A grant-funding sidewalk along Martin Luther King Drive, and snaking down other adjacent streets, is nearing completion. But some city leaders said they are concerned about the drainage along a portion of the sidewalk near the city high school and Fifteenth Street.
The multi-use sidewalk comes to Yazoo City thanks to a federal Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant, designed for projects such as pedestrian and bicycle facilities, recreational trails and safe routes to schools. Accepting the federal grant, the city of Yazoo City is responsible for about $100,000 within the project, which is scheduled to be completed by the middle of September.
However, Alderwoman Elizabeth Thomas said she is concerned about the drainage along a portion of the sidewalk, particularly in front of Yazoo City High School and in front of the Wardell Leach Recreational Complex on Fifteenth Street. Several weeks ago, she provided photographs to the city council during the initial construction of the sidewalk that showed heavy equipment surrounded by water after a heavy rain. In those photographs, the walkway was completely underwater.
“Along (Fifteenth Street), a pipe is going up above the walkway,” Thomas said. “Is that going to be cut off because if the water is going to get that high, the walkway is going to be completely underwater. If the water gets that high, it will automatically submerge the walkway.”
A representative from the Neel-Schaffer engineering firm told the Board of Mayor and Aldermen that a pipe had been installed over drainage concerns.
“There will be no water floating above the sidewalk at any point in time,” replied Mayor Diane Delaware. “They (Neel-Schaffer) will take care of their part. That is the way it is going to have to be.”
There has also been criticism about the location of the sidewalk, leading to the city high school. Although the sidewalk’s intention is to provide safety and promote walking for students to the high school, there has been discussion that a sidewalk would have been better suited for younger students, including the many children who walk to Woolfolk Middle School.
Delaware said her main concern was preventing people from parking along the newly-constructed sidewalk, especially in front of the high school during athletic events.
“We have to do something to prevent cars from parking on the trail,” she said. “Somebody is going to park on it. They will park. The solution we are looking for is there anything within the law that we can put up. If they park on it, it will be destroyed within a year, and it would have been a waste of money.”
It was suggested that parking bollards be placed along the sidewalk. When spaced properly, bollards create clear, impassable barriers for vehicles while allowing the free flow of pedestrians.
Work also continues along the Fifteenth Street in front of the recreational complex. With recent weather conditions, it is very possible work may halt until mid-September. Proper drainage also remains a concern for many residents in the area, especially on Smith Street. Accustomed to flooding, some residents said they do not feel confident in the project’s drainage.
