The tide was low and green Tuesday near the Port of Tacoma as Charlie Rodriguez surveyed a blinking board of red, orange and green buttons. With the turn of a couple switches he lowered the gates, blocking traffic, and pressed a thick green button in the center. Quietly the road ahead began to buckle, then separate, rising 108 feet into the air.
Rodriguez is one of a handful of people who serve as “bridge tenders” in the city of Tacoma. From a small “tender house” above the Hylebos Bridge, Rodriguez monitors the waterway, looking for tall boats that need to pass under the bridge.
The Hylebos Bridge and the Murray Morgan Bridge (also known as the 11th Street Bridge) are the only “moveable bridges” owned and operated by the city of Tacoma. On average, the Hylebos Bridge lifts 12 times a day, 335 times per month and 4,025 times a year, said city engineer and bridge manager Steve Carstens. The Murray Morgan Bridge is only lifted 10 times or so in the peak summer months, and it is not staffed by a full-time employee, he said…