Communities Celebrate Critical Link

The communities on both sides of the new Lake Champlain Bridge are holding a two day festival this weekend to celebrate the bridge that links their communities and two states.

The new Lake Champlain Bridge opened in November, later than originally planned, forcing community members to postpone any celebration over the new bridge or commemoration of the old span. This weekend the Lake Champlain Bridge Community is holding the Grand Celebration to formally dedicate the bridge. Events will occur on and at sites on both sides of the bridge in New York and Vermont. Lake Champlain Bridge Coalition member Karen Hennessy owns the Sugar Hill Manor Bed and Breakfast in Crown Point.

The Addison County Chamber of Commerce in Middlebury, Vermont is part of the Lake Champlain Bridge Community, a group formed by the Coalition to plan the bridge celebration.  Marketing and Communications Director Sue Hoxie says the area has been a corridor for transportation for hundreds of years.

The events kick off at 9 o’clock Saturday morning with the opening ceremonies, followed by a parade across the bridge.  Karen Hennessy notes that this event has been in the planning for over a year, with community volunteers and no government money.

Both the Crown Point Historic Site and Chimney Point Historic Site will be open, and shuttle busses will be available.  The New York State and Vermont transportation departments have also opened new interpretive exhibits on the history of the bridges.