$250,000 Safe Routes to School Grant

11/15/07--The City of Bloomington received a $250,000 grant to build a sidewalk along the west side of Henderson St., from Allen St. to Hillside Dr. and the crossing to Templeton School. The grant comes from Safe Routes to School, a new program in the federal transportation bill, SAFETEA –LU. The goal of the program is to reverse the 30 year decline in the numbers of children walking to school and reintroduce opportunities for regular physical activity by improving conditions for bicycling and walking to school.

Edgewood High School in Elletsville also received a $250,000 grant. The combined value of the two grants in Monroe County equals 25% of the total awarded statewide—a showing that Justin Wykoff, Engineering Services Manager with the City of Bloomington, describes as “spectacular.”

Wykoff thanked the neighborhood association, parents, and school officials for their hard work, which contributed to the success of the Safe Routes application. The grant will supply two-thirds of the funding needed to complete the Henderson St. sidewalk project. An application is in process for a Community Development Block Grant to bring in the remaining funding.