Footbridge Donor Offers $100K Matching Grant

The Fox Point footbridge fundraising effort may be getting a boost with the help of a generous donor's $100,000 matching grant.

If footbridge fundraiser organizers are able to collect $100,000 in donations by Sept. 30, the effort will get an additional $100,000 donation from an anonymous donor. 

Fox Point Footbridge Friends Inc. is a group of local residents as part of a public-private partnership with the village for a new footbridge over the ravine between Bridge and Barnett Lanes.

The donor will also match – dollar for dollar – all pledges of $5,000 or more from new donors. Additionally, the donor will match significantly increased gifts from previous campaign donors.

“This is an incredibly generous offer that will get us closer to our goal even quicker,” Footbridge Friends President Barbara Schwartz said in a news release. “It allows donors to double the impact of their pledges. And the sooner we reach our goal, the sooner the Village of Fox Point can begin construction of a new bridge.” 

Schwartz said $20,000 in new pledges have been received since the donor offered the challenge on April 1, adding an additional $40,000 to he pledge sheet when the matching grant is applied. Since active fundraising began in August, the group has raised nearly $280,000 in pledges and donations, Schwartz said. 

See Patch's previous coverage of the Fox Point footbridge

“While we appreciate pledges of all amounts, this particular challenge will accelerate the pace of our campaign,” said Schwartz. “Every new gift of $5,000 between now and the end of September will be match. A $10,000 pledge becomes $20,000, and so on. This provides additional motivation to donors who wish to recapture the beauty and access the bridge provides.”

The current footbridge has been closed since 2010 for safety reasons. The Fox Point Village Board decided in March to take bids to tear the bridge down. The village also is working with a consultant to complete construction documents for a new bridge that will span the 325 feet across the ravine.  

Final cost of a new footbridge will not be known until construction bids are taken. One estimate placed the cost at about $1.25 million.

Public/private partnerships such as the one between Footbridge Friends and the Village of Fox Point are increasingly common as communities seek to fund projects in difficult economic times.  Similar joint projects have been undertaken across the North Shore and metropolitan Milwaukee.

Schwartz said that people interested in making a pledge can call (414) 446-9501 for a pledge card or visit the group’s website.