E.C. progress counting on opening of Cline bridge

Mayor George Pabey's North Harbor Revitalization Initiative is a long-awaited plan that is committed to redeveloping the Indiana Harbor District. A sizeable piece of that puzzle includes the accessibility of the Cline Avenue bridge.

On Nov. 13, the Indiana Department of Transportation placed a significant strain on East Chicago's development plans when they temporarily closed the bridge and later on Dec. 28, announced the Cline Avenue bridge to be permanently closed and demolished

"While the city of East Chicago fully understands the importance of ‘the structural integrity of the bridge,' we have major concerns about the decision to permanently close the Cline Avenue bridge," Pabey said.

The Cline Avenue structure is a key component to industry and the numerous stakeholders that access Cline Avenue daily, which include residents, commuters, tourists, and businesses such as BP, MittalArcelor, Union Carbide, PCI, Safety Kleen, Ameristar, among others. Pabey notes the estimated 30,000 commuters that have been impacted and to permanently close the bridge without a solid transportation plan is "merely unacceptable."

As a result of numerous meetings with mayors, legislators, businesses, local government and the public, East Chicago will host a public hearing at 9 a.m. Jan. 9 at East Chicago Central High School's auditorium, 1100 W. Chicago Ave., to discuss ideas for further construction to rebuild Cline Avenue.

"I think it's extremely important that IDEM and legislators are coming into the communities that are most affected," said Mara Candelaria Reardon, D-Munster. "I am confident that we can all work together to come up with a viable plan for that vital corridor that we are all familiar with traveling and know how significant it is to East Chicago's development."

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels' visit to East Chicago on Tuesday garnered much attention as he spoke with INDOT professionals and addressed the media on the very importance of Cline Avenue.

Daniels debriefed with INDOT on the Cline Avenue bridge at Riley Road, explaining that "something will be built to replace the condemned 1.25-mile span as speedily as we can."

"Indiana, unlike any other state I know, is completely funded from a transportation standpoint thanks to the Toll Road transaction," Daniels said.

Damian Rico is a public relations consultant to the city of East Chicago. The opinions expressed are solely his very own. Reach him at darico2@aol.com or (219) 391-8206.