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Glen Penner plans to attend the official reopening of Saskatoon’s oldest bridge this fall, just like his grandparents did when the original was opened in 1907.

The former long-serving city councillor supports calling the new bridge the Traffic Bridge after the original structure that was closed for safety reasons eight years ago on Aug. 24, 2010.

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While Penner believes strongly in the Traffic Bridge name to recognize its history, the designation continues to spark debate, including how it was chosen in 2007.

“It’s a new piece of infrastructure placed at the same location, so it should still be the Traffic Bridge,” Penner said in a recent interview.

During a February debate on giving the new bridge the same name as the old one, Coun. Darren Hill insisted the bridge was named officially in 2007 in the wake of “extensive community consultation.”

Hill argued in February against a request from an elementary school class to consider naming the rebuilt bridge to honour Indigenous history in line with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.