Changes coming to Hurley Avenue, Henry Street
The city soon will make changes to Hurley Avenue and Henry Street as part of the “Safe Routes to School” project.
The city soon will make changes to Hurley Avenue and Henry Street as part of the “Safe Routes to School” project.
The work will comprise the improvement of pedestrian and bicycle amenities along the entire length of Henry Street and a paving and sidewalk project on Hurley Avenue that could include bicycle lanes.
The Henry Street work will benefit children who attend George Washington Elementary School, which is at the corner of Wall and Henry streets. The Hurley Avenue work site is near J. Watson Bailey Middle School.
Most of the work is being funded by federal money funneled to the city through the state Department of Transportation.
For the Midtown project, the city has obtained a grant of $1,348,524.
“The George Washington Elementary School student body has the highest percentage of walkers in the district, and this funding will enable us to provide the infrastructure necessary to make Henry Street safer for the many children who walk and bike to school,” Kingston Mayor Steve Noble said in an April press release.
And, he said, “this project will dovetail seamlessly with our upcoming Broadway Streetscape project, allowing the city to invest millions of dollars into Midtown’s transportation infrastructure.”
The Henry Street project will include sidewalk reconstruction, the installation of bicycle infrastructure, highvisibility crosswalks, a covered bicycle parking area at the George Washington school and the creation of wheelchair-accessible curb cuts at intersections that lack them.
The Hurley Avenue project is to include paving the road from the intersection at Washington Avenue to the town of Ulster line, according to City Engineer Ralph Swenson.
The Hurley Avenue work is to cost $564,549, according to the grant application.
Megan Weiss-Rowe, director of communication and community engagement for the city, said the work might include bicycle lanes.
“This is basically a repavement project,” Weiss-Rowe said in an email. “If space allows, which we will find out once we start the design process, we will consider putting in a bike lane or wider shoulder.”
The Hurley Avenue project also will include new sidewalks as well as curb cuts as the city continues its move toward compliance with laws governing access for the disabled.