JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind. — It's not often you see a walkway getting cheers a decade later, but the decision by Jeffersonville to spend money to connect their end of the Big Four Bridge to Louisville years ago continues to pay off.
On Monday, the Big Four Station Park in Jeffersonville was quiet but just a decade ago it was a completely different story as crowds gathered in excitement for a ribbon cutting.
Then-Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer and current Jeffersonville Mayor Mike Moore were at the event a decade ago to formally reveal the new connection between Kentucky and Indiana.
"It's changed our city," Moore said. "There's so many things. 100,000 people a month cross that bridge to come into Jeffersonville and as I like to always say, that's a 100,000 customers every month."
The connection and Big Four Station Park have brought an economic boom to the city.
Travis Dingess with Red Yeti said the restaurant has seen the impact themselves.
"We've been here as long as the walking bridge has and it's been great honestly," Dingess said. "It's just growing. It's definitely on the upswing for sure."
Chief Marketing Officer with Southern Indiana Tourism, Luanne Mattson, said she started working for the organization right after the ribbon cutting. She's seen the economic impact flow into Jeffersonville as well.
"The ramps being built on the Big Four Bridge and it opening up again it connected up to the Louisville Metro," Mattson said.
That connection brought in economic growth from Derby City right into Southern Indiana.
The Abbey Road on the River Festival moved from Louisville to Jeffersonville eight years ago. Producer of the music festival Gary Jacob said they were reached out to by the city to host their event at Big Four Station Park.
"We saw the bridge and we knew that the bridge was going to be the connector and that there was going to be great economic development," Jacob said. "We had a lot of meetings with the mayor and his team, and you could just see everything they were going to do was going to bring people."
When it comes to the future of this city new developments continue to be announced. Right up the river is the former home of Jeffboat will eventually become a full scale marina with amenities for locals and tourist alike. It's a $930 million investment that will bring more restaurants, jobs and office space to the city.
"And it continues to give," Moore said. "We're thriving and all of the businesses down there have really taken off from the success."
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