Safe routes to school will span the five Grosse Pointes

Over the next four years, the Grosse Pointe Public School system (GPPSS) will coordinate with all five Grosse Pointe communities and Harper Woods to identify safe routes to schools (SRTS) and seek grants from the Michigan Fitness Foundation to pay for sidewalk and street improvements, crosswalk paint, signals and signage. The grants also will provide funding to educate kids and parents about how to be safe while traveling to and from school and about the health benefits of walking and biking to school.

Carlisle|Wortman is providing community engagement for the project, which is managed by Melissa Kalnasy.

The safe routes program is only for elementary and middle schools, reaching kids in kindergarten through eighth grade. GPPSS will group its nine elementary and three middle schools into clusters for the application and planning process. Over the next four years the district will systematically evaluate each cluster, seeking grants as needed to improve students’ routes and safety.

The initiative stems from a 2019 decision to close two elementary schools and the process will begin in the two clusters which include those schools. The school system has established a steering committee consisting of school administrators, local government representatives, teachers, students, parents and local law enforcement representatives. Individual schools are establishing SRTS teams as they begin the evaluation and application process.

“The Grosse Pointes are very walkable but we can’t assume that what has worked in the past and what works for adults is sufficient for our children,” said Rebecca Fannon, GPPSS community relations specialist.  “Walking and biking are healthy options. They also reduce traffic congestion and vehicle emissions from parents dropping their kids off at school.”

“We will use many tools to engage the community in this process,” Lauren said. In addition to the opinion survey homeroom teachers will ask students how they got to school and how they plan to get home. The school-specific SRTS teams, parents and students will walk through the areas to audit existing conditions. Planning consultants, supported by staff from the Michigan State University School of Planning, Design and Construction, will analyze data gathered and create an action plan as part of the application process.

The Safe Routes to School program offers grants up to $200,000 per school campus to eliminate transportation barriers and enhance safety features of the built environment, and up to $8,000 to educate students and encourage walking and biking. The money flows from the Federal Highway Administration through the Michigan Department of Transportation to the Michigan Fitness Foundation and the Safe Routes to School organization.

The city of Grosse Pointe is just beginning construction on  a $100,000  SRTS project for Maire Elementary School, on Cadieux Road north of Kercheval Avenue. The grant has funded street resurfacing, upgraded crosswalks, ramps and signage and the reconfiguration and upgrade of the school sidewalk.