New bridge, renewed energy

You can see the work of architect Santiago Calatrava at the Olympics this summer in Athens; in the revitalization of parts of Valencia, Spain; and in the new PATH transportation terminal at the World Trade Center site in New York.

And now, add Redding to his list of sites.

Calatrava’s $23-million Sundial Bridge, which spans the Sacramento River and links the campuses of Turtle Bay Exploration Park, is scheduled to open July 4. The striking pedestrian span has a 217-foot pylon at one end and is made of glass, steel and granite.

“The bridge will bring new life to Redding,” Calatrava said recently in an interview from Athens, where work continued on the stadium that must be ready for the Aug. 13 opening ceremonies. “I hope to attract people, to make attractive the discovery of the river area as a recreation area.”

The pedestrian bridge is only one aspect of the revitalization of Redding, long dismissed as just a stop on Interstate 5 about 200 miles north of San Francisco.

Turtle Bay, a 300-acre riverfront park, also has a museum with interactive exhibits, a butterfly house and a 200-acre arboretum. (A 20-acre botanical garden is scheduled to open in 2005 in the arboretum.) Funding for many of the projects has come from the nonprofit McConnell Foundation of Redding.

“One thing that is very important to underline [is] that the McConnell Foundation has been trying to promote education and recreation in the area,” Calatrava said. “If a bridge tells you a story and you can remain for a while there ... and try to see how the bridge works, it’s possible to develop an educational aspect around it.”

The first crossing of the bridge is scheduled for 8 to 9:30 a.m. July 4. Festivities will include live music, an honor guard from Travis Air Force Base and a flag procession. It’s part of Redding’s Freedom Festival, which includes an open house at Turtle Bay, live entertainment and a large fireworks display to cap the day.

For more information: Redding Convention and Visitors Bureau, (800) 874-7562, www.visitredding.org.