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Leo Frigo Memorial Bridge

Brown County, Wisconsin

Photos 

Looking upriver from rivermouth

The lighthouse structure is a Range Light, relocated from an island next to the ship channel in the bay

Photo taken by Robert Thompson in November 2009

Enlarge

BH Photo #149826

Map 

Street View 

Who was Leo Frigo? 

Written by Robert Thompson

Leo Frigo was born into a large family in rural Wisconsin. After growing up, he spent a few months with a Trappist monastery, a stint in Korea with the US Army, followed by a degree from Iowa State University. Returning to Wisconsin, he helped expand the family cheese business, retiring as President in 1983.

For most people, retirement means a break from hard work. But for Leo, it meant spending his days helping rehabilitate parolees. While doing this, Leo discovered that many could not find jobs, and stole just to feed their families. In response, he found his true life's work, founding a food bank called Paul's Pantry.

Leo used to say, "Its better that I go into the dumpster rather than making the poor go there, at the end of the day my dignity will be intact and so will theirs." Leo passed away on February 13, 2001 from injuries sustained in a car accident. He was delivering food to a shut in. After Leo's death, the Tower Drive Bridge in Green Bay was renamed in his honor.

http://www.paulspantry.org/paulspantry/home/our+founder/defa...

Facts 

Overview
Steel through tied arch bridge over Fox River on I-43 in Green Bay
Location
Green Bay, Brown County, Wisconsin
Status
Open to traffic
History
Built 1981; closed Sept. 25, 2013, after the deck was found to be sagging; reopened January 5, 2014
Design
Steel tied through arch. Seaway bridge; 120 foot vertical clearance over channel.
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 450.2 ft.
Deck width: 80.1 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 18.8 ft.
Also called
Tower Drive Bridge
Approximate latitude, longitude
+44.53326, -88.00863   (decimal degrees)
44°31'60" N, 88°00'31" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
16/419861/4931598 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Green Bay West
Elevation
577 ft. above sea level
Average daily traffic (as of 2018)
40,100
Inventory number
BH 34667 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Inspection report (as of September 2018)
Overall condition: Fair
Superstructure condition rating: Good (7 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Deck condition rating: Very Good (8 out of 9)
Sufficiency rating: 80 (out of 100)
View more at BridgeReports.com

Categories 

Arch (12,940)
Brown County, Wisconsin (48)
Built 1979 (58)
Built during 1970s (1,016)
Fox River (to Green Bay, WI) (54)
Green Bay, Wisconsin (16)
Have street view (30,587)
 Navigable waterway (2,256)
Open (41,560)
Owned by state (16,802)
Span length 250-500 feet (1,319)
Steel through arch (224)
Tied arch (54)
Wisconsin (1,808)

Update Log 

  • August 7, 2016: New photos from Peter Johnson
  • July 13, 2014: Updated by Fmiser: Changed it from category "Bowstring Arch" to "Tied Arch".
  • May 4, 2014: Updated by Roger Deschner: Bridge has been reopened
  • September 25, 2013: Updated by James Baughn: Bridge is closed after the deck along the east approach was found to be sagging
  • April 17, 2011: New photo from Robert Thompson
  • August 29, 2010: New photo from Nick Brnot
  • August 4, 2010: New Street View added by Jason Smith
  • November 24, 2009: Essay added by Robert Thompson

Sources 

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Comments 

Leo Frigo Memorial Bridge
Posted October 28, 2013, by Robert Thompson (rkt(dot)engineering(at)gmail(dot)com)

Temporary fix expected by January 17

2014http://www.jsonline.com/news/traffic/dot-expects-repairs-will-allow-leo-frigo-bridge-to-reopen-by-jan-17-b99125601z1-228778271.html

Leo Frigo Memorial Bridge
Posted September 27, 2013, by Jason Smith (JDSmith77 [at] gmx [dot] net)

Robert Thompson, do you mind me using a couple of your photos for my Bridgehunter's Chronicles' article about this bridge? Please let me know via e-mail as soon as you get a chance. Thanks!

JS