HUMBOLDT — Humboldt has applied for funding to improve sidewalks along Highway 5. If approved, it would be possible to walk on sidewalk from the west end of Uniplex to the campground.
Council voted to apply for the Enabling Accessibility Fund for a $1 million project to enhance pedestrian safety at its July 26 meeting.
The federal government is currently accepting applications for mid-sized accessibility projects that “make communities and workplaces more accessible for persons with disabilities.” The fund will support projects that create opportunities for persons with disabilities to take part in community activities, programs and services.
Past projects in the city funded by the Enabling Accessibility Fund include an accessibility lift for the pool and a wheelchair lift to the curling rink.
Michael Ulriksen, Humboldt’s director of community and leisure services, said that if the project is approved, the route along the Highway 5 corridor from Peck Road to First Street will be fully accessible with no steps, enabling residents with mobility challenges to use it freely.
“Currently, if you’re wanting to walk from Centennial Park/the Uniplex over to the campground, you wouldn’t be able to do that very well for someone that has accessibility concerns just because there are sections that don’t have sidewalk,” Ulriksen said. “There’s some trail sections that aren’t easily accessible as well.”
It would include pedestrian sidewalks from 16th Street to 14th Street (north and south sides), pedestrian sidewalks from Seventh Street to Fourth Street (south side), paved trails from Peck Road to 16th Avenue (south side), and paving the trails from Fifth Street to First Street (north side). Included in the project is repairing or replacing existing areas of concern with existing sidewalks and adding accessibility ramps, access and signage as required.
The work would be required to begin by April 1, 2022 and be completed by March 31, 2024 with the grant covering up to $650,000 of the total cost and the city being responsible for the remaining $350,000.
This project was not included in the 2021 budget or any previous budgets. If approved, Humboldt’s portion would be taken out of the 2022 budget.
“If funding is not received and the city is going to have to cover the cost of the entire project then it would all be dependent on what our budgets for 2022 and 2023 look like and how we would build that project in,” Ulriksen said.
“It’s still at the discretion of council if we would go ahead with the project if we don’t have outside funding.”
