ALEXANDRIA — Alexandria Public Schools is excited to announce its selection for funding through the Minnesota Department of Transportation 2022-23 Safe Routes to School planning assistance grant program.
Safe Routes to School is a state-sponsored planning application process that allows school districts to receive funding from the MnDOT to plan, develop, and implement strategic plans to make walking/biking to school safer for students and families.
MnDOT estimates the value of this award at $48,239. However, these grant awards are in the form of the service of planning assistance that will be provided by a MnDOT consultant beginning July 2023, with the culmination of work wrapping up in June 2024. The plans will be completed in partnership with our local Safe Routes to School team, which will be the point of contact for local input, information, and the creation of an implementation plan.
Alexandria Public Schools focused the grant on several topics regarding student safety for the in-town public schools. Their plan includes developing a safe route to school for students between Alexandria Area High School, Woodland Elementary, and Discovery Middle School and connecting those paths to residential neighborhoods and housing. It will also focus on developing and delineating safe routes on sidewalks and paths to Voyager Elementary and Lincoln Elementary.
The Safe Routes to School team is comprised of 22 participants who met in December of 2022 to create a collective vision and outline for the proposal. These participants include district and building administration, district staff, students, parents, law enforcement, city and county officials, public health, and representation from The Nature Conservancy.
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Together, they are excited to create and implement a plan to connect housing to our students' schools. They are also happy because this use won't be limited to student use only but include the entire community and tourist populations.
