The City of Pasadena will present an update on the Colorado Street Bridge barrier enhancements this week.
Earlier this month, the City removed mock-ups from the bridge as part of the suicide mitigation Barrier Enhancements project.
The City Council’s Public Safety Committee recommended removal of the mock ups on September 21, 2022.
The group also asked for restoration of the temporary 10-foot chain link fence at certain locations at and near the bridge and continued public outreach efforts to develop new design concepts for an effective vertical barrier.
The department has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the second time to hire a design consultant to develop new concepts for the vertical barrier. No proposals were received during the first RFP.
City staff expects to develop design concepts later this year and will seek periodic feedback from the community. The vetted design concepts will be presented to the City’s Historic Preservation and Design commissions for advisory review and will ultimately be returned to the City Council’s Public Safety Committee by the end of 2023 for recommendations.
After the bridge appeared in a Charlie Chaplain film people began traveling to the bridge to commit suicide during the Great Depression.
More than 150 people have jumped from the bridge with more than half of the suicides took place during the 1930s.
On May 1, 1937, Myrtle Ward, a struggling 22-year-old mother who had lost her job in the great depression, wrapped her 3-year-old daughter Jean Pykkonen in a thick wool coat and threw her off the bridge before jumping herself. Ward died, but the thick coat her daughter was wrapped in, snagged on several tree branches and slowed her daughter’s descent.
The mother died, but the youngster survived.
During the modern era, more than 30 suicides have been reported since 2006. Dozens more people have been successfully talked down from the bridge by authorities.
After people began jumping off the bridge, city officials installed mesh fencing and barbed wire to prevent more tragedies. The city installed signs to discourage jumpers in 1993.
In 2017, 10 people jumped to their deaths from the bridge, 22 others either were talked down, climbed out on the bridge or were standing nearby contemplating suicide.
Former City Manager Steve Mermell declared a local emergency after police spent 13 hours successfully talking a distraught man down during Labor Day weekend.
Using his emergency powers, Mermell spent $295,932 on fencing to span both sides of the 1,400-foot-long bridge.
Concerns about jumpers increased after the city approved a Habitat for Humanity housing project beneath the famous structure.
The meeting will be held at La Casita del Arroyo, located at 177 South Arroyo Blvd. in Pasadena. The meeting is open to both in-person attendees and virtual attendees, who can join through this Zoom link.
For further information, those interested may contact the Public Works Engineering Division at ColoradoStBridge@CityOfpasadena.net. The City of Pasadena encourages all to join in this important update on the project and the steps going forward.
The National Suicide Hotlines are available 24/7 by dialing 988
Additional help is available at the Didi Hirsch 24-hour Crisis Line: 1-877-727-4747 (en Español: 1-800-628-9454)
LGBTQ – The Trevor Lifeline: 1-866-488-7386
Trans Crisis Line: 1-877-565-8860
Crisis Text Line: Text HELLO to 741-741
People of Color Crisis Text Line: Text STEVE to 741-741
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