Differences over promotion of this year's 50th Labor Day Bridge Walk Saturday, August 30, have been settled by the Mackinaw Area Visitors Bureau and the village council, which approved the bureau's marketing campaign Thursday, April 17. The campaign calls for a July 4 fireworks show, commemorative coins celebrating the event, and banners with the numbers 51 and 50 to be hung in the village throughout the summer.

To avoid confusion over the 50th anniversary, both numbers will appear on the banners, 51 referring to the number of years the bridge has been open to traffic, 50 referring to the number of years Michigan residents have walked the Mackinac Bridge on Labor Day.

Council members and the public had expressed concern in recent months that banners indicating any kind of 50th anniversary related to the bridge would be confusing, following the 50th anniversary of the bridge opening last year.

The unusual banners will be certain to generate curiosity by tourists, and the Visitors Bureau has a plan to handle it, said Bill Bertchinger, president of the bureau's board of directors.

Businesses will be provided with posters explaining the 51/50 celebration, and explanatory handouts will be available at cash registers throughout the village, he said.

A new commemorative coin is expected to reimburse the Visitors Bureau for about half of the $20,000 to $25,000 campaign. The coin will also explain the 51/50 concept, he said.

Concerns over the closing of the two northbound lanes of the Mackinac Bridge for road work prompted discussion over a potential flood of traffic in the village on Memorial Day weekend.

Delayed northbound traffic is likely to produce traffic congestion in town, said Trustee James Alford.

"We might be the recipient of much extra business," he said.

Work is anticipated to be finished by Memorial Day, with the latest completion date set for June 18, said Bob Sweeney of the Mackinac Bridge Authority. The bridge authority will have alternate lane closures to accommodate the Memorial Day Bridge Run and a bike tour June 15, if necessary, he told The St. Ignace News.