Downtown Greenville bridge getting $8M upgrade.

• Position: Church Street bridge

A high-profile and well-traveled bridge in downtown Greenville is set for a state-funded renovation.

The Church Street bridge will be getting an $8 million upgrade, making it a safer, better lit and more pleasing experience for pedestrians, according to a post on the city of Greenville's website.

"This project is important for the success of downtown Greenville," Mayor Knox White said in the post. "There's always more we can do to make downtown more walkable, more pedestrian focused."

Constructed in 1959, the bridge remains a downtown landmark and an important arterial roadway. However, several of its features are outdated, including the sidewalks, drainage system, lights and road, the post stated.

A rehabilitation project, funded through the South Carolina Department of Transportation, is slated for summer 2023 to accomplish the following, according to the post:

The road will get a new concrete surface

Lighting will be replaced and upgraded

New railings and green road dividers (planters) will improve pedestrian safety

The stairs at McBee Street will be replaced

The west sidewalk will be widened to 9 feet

The bridge will be repainted

The project is needed to...