SOUTH COUNTY — Students in Konocti Unified School District (KUSD) will benefit from more than $700,000 in Safe Routes to School funds that were recently awarded by Caltrans to two local agencies. Funds will be used to improve pedestrian access to schools in Lower Lake and Clearlake Oaks.
The federal Safe Routes to School program is designed to provide students in kindergarten through eighth grade safer access to school. Funds are awarded in a competitive process in which applicants must justify a need for the money and display a high level of cooperation within the community.
“This is a great example of collaboration between our city, our county, our schools and our community in which all parties will benefit, especially our children,” KUSD Superintendent Dr. Bill MacDougall said. “There are a lot of areas in our community that are not safe to walk and this will create a safe walk way to our schools in Lower Lake and Clearlake Oaks.”
The City of Clearlake anticipates receiving an allocation of $311,530 for improvements to be made on Dam Road. “This is a major thoroughfare for our students,” MacDougall said. “The fact that our city applied for the grant and we are receiving the grant is a wonderful step. Kudos to the people who really put forth all the effort.”
According to Clearlake City Administrator Dale Neiman, the city was one of 119 grants to be approved among 401 applicants. The application was prepared by City Engineer Bob Galusha, Grants Technician Adeline Brown and Terry Parson of the Area Planning Council.
“We are getting about $311,000 that will be used to widen Dam Road where it gets narrow, to the bridge at Lake Street,” Neiman said. “Basically, we will end up reconstructing the street.”
Improvements on Dam Road will provide safer traveling routes for students attending Lower Lake Elementary School, Oak Hill Middle School, Lower Lake High School, Blue Heron and W.C. Carl? Continuation High School. Neiman said that Coastland Engineering has completed the preliminary engineering work. “We will use that information to complete the construction drawing and then the project will go out to bid,” he said. “If we are not able to bid it in January to March (2009) we will have to wait until the following year. The reason being, you always get your best bids in January and February.”
The County of Lake will receive $474,480 for improvements benefiting students attending East Lake Elementary School in Clearlake Oaks. According to Administrative Analyst Doug Willardson improvements will include the installation of sidewalks on the northern side of State Route 20 at Foothill east to High Valley Road and on the southern side of the highway from Lake Street east to Keys Blvd.
Bulb-outs, which are described as rounded sidewalk extensions that protrude into an intersection meant to shorten the distance needed to cross a street, as well as crosswalks will be constructed at each major intersection. “There will also be a three-foot wide planting strip,” Willardson said. “It will have trees alternating with street lights, so it will look really nice.”
Willardson reported that the county is currently in the process of preparing its proposal to request engineering services. “But, before we can do anything we have to do a survey to see how many kids are walking to and from school,” he said. “We are hoping to get the engineering work done by next spring and start construction in late summer or fall. In our grant we said construction would be complete in 2010 but that was just to give us leeway in the project.”
Contact Denise Rockenstein at drockenstein@clearlakeobserver.com.
