South Road bridge plan delayed until affordable

Despite a whirlwind of controversy, the South Road bridge project might not be officially discussed for up to two years.

Bob Winston, chairman of the UNC Board of Trustees, said the project would most likely be left off the agenda for quite some time due to a lack of funding.

“I would imagine that the bridge will not even come up in discussion this semester,” he said. “It could be years.”

Anna Wu, director of facilities planning and University architect, said the project’s funding comes out of a pool of money set aside for pedestrian safety improvements.

That pool is funded by a 1 percent fee on capital construction projects with budgets of more than $1 million, meaning the project won’t be directly affected by state budget cuts.

“The flow of the economy affects our progress,” she said, “but not the budget cuts directly.”

If the bridge is eventually approved by the board, it would take between $8 million and $9 million to build over a period of about 10 years. It would span from the Pit to the southwest corner of the Student Recreation Center near Stadium Drive.

Much of the opposition to the bridge has centered around its cost, aesthetics and practicality.

Student Body President Hogan Medlin, who serves on the board for the duration of his term, said he had been in contact with other members about leaving the bridge off the agenda.

Although Medlin said he understands the project is not a priority in the current economic climate, he said he wished he could introduce to the board a report compiled by outgoing Student Body President Jasmin Jones, which found an overwhelmingly negative student response to the project.

“The reason I really wanted to get the report in is because it wasn’t just students saying, ‘This is ugly,’?” he said. “The students who did respond did so very thoughtfully.”

Of the more than 1,300 students surveyed, nearly 90 percent were opposed to the bridge.

But Medlin said he and other trustees were in agreement that there are more pressing and feasible projects at this time. Medlin and Winston both said they are unsure of the agenda for the board’s September meeting.

Medlin also said the decision was based solely on financial reasons, not on a desire to wait until student opposition cools off or to avoid acknowledging the report.

“There’s no conspiracy going on,” he said. “I can assure you of that.”

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.