New bridge greeted with fanfare

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May 6, 2018 - 11:00 PM

Iola Mayor Jon Wells cuts the ribbon to celebrate the opening of the King of Trails Bridge Saturday, linking South Washington Avenue with the Lehigh Portland Trails complex. REGISTER/VICKIE MOSS

Saturday’s opening of the King of Trails Bridge on South Washington Avenue over Elm Creek, which connects Iola with the Lehigh Portland Trails complex, takes away people’s excuses, Iola Mayor Jon Wells said.

Excuses like:

“I want to use the trails, but I’m not going to drive there.”

“I just can’t run that far.” “I’d like to walk, but I’ll never get there.”

Those excuses won’t work anymore, Wells said in a speech at Saturday’s dedication ceremony for the new bridge. The bridge forces Iola’s residents to reconsider their options.

City leaders made excuses, too, Wells acknowledged.

“For 20 or 30 years, people have talked about this bridge and every year was, we couldn’t afford it,” Wells said. “And when we make excuses in our lives they become our reality.”

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