New Bridge Installed Over Tempe Town Lake Dam
One Oct. 18, 2011, the new Tempe Town Lake Pedestrian bridge opened, connecting the north and south shores of Tempe Town Lake. The bridge consists of 4 spans, each measuring 228 feet, weighing 165,000 lbs. The bridge protects the bladders of the dam from the sun and contains a built-in sprinkler system to cool the bladders when needed. This was the point of contention when one of the bladders failed on July 20, 2010, that the maintenance had been inadequate. The picture to the left was taken just days after the dam failed and sent over 750 million gallons of water down the Salt River. The lake was dry for 3 months before the dam was repaired and the lake refilled in October 2010.