Sidewalk Connecting AU/Athletic Campus Part of of Larger Proposal

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

Anderson City Council will consider the first step in a major overhaul for pedestrian and vehicle traffic between Anderson University’s main campus and the school’s athletic campus on Business 29 (Boulevard/Williamston Road) as part of Monday’s meeting at 6 p.m. in the council chambers downtown. Full agenda here.

The city is looking at the initial stage, a six-foot wide sidewalk linking the two campuses, aimed at improving pedestrian safety. The city and university are working with Seamon Whiteside engineering to design this initial phase of the project. Monday’s proposal is to award the construction bid for the roughly one-mile sidewalk to Southern Concrete and Construction for $396,000 and will be paid for by the accommodations tax.

The sidewalk is part of a larger project which will feature a traffic circle at the intersection of Boulevard and Calhoun Street and a 12-foot-wide multi use path along Boulevard from Calhoun Street to Rocky River. State and federal funding will

Additional State and Federal funding will be needed in order to fully implement all phases of the project. The current urgency to provide a safer pedestrian route between the two campuses is being partially driven by the university’s new football stadium and by the growth of the AU, which is the state’s largest private university.