It's official -- the crimson red interstate "arch bridge" over Tuscaloosa's McFarland Boulevard is now the the Luther Stancel Pate III Memorial Bridge.

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed a resolution sponsored by state Senator Gerald Allen Thursday afternoon making the change.

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The new name is in honor of the father of legendary Tuscaloosa businessman Stan Pate -- the elder Pate was killed in a car accident in 1968.

The special resolution drew local ire when it was first introduced earlier in the legislative session - other community leaders say Allen did not consult with anyone locally before he introduced this resolution in the Senate.

Meg Summers/TSM
Meg Summers/TSM
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Even with that opposition, the resolution -- SJR 12 -- made its way first through the Senate and then, eventually, through the House, where it stalled in a committee for some time before it was eventually passed earlier this week.

The final step for the official adoption of the resolution was Ivey's signature, and one of her spokespeople told the Thread she did so Thursday.

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