The Sunset Beach bridge has been more controversial than the Wall Street bailout on local terms. There have been those who feel a new bridge is a must for safety and security reasons and those who want to keep the old swing bridge in place at any cost. A local preservation group has battled for years to keep the old bridge.
After years of court battles progress has won out and a new span bridge is under way at Sunset Beach.
The old bridge is a wooden, one lane, pontoon bridge. Built in 1961, it is part of Sunset Beach’s history and is said to be the last of its kind on the East Coast. Manon Gore, the developer of Sunset Beach, built the bridge and in the old days you had to honk your horn twice outside of his nearby house for him to come open the bridge..
Construction on the new 65 foot high span bridge began in February of 2008. Completion is targeted for sometime in 2010. The arc bridge will ensure that visitors and residents are safe. The bridge will have two 12 foot travel lanes, will be a half mile long and will also have a pedestrian lane for bikes and foot travel.
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