Yakima officials have applied for grants to help them create “safe routes” for students.
The first would be near Apple Valley Elementary School, and the second near McKinley Elementary School. The “Safe Routes to School” program is a statewide effort by the Department of Transportation to help students get to school more safely.
Apple Valley students often have to cross North 88th Avenue, a heavily traveled thoroughfare. Yakima has asked for a $510,000 grant to make crossing safer for these students. This grant would enable the city to build a sidewalk on the east side of North 88th Avenue, as well as four new crosswalks.
Yakima officials also applied for a $500,000 grant for improvements at McKinley Elementary. If the city wins the grant money, it will install a new crossing system for pedestrians at South 12th Avenue and Tieton Drive. It will also replace several dilapidated sections of sidewalk near the school, then go on to install crosswalks and ramps at nearby intersections to bring them into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The city has already been approved for about $807,000, to be used for improvements at Garfield, Adams, and McClure elementary schools, along with Washington Middle School. Work at some of these schools could begin as soon as next month.
Measures like this impact many people, so officials might work with a flyer printing company to create a mailer for residents, updating them on the projects.
