At Esperanza High School, a bridge crosses over Kellogg Drive that separates their west campus from their main campus. Esperanza needed a bride because back then before they had one people would cross the street and it would cause an accident. So in 1989, the school decided to come together and get a project to get the bridge in to help with traffic but also help with the safety of the kids on the campus.
Since Esperanza had recently gotten their West Campus they ran into many problems with their crossing area from Main to West Campus. They faced potential problems with traffic accidents involving students crossing the street. To remedy this problem, a Kellogg overcrossing has been proposed. According to a 1989 Aztlán article, then-principal George Allen said that “the overpass idea was conceived six years ago when moving the classes to Orchard Elementary School”, which is now Esperanza’s West Campus. The plans are finally complete now that the west campus is a permanent part of Esperanza.
The construction of the bridge was set to be started to be worked on throughout the summer. The completion date would be around September. According to a past Aztlán Newspaper, “The overall cost of the project would be around $600,000-$700,000. The bridge connects with support just outside of the faculty parking lot and is connected down across the street. The support will be made of slump stone, a brick-like material that is found between the lockers and also surrounds the Theater. The Bridge will be covered with a plexiglass-type roof with sides covered with a wire mesh. The bridge will also be gated off during the hours that school is in session.”
Although all you hear about the bridge at Esperanza everyone says it is a horrible march up and down it’s annoying to cross and it’s a hard task to cross the bridge. Although it may seem that way, overall the bridge has been a great success because it made crossing safer and reduced the foot traffic being caused by the crosswalk. The potential of accidents being caused by students walking across the crosswalk has gone way down and overall has made it a much safer area to cross.
