U of M hosts symposium on I-35W bridge construction

St. Paul, Minn. — The University of Minnesota is holding a symposium on the collapse and reconstruction of the Interstate 35W bridge that gets underway today.

A dozen scholars from the University will talk about the history of the river gorge, rebuilding cities after disasters and the impact of the bridge collapse.

The gathering starts in Minneapolis this afternoon with a discussion on public memorials.

Historian Pat Nunnally helped organize the conference.

"There are a lot of things to still be thinking about. A lot of questions to ask about things we may have learned or not learned, what the ongoing discussion about infrastructure is and where might we be in these conversations in another five or ten years. We don't just sort of do things like fix substantial parts of the city and not have those things reverberate for a while," Nunnally said.

The symposium also includes a reprise of a show by author Patricia Hampl and pianist Dan Chouinard focusing on the Mississippi River.

The free event will be at the Tedd Mann auditorium at 7:30 p.m. and is open to the public.