Team Kaos' Gary Schmidt (left) and Sean Weide were on hand at the ceremony with Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan.

Omaha – It won’t be a reality for another two years, but the pedestrian bridge that will someday span the Missouri River was the talk of Omaha and Council Bluffs Thursday.

And Team Kaos was front and center as ground was broken for the $22 million structure.

The Midwest’s top amateur cycling team was one of about 100 invited guests on hand near Lewis & Clark landing on a damp, cloudy day more fit for a college football game than a monumental ceremony that was six years in the making.

Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey and Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan presided over the event, which featured performances by the Council Bluffs Thomas Jefferson and Omaha Central High School bands.

Also on hand for the ceremony was Team Kaos’ bike shop sponsor, Dave Reinarz, representing Bike Masters.

"This bridge will bring together our cities and serve as an icon for the entire metro area," Fahey said.

“The only problem we've had is Fahey and I have a little trouble with the color of the bridge," said Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan. "He was talking about red and white with a little blue and white. I'm talking about cardinal and gold with black and gold. So after a Creighton game, Fahey and I sat down and we finally discovered the best color combination we could have it would be green and white with shamrocks leading the way across.”

Pilings will be drilled into the riverbed later this fall and the bridge is expected to be finished sometime in 2008.

All attendees received special commemorative pins featuring a depiction of the bridge and the date of the groundbreaking.

Click here to see more pictures from the event.