A long-awaited sidewalk project in Columbia is moving forward after the city was awarded nearly $1.4 million in state funding Thursday.
Mayor Pamela Hoots has spent several years seeking funding for the project, which will improve pedestrian access between downtown Columbia and the Adair County schools.
The Transportation Alternatives Program grant will fund 80% of the project.
Improvements will create a continuous route from the Public Square down Greensburg Street to Indian Drive, then to the entrance of the old middle school. The route will continue across Walker Street to Hudson Street and onto Burkesville Street, with an additional crosswalk near the Board of Education connecting to Walker Street.
The project also includes repairs to the existing Burkesville Street sidewalk in front of the Columbia Post Office.
Hoots also secured a Government Resources Accelerating Needed Transformation award to cover most of the city’s required matching funds. Combined, the two grants will leave the City of Columbia responsible for less than $10,000 of the entire project.
