The city of Portland, Oregon has unveiled a new bridge named after Ned Flanders from The Simpsons.
The Simpsons’ neighbour has been honoured with the pedestrian and bicycle bridge, which was recently completed, the city saying that the namesake “serves as a symbol of bringing neighbors together across whatever divides them”.
The Ned Flanders Crossing was officially unveiled on Thursday (September 9), the character getting a plaque with his catchphrase “Hi-Diddly-Ho, neighborinos!”.
“Ned Flanders has been a quintessential emblem of good neighborliness for over 30 years, keeping his cool and trying his best to be a good neighbor even when confronted with his rather difficult neighbors, the Simpsons,” the Portland Bureau of Transportation said.
Today, it is hereby proclaimed that Flanders Crossing will be henceforth named NED FLANDERS CROSSING …
Posted by Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) on Thursday, September 9, 2021
“At a time when people seem more divided than ever along political or cultural lines, and less and less willing to even talk to their neighbors with whom they may disagree, we believe Ned Flanders is a symbol of the kind of neighborly connection we should strive for in Portland.”
As well as honouring The Simpsons, they wanted to pay tribute to “the creative spirit that has animated Portlanders for so long and will continue to do so long into the future”.
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The Simpsons has a longstanding link with Portland, with creator Matt Groening being a city native.
“It’s a wonderful day for our city,” Transportation Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty said. “Naming this new bridge after Ned Flanders shows that Portland can build great things and have fun too. Thank you to Matt Groening and his team for embracing this idea.”
The Portland bridge isn’t the only thing that has honoured Flanders of late, with the Sprinfieldian recently landing his own line of Adidas sneakers.
The character also serves as the inspiration for a metal band called Okilly Dokilly, which describes their music as “Nedal”. The group itself featured in a 2019 episode of The Simpsons, with the closing credits showing the music video for ‘White Wine Spritzer’.