Naked Beta: Paintless grafitti bridge gleams (for now)

Struck by an errant University Transit Service bus last October, a nine-foot section of wall on the famed graffiti-laden Beta Bridge was reconstructed last week. Crews not only poured concrete for the replacement swath of the missing barrier, but they peeled back approximately three and half inches of layered paint on an adjacent stretch to help match new to old. All that remains to be installed is an urn-like finial atop the obelisk at the end. The bridge is a popular site for painted messages commemorating everything from pledge parties and birthdays to tragedy at Virginia Tech. The last time the bridge received a peel-back was the fall of 2007.