Artist Jordan Justice, SPEDA behind E. Ky. 80 pedestrian bridge greeting

Jun. 9—Drivers on East Ky. 80, who are used to seeing the pedestrian bridge near the Ky. 39 intersection, may have noticed a bit of a change to the landmark — a welcoming message to greet locals and visitors alike.

The bridge now reads: "Somerset-Pulaski County The Capital of Lake Cumberland." And its courtesy of well-known local mural artist Jordan Justice.

Justice's work has been seen all around the region, but Somerset residents will likely know him from some of his previous projects here — from the side of the Somerset-Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce building to the water tanks at the Waitsboro Water Treatment plant.

The sign was a collaboration between Justice and the Somerset-Pulaski Economic Development Authority (SPEDA). They were able to get permission from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, and with assistance from KYTC's District 8 offices and the Street Department of the City of Somerset, Justice worked in safety over the course of four nights to put the message up on both sides of the bridge.

Justice said it was his first time working on a bridge — and his first time working with stencils, which was required by KYTC.

That requirement was put in place, Justice said, because the state wanted to take out the possibility of human error or uneven lettering.

"The state highway is no joke when it comes to painting their structures," he said, so to even get permission he had to follow their rules.

It turned out well for him in the end, anyway, he said. "If I hadn't used stencils, it would have taken me a lot longer than four days, because the measurements I would have had to take for each letter, the distance between the words and everything, would be way more intense."

And by "four days," Justice actually means four nights. Justice had to work during times when the traffic on Ky. 80 would be light, due to having to shut down a lane — one lane at a time — to give him a safe space to work in.

On the first night, for example, Justice said he started around 7 p.m., and he worked all through the night until about 6 a.m.

He said that in order to get to the point where he could start painting, the process took about a year. "I had to go measure the bridge several times," he said. "The wording is 155 feet long, and the letters are two feet tall, and I had to double my order for the stencils, so I had stencils everywhere."

Then, to actually create the mural, Justice had to think both forwards and backwards.

"They only closed one lane at a time, so I started on one end of it, and I started with 'Somerset-Pulaski,'" he said. "That's about where I could stop because of the lane closure. Then, I had to go to the other side and do 'Cumberland,' and I had to work the other side in reverse. So, the planning that took place for that was unreal. I'd say I probably spent about five hours just making sure that everything was lined up and ready to go before I even started. I had check points where I knew words were going to start and stop... It was quite a task, really."

The actual heights at which Justice had to work at for his vision didn't bother him, but he did say there were a few moments that made him think about the traffic below.

"Every now and then, I would be working close to the lane that was open, and an 18-wheeler would go by, and they were uncomfortably close. It would just freak me out. I was safe, but still, I'd be in the zone painting and an 18-wheeler would go by and I'd think, 'Oh, gosh. Take a second, chill out.'"

There were some unexpected perks to the job as well, such as being able to talk to those who were walking across the bridge while he worked.

"It was really cool because I didn't realize how many kids crossed that bridge. ... There were several kids that would walk by and would stop and say 'Hey, what are you doing? What are you working on now?' And they would just ask me about past murals and how I got into painting, and I would talk to them for 20 minutes, just while I worked. And people were walking their dogs across and just saying 'Hi.' It was a really cool experience."

He said he is used to talking with those passing by as he works, but the conversations tend to go a little differently when the people are on ground level.

"Usually somebody's on the sidewalk below me yelling at me. But this time it was three feet above me and talking casually."

Justice said the reactions he's heard about the bridge project have all been positive, and that he thinks the sign turned out well.

"We had come up with a couple of different fonts, but the way that bridge is, you don't really sit under it for a long time. It's a quick pass-through when you're driving, so I tried to make it bold, easy to read, something that you could understand very quickly. I think it turned out great."

SPEDA President/CEO Chris Girdler and the SPEDA organization thanked Justice for his work on the project.

"The result is fantastic and has converted this iconic bridge into a unique welcome to the community," SPEDA stated.

"We are grateful to Jordan for sharing his talent with us once again; to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 8, Mayor Alan Keck and the City of Somerset for their assistance in the approval and lane closure process; and to Pulaski County Judge-Executive Marshall Todd and tourism directors Michelle Allen and Leslie Ikerd for their continued collaboration in promoting 'Somerset-Pulaski County — The Capital of Lake Cumberland.'"

Carla Slavey can be reached at cslavey@somerset-kentucky.com