Downer bridges going out with a bang — of fireworks

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Aurora Mayor Tom Weisner, right, pushes down a detonator that would set off some fireworks during the Bridge Blast held on the Downer Place bridge in Aurora on Friday, February 3, 2012. | Brian Powers~Sun-Times Media

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Updated: March 6, 2012 8:05AM

AURORA — There wasn’t an explosion at Friday afternoon’s Bridge Blast, but guests didn’t go home without playing witness to a few surprises.

Fireworks and a flash mob were the city’s way of commemorating the demolition of the historical Downer Place bridges, set to begin on Monday.

Next to sledgehammers and hard hats, Mayor Tom Weisner said there were about 25,000 people living in Aurora when the existing bridges were built.

“There’s a lot of memories on this bridge,” he told the crowd Friday. “It’s a historical time in more than one way.”

Presidents Teddy Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower and John Kennedy gave speeches on Downer Place, and a century’s worth of parades occurred on the downtown street, Weisner said.

While the bridge demolition is necessary, Weisner said it is important to remember that the nine-month construction project will create a hardship for downtown businesses.

“I want to say how much I appreciate their positive attitude toward this project,” he said.

The mayor urged Aurorans to continue to patronize their businesses in the meantime.

For Alderman Juany Garza, whose 2nd Ward includes Downer Place downtown, the memories of the bridges will take new life as the bricks will be recycled into other projects in the city.

Before Weisner could detail the plans for the bricks, Aurora Central Catholic High School’s dance team interrupted with a flash mob, dancing to tunes such as Kesha’s “Blow” — all plays on the impending bridge demolition.

Then city staff, elected officials and representatives of H.R. Green, the contractor slated to supervise the bridge work, joined Weisner in pushing a mock plunger — and although the west Downer bridge didn’t blow up, a few fireworks shot off in the background.

Aurora Director of Public Works Ken Schroth said planning for the bridge project began in 2007. Since then, the city has spent tens of thousands of hours designing new bridges and relocating utilities in anticipation of the project.

He said that with the input of downtown business owners, city officials decided reconstructing both bridges in one season was the best option. Schroth said the plan is to reopen Downer Place to traffic in November.

Federal funding will pay for 80 percent of the $7.83 million project. The city received a $500,000 grant to put toward its share of the cost, meaning the city will foot the bill for about $1 million of the project, Schroth said.

The commemoration was a time to talk of Aurora’s bridge history, too.

John Jaros, executive director of the Aurora Historical Society, said early bridges in Aurora donned a sign that warned of a $5 fine for carting 10 or more cattle across the bridge at once.

Aurora’s first bridge was constructed in 1836, Jaros said, on what is now West Galena Boulevard. Back then, it went by a quainter name — Main Street.

The early bridges, all constructed of wood, were doomed to be washed away by floods a few years after they were constructed. From 1840 to 1845, Aurora had no bridge, and people made their way across the Fox River by ferry.

Bridge construction began on the existing Downer Place bridges in 1908, but the project wasn’t completed until 1910. In 1975, concrete railings were removed from the bridges, Jaros said, and replaced with iron railings.