Montpelier Bridge Illumination Project
Update:
Dear friends and supporters,
On behalf of Montpelier Alive, we want to thank you for your generous donation toward our Bridge Illumination campaign! Thanks to you, we have reached our initial goal and will install the electric infrastructure on seven bridges and light the three North Branch bridges in the heart of downtown this winter.
We can now turn our attention to raising funds to light the four bridges on the Winooski River: Bailey Avenue, Taylor Street, Main Street, and Granite Street. We are actively seeking grant support for this phase of the project but will also keep our campaign live until May 31st. Any and all donations will help us achieve our ambitious goal to light all seven downtown bridges. Click here to donate.
Montpelier Alive celebrates the City of Montpelier. We work with partners to sustain and build upon Montpelier’s vibrant downtown community by offering and supporting special events and activities and by promoting City businesses. We work to ensure a thriving local economy for Montpelier and to preserve the City’s historic character and unique sense of place. We believe the Bridge Illumination Project will not only be impactful for our downtown economy as visitors from near and far come to witness the lights, but the project will act as a metaphor for community resiliency, bringing our town together for a better future.
Your support plays a vital role in what we do for the community, and we are so glad to have you as our partner in making our downtown a vibrant place to live, work, and visit.
A personalized receipt for your tax deductible donation will be sent after the Bridges Illumination campaign has concluded in June. Please let us know if you need more detailed documentation sooner. Photos of the illuminated bridges will be mailed in December.
Thank you again for your support of this project and Montpelier Alive!
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Lighting up Montpelier - one bridge at a time!
During the winter months, Vermont is dark. Lighting up the bridges that dot Montpelier will add vibrancy and color everywhere in the historic downtown!
The Bridge Illumination Project will artfully light up to seven of Montpelier’s downtown bridges, connecting neighborhoods to each other and the commercial center. Bridges connect us, help us overcome obstacles, and create access to resources and relationships needed for our communities to thrive!
Lighting Montpelier's bridges will not only increase pedestrian safety, it will serve as an attraction warmly welcoming our entire community and visitors to town whether arriving on foot, public transit, or by car.
In the winter of 2023, as part of a pilot project, Montpelier Alive lit up the Langdon Street bridge. What was once a dark and underutilized side street became a magnet for holiday shoppers, evening dining and a vibrant music scene. The sparkling bridge declared that Montpelier was open for business and welcomed all to the party!
After the catastrophic flooding in July of 2023, at least 10 businesses closed and there are vacant storefronts that need to be filled. Now, more than ever, we need to bring patrons to town to support downtown businesses! Putting Montpelier on the map with artistic bridge lighting will play an important role in the city’s healing and recovery.
Montpelier is a city of mountains and rivers. Settled at the confluence of the Winooski River and North Branch, it has become, by necessity, a city of bridges. Montpelier Alive is collaborating with local historians and naturalists to use Montpelier’s unique history to inform each bridge’s illumination design. Lighting will be limited to times when downtown restaurants and theaters are open to allow dark skies for sleeping and enjoying the night stars.