GM2's Complex Bridge staff provided the design for this bridge, which opened to traffic 42 months after Maine DOT identified the emergency replacement need.

The cable-stayed system is state-of-the-art and includes cradles to carry the stays through the pylon, eliminating the need for pylon anchorages; a pressurized inert gas system to protect the strands and a force monitoring system that tracks important information about the stays throughout the bridge’s projected 125 year service life. After the bridge opened to traffic in late 2006, six reference strands were removed and replaced with carbon fiber composite strands, a first in the United States. Monitoring of all strands in the bridge will evaluate carbon fiber for future bridge uses.

The theme of “Granite-Simple & Elegant” was chosen to honor the long time granite quarrying industry located close to the bridge site. The bridge location, adjacent to historic Fort Knox, inspired a connection to the Washington Monument and resulted in obelisk-shaped pylons. Significant coordination and planning with the Maine Historic Preservation Commission to preserve the historical nature of adjacent Fort Knox. The three-story observatory at the top of the pylon on the Waldo County shoreline welcomed 72,000 visitors in it’s first season.