Mendota gets $350K in grants for new sidewalks, study for safe routes to school

Terrifying. Dangerous. Frustrating. Those were some of the terms Mendota parents used to describe the walkways their children take to get to school.

The parents have been heard. Two Safe Routes to School grants worth a combined $350,000 will make conditions safer for Mendota pedestrians, starting with schoolchildren.

One sidewalk, one traffic signal or one pedestrian ramp that serves someone with a disability can make all the difference in the world to a child, as well as peace of mind to a parent.”

—  Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman

On Thursday, Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman appeared at Lincoln Elementary School in Mendota and announced $250,000 for upgrades of sidewalks around Lincoln School. Another $99,800 will fund a safety audit of routes to Blackstone, Lincoln and Northbrook schools as well as Mendota High School.

“One sidewalk, one traffic signal or one pedestrian ramp that serves someone with a disability can make all the difference in the world to a child, as well as peace of mind to a parent,” Osman said, discussing $9.8 million in grants that will fund 47 projects across the state. “That kind of investment is invaluable and impossible to measure.”

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Lincoln Elementary students and local officials pose for a photo Thursday, May 30, 2024, outside of Lincoln Elementary School in Mendota. The Illinois Department of Transportation awarded Mendota $350,000 for new sidewalks and a study that will help students travel to school more safely. (Scott Anderson)

Osman also said Mendota scored highest among the 143 applications that were submitted for Safe Routes to School grants.

Emily McConville, Mendota city clerk and the city’s director of economic development, said more than 1,700 city residents were surveyed, and sidewalk improvement and bike paths were cited as urgent needs.

McConville said the funds will allow Mendota to provide secure sidewalks for children who walk to school and start planning for future sidewalk projects in town.

“Currently, many of the city sidewalks are broken, buckled and uneven,” McConville said. “Many blocks don’t even have sidewalks, and the sidewalks that are there, there are grassy patches between the sections.”

The need is doubly urgent for the disabled. Raul Gonzalez said his sister Rosa has spina bifida, and his family has clamored for even surfaces.

“This will help people with spinal disabilities transit freely and safely through Mendota,” Gonzalez said. “We have to deal with less-than-safe sidewalks [and] broken and unlevel sidewalks, which can cause falls or injuries, while no ramps force us to use the roads, which are not safe.”

Fixing the surfaces is only the first step, however. The safety audit will broadly identify routes for pedestrians and cyclists to the four public schools.

“Currently, there is no safe access for our high school students to walk or bike out to the building due to the constant fast traffic on Route 251 and [Route] 52,” Mendota High School Superintendent Denise Aughenbaugh said.