The Ritz Bridge erected to join residences with hotel
Many hands were on deck to ensure the successful erection of the Ritz Carlton bridge from sea to sea connecting the Seven Mile Beach to the North Sound. Photo By David Wolfe
It took seven hours, 40 workmen and immeasurable patience, but at the end of the ordeal, the Ritz Carlton bridge which was erected between Thursday night and Friday morning signaled a quantum leap in the progress of the Five-Star $350million hotel and condominium project in the Cayman Islands.
Between the hours of 11 p.m. last Thursday and 6 a.m. on Friday, Seven Mile Beach was a hive of activity as the bridge, which experts prefer to call a "connecting corridor", was put into place.
The dimensions are stunning: an estimated cost of about $2.5million, 97 feet long, 25 feet wide and 20 feet high.
Made of structural steel and concrete, the bridge will, when the project is completed, connect the Ritz Carlton's Hotel Tower with the Lagoon Tower, effectively making the hotel complex one building.
The bridge was fabricated in the United States and assembled here in Cayman Islands.
Project Manager Mr. Larry Kessinger said the erection took much longer than they had anticipated, but he stressed that it was worth the effort and time.
Mr. Kessinger said the bridge will have a service corridor and a guest corridor, adding that it will be air-conditioned, with marble and carpet similar to what will be featured in the Ritz Carlton itself.
The project manager added that the bridge's erection was significant for other reasons, namely that it will serve as a connecting conduit for the complex's utilities from east to west, in addition to providing an element of safety to the workers who have to move between sites on either side of the road.
"Essentially, the Ritz Carlton project is at the point where it is gaining momentum and this juncture the bridge, or connecting corridor, if you will, is a major plank of that development," Mr. Kessinger said.