Newberry’s sidewalk system headed for transformation
NEWBERRY – More and improved sidewalks are in store for the City of Newberry, with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) scheduled to go to bid for the project’s construction in fall of 2013.
Jordan Green, a rural area transportation engineer with FDOT, said all bidders must be pre-qualified by the department, and that construction usually begins 90 days after the bid closes.
The sidewalk project now underway began in 2004 with an application to the transportation enhancement project program through the Florida Department of Transportation, with the Alachua County Commission acting as administrator, said Lowell Garret, planning director for the City of Newberry.
The initial proposal was for a bike and pedestrian trail through Newberry that would provide a way for children to avoid roads in their commute to and from school. In its current form, it is a $900,000 project to pave new sidewalks to interconnect the city’s existing sidewalks.
“It became a continuous connective network project through the community with the primary emphasis on getting kids to school safely,” Garrett said. “It’s nice because what it’s doing is augmenting the streets that were just improved.”
This project can be looked like a step on a staircase: first, the streets were improved, now the sidewalks. And in the future, maybe even streetlights, he said. The hope is not just that the community will appreciate the project, but that it will “maintain and revitalize a community to help out in these down economic times,” Garrett said.
Green said that the department will make efforts during construction to minimize any impacts to neighbors and people traveling. He said that the FDOT wouldn’t be able to close a street without permission from the City, and mostly likely no work will be done at night.
“Obviously we have to keep traffic off of driveways and sidewalks we are building,” Green explained. In some areas, streets will be improved simply because they are involved in the sidewalk construction. Pavers will pour strips of concrete in areas between where the new sidewalk hits dirt, and where the dirt hits the road.
There will be periods of time where travelers are detoured, but the concrete strips are just as much functional upkeep as they are nicer-looking. They will minimize crumbling along the edges of the sidewalks and streets, providing a smooth transition for tires.
While the project may be regarded as simply a means of providing the facility for pedestrian movement, the FDOT solicits projects such as this because it will impact a large number of people. While there are far more proposals than available funds, the Newberry proposal was strong because of its local support.
The sheer number of project proposals means that applicants must reapply year after year, and all the while meet the FDOT’s qualifications. As the project moved along the long list, its importance grew along with the department’s available funding. The FDOT does evaluate cost and importance, but an appealing factor was the project’s comprehensive nature.
# # #
Email Cgrinstead@Alachuatoday.com
Newberry’s sidewalk system headed for transformation
NEWBERRY – More and improved sidewalks are in store for the City of Newberry, with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) scheduled to go to bid for the project’s construction in fall of 2013.
Jordan Green, a rural area transportation engineer with FDOT, said all bidders must be pre-qualified by the department, and that construction usually begins 90 days after the bid closes.
The sidewalk project now underway began in 2004 with an application to the transportation enhancement project program through the Florida Department of Transportation, with the Alachua County Commission acting as administrator, said Lowell Garret, planning director for the City of Newberry.
The initial proposal was for a bike and pedestrian trail through Newberry that would provide a way for children to avoid roads in their commute to and from school. In its current form, it is a $900,000 project to pave new sidewalks to interconnect the city’s existing sidewalks.
“It became a continuous connective network project through the community with the primary emphasis on getting kids to school safely,” Garrett said. “It’s nice because what it’s doing is augmenting the streets that were just improved.”
This project can be looked like a step on a staircase: first, the streets were improved, now the sidewalks. And in the future, maybe even streetlights, he said. The hope is not just that the community will appreciate the project, but that it will “maintain and revitalize a community to help out in these down economic times,” Garrett said.
Green said that the department will make efforts during construction to minimize any impacts to neighbors and people traveling. He said that the FDOT wouldn’t be able to close a street without permission from the City, and mostly likely no work will be done at night.
“Obviously we have to keep traffic off of driveways and sidewalks we are building,” Green explained. In some areas, streets will be improved simply because they are involved in the sidewalk construction. Pavers will pour strips of concrete in areas between where the new sidewalk hits dirt, and where the dirt hits the road.
There will be periods of time where travelers are detoured, but the concrete strips are just as much functional upkeep as they are nicer-looking. They will minimize crumbling along the edges of the sidewalks and streets, providing a smooth transition for tires.
While the project may be regarded as simply a means of providing the facility for pedestrian movement, the FDOT solicits projects such as this because it will impact a large number of people. While there are far more proposals than available funds, the Newberry proposal was strong because of its local support.
The sheer number of project proposals means that applicants must reapply year after year, and all the while meet the FDOT’s qualifications. As the project moved along the long list, its importance grew along with the department’s available funding. The FDOT does evaluate cost and importance, but an appealing factor was the project’s comprehensive nature.
# # #
Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.