Battleship U.S.S. California passes under the incomplete deck of the Golden Gate Bridge in 1936.
Posted on 03/18/2006 5:06:38 PM PST by NormsRevenge
The pond on Denny Heasley's property doesn't get nearly as fogged in as San Francisco Bay - not that the span he's building needs to be nestled in fog to bear a striking resemblance to the famed Golden Gate Bridge.
The 100-foot-long 17-foot-high replica is painted bright orange - "exactly the same color" as the Golden Gate, Heasley said proudly.
A retired excavator, Heasley is getting used to greeting inquisitive passers-by. He estimates that 10 to 12 people drop by on weekends and ask about it.
"A lot of people stop and want to know if they can walk on it," said Heasley, 63, who moved into his home in this tiny southwest Washington town two years ago. Healy obliges the many requests, and doesn't seem to mind the attention.
One young couple asked if they could get married on it. A principal of an area high school inquired about getting a class picture taken on it, though Heasley said doesn't think it was meant to hold 200 people.
He's never taken on this kind of endeavor before, and somehow didn't run into any problems when it came to construction. He did have a run-in with Clark County Code Enforcement officers.
Heasley started work on the bridge before being issued a permit, and got slapped with a $750 fine, said Scott Melville, a code enforcement officer for the Clark County national pollutant discharge elimination system.
It forced Heasley to stop work on the bridge for a while, but he said he's not bitter about it. He simply enjoys taking on the massive task.
Heasley expects to finish the bridge this spring. Only some minor details are left on his to-do list.
"All I need is a ship to go under it," he joked.
pictures...
Battleship U.S.S. California passes under the incomplete deck of the Golden Gate Bridge in 1936.
Does he charge a toll?
LOL, what is now $9.00?
$5, but it's only temporary....
Thanks!
Nice bridge!
Thanks for posting this. I've been watching various progress reports on this, with awe and wonder, as a scale miniaturist myself. Love it!
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