The theft of hundreds of brass plaques from the Walnut Street Bridge presents a golden fundraising opportunity for the group that led the bridge's renovation in the early 1990s.
The group, which now goes by the name Parks Foundation, has replaced 86 of the stolen plaques with a new zinc-plastic version. The foundation also will begin selling plaques for anyone who did not buy one in the early 1990s.
The funds will pay for upkeep on the bridge and maintenance of other parks across Hamilton County, foundation officials said.
"We are replacing the old plaques, many of which had been lost to vandalism and theft, with a new plaque that has no recycling value," said Garnet Chapin, chairman of the Parks Foundation. "We hope people will leave them be, although they are as attractive as the originals."
Mr. Chapin is the Chattanooga architect who led the push to restore the Walnut Street Bridge.
During the renovation effort, the $100 brass plaques and other donations amounted to $500,000 of the $4 million total project cost. The bridge since has become a popular link between downtown Chattanooga and the trendy North Shore entertainment district.
But from the start, the shiny brass plaques that bore donors' names were the targets of theft. The vandalism peaked in 2008 when scrap metal prices were soaring.
A Times Free Press count at that time revealed 700 of the original 2,000 plaques were missing. The City of Chattanooga pulled up the remaining plaques that spring and turned them over to the Parks Foundation.
All the plaques that were stolen will be replaced at no charge to the original purchaser and, if the plaque is still in the Parks Foundation possession, it can be bought back, Mr. Chapin said. It will be polished and encased in plastic or a shadow box for a $50 charge, he said.
"We are going to be offering the plaques that were taken up as mementos to the people who bought them originally," Mr. Chapin said.
The foundation is selling new plaques, too, he said. They carry the same $100 price as before, and the funds will be used for various parks-related projects on and off the bridge.
The current section of the bridge under renovation now does not have spaces for plaques, but Mr. Chapin said that, once repairs are complete, the foundation will begin selling plaques there, too.
The span was closed in 1978 to vehicle traffic because of structural problems. It sat in disrepair for many years before reopening in 1993 as the world's longest pedestrian bridge.
The bridge has been closed to through traffic since Dec. 10 as contractors pull up pavement on the north side and replace it with wood planking that is uniform with the rest of the bridge. It should reopen in May in time for the 17th anniversary of its renovation, officials have said.
Tourists such as Della Evans, from Huntsville, Ala., and her daughter, Connie Costley, who lives in Taft, Tenn., said the bridge is one of their favorite parts of downtown Chattanooga.
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Staff Photo by John Rawlston In a demonstration project, some of the new-style commemorative plaques have already been installed on the Walnut Street Bridge. This plaque is in honor of Edwin Johnson, who was the last lynching victim in Chattanooga.
"It's great for tourists. I've come here for the last six years with my kids," Ms. Costley said.
She uses the bridge to walk from the Tennessee Aquarium to Coolidge Park so her children can ride the park's carousel, she said.
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