After two years of planning, community outreach and engagement, and a successful fundraising campaign, Reconnecting to Our Waterways’ (ROW) Pleasant Run Waterway Committee is moving forward on improvements to the important crossing point over Pleasant Run, Spruce Bridge. The community-led project, called Spruce Up Spruce Bridge, connects Southeast neighborhood residents to their local waterway and provides gathering spaces for rest, reflection, and education. The Pleasant Run Committee raised over $18,000 in community contributions, from both residents and businesses, with another $30,000 in funds from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority — a total of $48,847 to implement this exciting project.
The History: Designed in the early 1900s, Spruce Bridge was meant to provide Indianapolis residents access to waterway recreation and enjoyment. Even today, as visitors walk along the bridge, they are treated to a wide view of the stream following a gentle curve as the water flows south through the Fountain Square area, ultimately connecting with the White River. Wildlife abound including Mallard ducks, woodchucks, and the majestic Great Blue Heron.
But, like many of Indy’s urban areas, decades of disinvestment from the stretch of Pleasant Run where Spruce Bridge lies led to poorly maintained and underutilized infrastructure. In addition, pollution by long-gone industry along with sewage from the combined sewer overflow system contributed to the perception of the waterway as more of a dumping ground than an asset for residents.
“If you can’t actually get in the water, people tend to not use it and it gets neglected,” said Susan Gaw, who actively serves on the Pleasant Run Committee and helped lead the fundraising effort.
Since the 1990s, the extension of Pleasant Run Trail has inspired residents to re-engage and improve the waterway to become a true community space again. ROW’s Pleasant Run Waterway committee has been instrumental in the exciting improvements taking place today.
“The trail has done enormous things for our neighborhood,” Gaw continued.
“What I love about greenway trails is they provide an opportunity for people who are living in these urban neighborhoods to really engage with nature,” added Jonathan Mirqeaux, another active member of the committee who assisted in the Spruce Up Spruce Bridge initiative.
The Planning: The Pleasant Run Committee began their change-making efforts in Winter of 2016. Community members chose Spruce Bridge as a next step after successes with other focus area projects at Prospect Falls and Barth Bridge. They first worked with the City of Indianapolis to remove invasive species that harm the local ecosystem. They held community brainstorming sessions, went door-to-door in surrounding neighborhoods, and attended community events for even more input. This outreach brought in teachers and students from The Crossing School, located just a quarter mile from Spruce Bridge, who helped in the planning stage and intend to be involved in maintaining the site once installed. The committee then collaborated with Schmidt Associates, developing a design that met the needs and desires the community had identified. Now that they have met (and exceeded!) their funding goal, the plan is becoming reality.
The Improvements: At Spruce Bridge, a plaza on both sides of the bridge will be installed, with seating and open space for activities, as well as beneficial and beautifying native plantings along the immediate stretch. The Committee is also engaging local artists to work with residents to create unique pieces for installation at each site. The Spruce Bridge plazas will be pleasant spaces where visitors can connect with each other, relax in the calm that proximity to water often brings, and experience the wildlife. In that vein, the Spruce Up Spruce Bridge project will not only include amenities for human residents, but also for supporting the other species that call Pleasant Run home.
“We’re going to put up pollinator boxes and bat boxes for the bats to live in on some of the trees around here,” said resident and committee member Juliet Port. “We’re also going to have educational signage to help connect everybody to what’s going on.” As a scientist, Port understands that the waterway is a habitat and a keystone to Indianapolis’ overall urban ecology. The project will educate residents, while also giving them a new way to experience their world.
“I’d love to see kids get really engaged with waterway,” continued Port. “The hope is to create a kind of cultural shift toward more outdoor education and activity for all ages.” The Committee is already working toward this education goal through the partnership with nearby Crossing School.
ROW is proud to support its Pleasant Run Committee in this innovative project. To learn more about Spruce Up Spruce Bridge, visit their Patronicity page or join the Pleasant Run Committee at their next meeting.