 27 with Highway 44 in Jayess, which is also in Lawrence County, said Newsom.
The counties will continue to work with state and federal officials to get the funds to complete all the project phases, Newsom added.
State Reps. Ken Morgan, R-Morgantown, and Bill Pigott, R-Tylertown, both attended the ceremony. “Roads and bridges are the backbone of economic development,” said Pigott.
Chairman of the Mississippi House of Representatives Transportation Committee Warner McBride said, “It is a very incredible project. It didn’t come easy. It took a lot of hard work and working together. Transportation is so important to economic development and public safety.”
Jay Carney, chief operating officer and president of Columbia-based T.L. Wallace Construction Co., the company that built the road and bridge, said, “Without change there can be no progress.”
Also in attendance was 90-year-old Max Huff of Jackson who designed the bridge. Huff has designed many bridges across the state and this may be his last.
Former Lawrence County Board of Supervisors President James Givens, deceased, conceived the idea for the new bridge. His son, Jamie, left, and wife, Pearline, attended the ceremony in his honor.
Southern District Mississippi Department of Transportation Commissioner Wayne Brown said, “May God bless this bridge and each person who crosses it.”
Executive Director of the Mississippi Department of Transportation Butch Brown said the bridge is an “edifice that will be here for 100 years. It looks like a parkway. It’s as pretty as the Natchez Trace.”
Across Mississippi there are examples of poor road and bridge designs and this one is a “good one,” said Brown. “We’re proud of it.”
Brown added that the bridge and new road are modern and surrounded by 20,000 acres of industrial quality land.
Former Lawrence County Board of Supervisors President James Givens is credited for conceiving the idea to build the road and bridge. Givens passed away in 1999, but his wife, Pearline, and son, Jamie, attended the ceremony. Jamie Givens said his dad thought there needed to be a new road connecting Marion and Lawrence counties to foster the area’s chicken and logging industries. Pearline Givens cut the ribbon to open the bridge.
As Jamie Givens stood next to his mom and looked over the bridge he said his dad “would be proud of it; he really would. It’s better than he probably would have envisioned.”
Dungan Engineering of Columbia headed up the engineering on the project. The new bridge is in Marion County Supervisor Lloyd Fortenberry’s Beat 2.
It is a beautiful bridge & T.L. Wallce did an outstanding job on it!!
well needed new bridge,@ goss & Red Bluff area, thanks from a tax payer,to those across the river .thanks T.L. Wallce did an outstanding job on it .
It is very pretty riding across and closer for us to go to town now! Thanks so much to the state and t l wallace on the outstanding job! Why to go guys yal sure showed out on it! Which means did great job! Glad its open now!
I think you mean thanks to the taxpayers. You are “the state,” “the fed” and “the local bodies. Money doesn’t just fall out of the sky for these things.
Too cool.
$20.5 million sure could have beefed up the Marion county Sheriff’s dept. Then we wouldn’t have to worry about having only two deputies on duty at one time. But I understand, money’s tight these days, right? I guess a bridge is more important, huh?
Well the deputied really appreiciate the bridge it only takes 5 min to get from red bluff to goss instead of 30 min
Very poor decision by all officials
concerned when the state and county governments are strapped for cash.
The money could have been used to build a new east bound bridge on Pearl River on hwy 98. This bridge was built in the 1930’s for traffic that was not nearly as heavy as now. Trucks now weigh more than twice as much, going twice as fast as in the 1930’s.
30 years ago I was standing on this bridge as heavy trucks crossed and you could feel it shaking then.
If you can’t see POLITICS written all over this you are BLIND! In 10 years divide the total cost of this project by the number of vehicles traveling this route and … Geezz… “THE ORIGINAL BRIDGE TO NOWHERE”…
Let me guess….you didn’t like the road builder?? or was it the engineer? Maybe we are BLIND, why don’t you enlighten the rest of us??
Wonder how much of the property this new road and bridge lay on actually belongs to Mr. Wallace himself? I think it’s beautiful but the money could have been better spend in other areas. I’ve been through there 4 times since the bridge opened and yet to pass 1 car. Just saying????
Why don’t you check into how much TLW has gotten out of this deal. It blows my mind how people (like you) like to critize him and imply that something is “not up and up”. When in reality he is about helping his community. If it was not his company that got the job of building this road, it would have been an “out of towner”. I would rather the money and JOBS stay close to home. Hello…you’ve been on this road 4 times already? Seems like YOU are getting some use out of it. Just saying….
I think Mr. Frazier intended to say “Improve emergency response times” or…”Decrease emergency response times”.
While I will probably never have a reason to go over this bridge, I think it’s a good thing to have built it. It’s been talked about for as long as I can remember, and if anyone has had to drive to Morgantown on that winding road, they know how dangerous it is. This bridge will, if nothing else, make it a bit safer for our emergency responders to get where they need to be in a hurry.
Just another way of President Obama saving jobs and costing tax payers money on pork projects. I’m all for progress, but give me a break. 20 million on a bridge going to TLW? Count the vacant buildings downtown and see where some dollars need to be spent.
Really? This bridge leads to TLW??? You and informed must be riding together.
Wait, what? The president designed this bridge and set up the program? You people are so desperate you blame him for everything. What’s next, President Obama is behind all the Columbia burglaries? Talk about the old boy network having fear of a black planet.
Some of you guys are pathetic. U gripe about the sheriff’s department response times and then want to gripe wen they fix it. Just unhappy people. To Mr. Wallace and the rest if the TL Wallace team, Thank you for all you do. All of the unheard and unseen things that keep this county going. May God continue to Bless you!!
Marion County is so full of negative people! I’m not sure if anything would please some of yall! I will have to admit the bridge is very nice. Someone (I’m not one for calling any names) said ““THE ORIGINAL BRIDGE TO NOWHERE”… now that’s such an untrue statement, every road leads somewhere! I am assuming, ( but we all know what assuming can do) the nice new bridge just isn’t very beneficial to you, but this doesn’t mean its not a good thing. The vehicle that you drive doesn’t benefit ME in any way, I guess maybe I should think is very sTuPid for you to purchase it or the house you live in. So let’s just say some people have a reason to go “NOWHERE”! For your info we have a lot of people in this wonderful county that actually work there ( NOWHERE that is ). Dear Lord Baby Jesus please bless their souls, they are addicted to drugs and must break in houses to get valuables to trade for dope. Oh what a sad situation, such a hard life being a crackhead. Ok enough about that! Another dear citizen of this wonderful county of Marion stated “Very poor decision by all officials
concerned when the state and county governments are strapped for cash.
The money could have been used to build a new east bound bridge on Pearl River on hwy 98. This bridge was built in the 1930’s for traffic that was not nearly as heavy as now. Trucks now weigh more than twice as much, going twice as fast as in the 1930’s.
30 years ago I was standing on this bridge as heavy trucks crossed and you could feel it shaking then.” Poor thing was standing on the bridge!! That’s about to fall in! Now I’m not a rocket scientist but if this ancient shaky bridge is so bad off I don’t believe I would go stand around on it! The fact the trucks are twice as fast now will probably help get the weight off the old antique bridge more quickly…. That is if you will stop standing right in the way! TD ( Talking Dumb) said, “$20.5 million sure could have beefed up the Marion county Sheriff’s dept. Then we wouldn’t have to worry about having only two deputies on duty at one time. But I understand, money’s tight these days, right? I guess a bridge is more important, huh?” LOL, this poor ole soul doesn’t understand where the money came from. I’m very sorry TD you didn’t get the memo, but it was also stated in the article. “The total project cost was $20.5 million and was paid for with funding from Marion and Lawrence counties as well as state and federal funds. The Federal Highway Administration paid for most of the project.” I underlined that part for ya buddy. The Federal Highway Admin. probably wouldn’t have give the money to BEEF up the Sheriff’s Dept. hey I have to admit you really did have a good idea. Another dear citizen of the informer nation. “Wonder how much of the property this new road and bridge lay on actually belongs to Mr. Wallace himself? I think it’s beautiful but the money could have been better spend in other areas. I’ve been through there 4 times since the bridge opened and yet to pass 1 car. Just saying????” LOL, hA! You made me choke on my false teeth! I usually agree with you post but you must just be having a bad day you seem more open minded on most issues. And just where were you going when you crossed this BRIDGE TO NOWHERE? Dear BR, President Obama does not have anything to do with our LIL BRIDGE TO NOWHERE he has been much to busy on this wonderful HealthCare Plan! Its obvious a lot of time and thought went into that!!! PEACE
There are instances in which emergency officials have to stand on the bridge if a wreck has occured, how do you think debris is cleared, it certainly doesn’t vanish into thin air. Also, I love your logic and grammar. God bless.
Since you are embarrassed to be associated with Marion County, I think you forfeit your right to comment on the happening in it.
If school buses have to cross this bridge, I’m sure glad they put in the new one. Children have a right to be safe when they’re being transported to something the government requires.
Dear Tickled Pink,
There was nothing negative about my observations, but simpley statement of facts. I never said the bridge was unsafe, however newer bridges have failed. I would probably have more confidence in the old bridge than a new one. That
being said, with only so much money to go around wouldn’t it sense to upgrade aging infrastructure, rather than starting new projects? Also Wallace may of gotten the bid on this bridge also. Not being negative, just exercising free speech.
I know I made some errors in my previous post, but I was in a hurry.
Thank you Marion County Informer
for supporting open records and freedom of speech.