Bridge Authority Commissioners

My name is Ben Berger and I’ve lived in White Salmon since 2009. I’m the chief Financial Officer at a manufacturing business, Zephyr Incorporated. We build complex aerospace systems for a variety of different customers. 

We have two young kids. We had our oldest son in Hood River in childcare and ended up having to pull him out largely because of the commute across the river, and the concern about how we would get him if the bridge were down unexpectedly. It was a big concern for my wife and me. 

It is mostly a matter of ensuring that we have consistency in our ability to perform work. Our customers have really demanding schedules that we have to adhere to. If we unexpectedly lose a day where somebody can’t get to work on time, or must drive around to The Dalles… it’s a major [thing], we lose a lot of time and energy. Being able to be reliable, that is critical.

The bike and pedestrian stuff is the biggest gap that we have on the current bridge. It is hairy to drive across and some people will not. My mother-in-law will not drive across it. It will be nice to have a bridge that the whole family feels comfortable navigating with a vehicle but certainly being able to have the option to ride an e-bike with the kids, that will be amazing. Being able to walk down from White Salmon… [that has the potential to] transform the community and just help us evolve, mature, and further integrate our communities.