TACOMA, Wash. — If you want to know about bridges in Tacoma, engineer Steve Carstens is the man to call.
Born and raised in Tacoma, Carstens still remembers riding his bike over the East 11th Street bridge to buy fireworks.
Now he’s working on a project to break down one of the city’s most well-known bridges.
“I thought, at first I wanted to be this big building guy, but then I go, I love bridges, I think they’re so cool,” he said. “This has been around since the 20s, and it’s a focal point and a guidance point. People tell me all the time, ‘I go down to Milwaukee, and it’s weird not to see this structure here,’ you know? They’re like, ‘This used to be here.”
During Tuesday’s meeting, the city council approved $3.5 million to be spent on an Interlocal Agreement with the Port of Tacoma for the emergency removal of the East 11th Street viaduct.
Carstens said the project opens up around five acres of space for the Port.
Matthew Mauer, who serves as the Port of Tacoma’s local government affairs manager, said the Port is eager to have the extra room.
“Being able to utilize that space for port purposes can definitely have a big impact on our ability to move freight more efficiently,” Mauer said. “We need to have some conversation internally on what the best use of that land is, but it’ll definitely be put to productive use.”
The project also sets up safeguards to catch debris that may fall off the bridge, protecting Puyallup Tribe members when they launch boats and hold fishing ceremonies.
“We don’t want anyone to lose their life or get injured ... just for doing what they’re allowed to do and supposed to do on their own property, which is go fishing,” Carstens said.
Carstens said Tacoma has plans to update and repair some of the city’s other bridges.
He can’t wait to get started.
“Any time I take a career change, I always come back to bridges. So now I’m sticking with it until I die…”
Carstens said the part of the project that serves the Port should be wrapped up by mid-July. The safeguards on the underside of the bridge is expected to be wrapped up by mid-August.