City, Schools to Get Safer by 2014

Three schools are slated for safety improvements after the city was awarded more than $170,000 in grant money through the Safe Routes to School program.

Updated 9:15 a.m. Dec. 4 Making areas around schools safer continues to be a priority for the City of Greenfield and the Greenfield and Whitnall school districts, but as municipalities and districts are charged with tightening their belts, those improvements aren’t always feasible. So when Director of Neighborhood Services Richard Sokol found out the city was one of 17 projects awarded grant money for Safe Routes to School projects, his excitement was understandable. The state announced grants totaling $3.3 million as part of a federally funded reimbursement program that encourages children in grades K-8 to walk or bike to school, when safe and practical. “We are proud to partner with local communities to develop safe bicycling and walking…

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Greenfield Could Have More Sidewalks Soon

The city would likely make sidewalk additions a part of all new road projects.

Meetings Preview: Whitnall's Preliminary Budget, Safe Routes To School, and More

The Whintall School Board will meet tonight, while the city's Board of Public Works and Finance and Human Resources Committee meet later this week.

The Whitnall School Board will get its first look at the 2011-12 preliminary budget during a presentation at Monday’s meeting a 6:30 p.m. in the district’s board/community room, 5000 S. 116th Street. The board members are also expected to discuss and could take action on the administrative staffing proposal that was brought to the table two weeks ago, among other business. In city government, the Board of Public Works will meet Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. in the Common Council chambers of City Hall for a presentation by the Safe Routes To School committee. The committee is expected to request that the board begin pursuing grants for improvements to or the addition of signing, speed humps and sidewalks around the city’s schools. In addition, the …

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Greenfield School District Supports City's Safe Routes to Schools Initiative

The School Board made their feelings known at Monday's meeting.

The Greenfield School District expressed its official support of the city’s Safe Routes to School initiatives when the School Board passed a resolution declaring just that at its meeting Monday. The city, with the support of both the Greenfield and Whitnall school districts, is formulating grant requests for federal funding for a series of safety measures and devices around local schools, including, but not limited to a network of sidewalks. Last month, the city's director of neighborhood services Rick Sokol made a presentation to the board outlining the city's initiatives. “We’re hoping for some grants to keep the fiscal impact on us and the city to a minimum,” said Greenfield School Board president Bruce Bailey, who was the district’s …

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Committee Calls For Sidewalks To Be Installed Near Schools

City official requests School Board support in sidewalk debate.

A member of a committee charged with creating safe routes to schools strongly urged the Greenfield School Board to support the construction of sidewalks near schools throughout the district.  Rick Sokol, Greenfield's director of neighborhood services, told school board members that sidewalks would create a safer environment for children to travel to and from schools during a presentation to the board Monday evening. "We have to install sidewalks on our main streets in Greenfield for the general public interest and in the interest in safety," said Sokol, as he discussed the Safe Routes to School committee's progress. Sokol referred to the Greenfield's municipal code regarding sidewalks in making his case. The ordinance reads: "In order to …

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