New Tempe Pedestrian Bridges to Feature Artwork by Local Tempe Artists

A Gilbert Road structure by coLAB Studios

Valley residents will soon start noticing tall, magenta structures poking out of new pedestrian bridges being constructed as part of the Arizona Department of Transportation’s I-10 Broadway Curve Improvement Project. It’s not imagination. New artwork is coming to life over the next several months, and local Tempe artists are behind the design.

In June, crews began installing the spans on two brand new multi-use bridges between Baseline and Broadway Roads that will provide safe access for walkers, runners and bikers traveling between Tempe and Phoenix. The bridges create new freeway crossings at two major bike and pedestrian corridors at Alameda Drive, between Broadway and Southern Avenues, and the Western Canal, just south of US 60.

In addition to increasing safety and convenience for pedestrians and bicyclists, the bridges will offer visual delight for anyone walking or biking, as well as the drivers who travel underneath.

In 2019, the City of Tempe conducted a national search to find an artist to enhance the future pedestrian bridges with art that speaks to the Arizona climate. A group of panelists made up of community members, city staff and professional artists recommended the selection of Tempe residents Matthew and Maria Salenger of coLAB Studio out of 67 applicants.

The Salengers’ design is inspired by the fruit of the prickly pear cactus. The top of each bridge features 10 large magenta sculptures meant to evoke the look of the fruit. Each sculpture has a metal plate at the bottom that allows the sun to pass through and cast shadows of hand drawn organic patterns based on local flora. Learn more about the project by watching this video.

“The ‘City Fruit’ public art installation will be quite unique. It is quirky, but the intent is serious,” Matthew Salenger said. “I want people to feel the art is celebrating the two pedestrian bridges over the I-10, and to make the connection that these bridges are a tasty treat for Tempe; in other words, they are ‘City Fruit.’”

Matthew and Maria have lived in Tempe for over 25 years. coLAB’s work has included dozens of public art installations in addition to architecture projects and master plans. The firm’s work can be found throughout the Valley.

These new pedestrian bridges help achieve Tempe’s goal of increasing multi-modal transportation. The Alameda Drive bridge will connect to the Alameda Drive Bicycle and Pedestrian Street Improvement Project. The project is in progress now to create larger bike lanes and add traffic calming measures, among other components, to make the corridor more walkable and bikeable.

Tempe is one of the leading bike communities in the country with over 220 miles of bikeways. The League of American Bicyclists recently re-designated Tempe as a Gold-Level Bicycle Friendly Community. These bridges will provide a low-stress, off-street connection for people to safely get to a host of destinations every year.

“These bridges represent decades of work by the City of Tempe to fill gaps in our bicycle and pedestrian system and link not just Tempe bicycle corridors but also create a regional pathway of systems along the canals regionwide,” said Eric Iwersen, Director of Sustainability and Resilience for the City of Tempe. “These investments by Maricopa Association of Governments, ADOT, City of Tempe and voters are a partnership to create a sustainable transportation system for generations to come.”

The artwork for the project is funded through Tempe Transit Tax and Municipal Arts funds. The pedestrian bridges are funded in part by a dedicated half-cent sales tax approved by Maricopa County voters in 2004 for projects, such as this one, identified in the Maricopa Association of Government’s Regional Transportation Plan. The Federal Highway Administration provided additional funding.

Construction on the bridges is expected to continue into 2024.