By Simon Isham–
Pedestrian bridge opens downtown
Photo courtesy of blog.archpaper.com
After more than two decades in the works, the Big Four pedestrian and bike bridge that spans the Ohio River has now opened to the public– at least on the Kentucky side. The project cost approximately $20 million over that span, but the bridge has not yet been fully funded. The city is still seeking $2 million to install lighting, and Jeffersonville, Ind. is expected to pay $10 million by late Spring in order to open their end of the bridge. The bridge is a converted railroad bridge with a history dating back to 1889.
Postal service end Saturday delivery
The United States Postal Service announced its plans to cut back delivery to Monday through Friday in an effort to save money. The cutback has been projected to save the postal service $2 billion annually. The change will take effect on Aug. 5. The plan directly goes against a Congressional mandate that USPS must have a six-day service schedule, but Postmaster General Patrick R. Donahue says the savings were too much for him to pass up. As a result, some members of congress and postal unions have openly called for Donahue’s dismissal as postmaster.
Governor delivers State of the Commonwealth Address
Kentucky governor Steve Beshear spoke to the House chamber on Feb. 6 in his sixth State of the Commonwealth address. Among the many topics he discussed during his 44 minutes at the podium, Beshear pushed to raise the high school dropout age, strengthen texting-and-driving laws and make efforts to eliminate human trafficking in Kentucky. Beshear also pushed for a statewide smoking ban, which a majority of Kentuckians said they supported in a KHIP poll earlier this year, despite Kentucky’s status as one of the top tobacco producing states. Beshear’s comments were called “a pretty bold agenda” by Speaker of the House Greg Stumbo, D-Prestonsburg.
Former officer targets members of LAPD
In 2007, Christopher Jordan Dorner was fired from the LAPD. On Feb. 4, 2013, after being accused of the murder of Monica Quan, an assistant coach at Cal State, and her husband, Keith Lawrence, an LAPD officer, Dorner published a manifesto on his Facebook page, stating that he was responsible for the shooting and that he would continue to target members of the LAPD. An excerpt: “I know I will be vilified by the LAPD and the media. Unfortunately, this is a necessary evil that I do not enjoy but must partake and complete for substantial change to occur within the LAPD and reclaim my name.” After the note were a list of members of the LAPD and their families that Dorner planned to kill. Several fan pages have also been established for Dorner on Facebook. Many of them have more than 1,000 likes. Los Angeles police believe they have tracked Dorner to the popular California ski resort town of Big Bear, as they located his pickup truck in the vicinity.
