Marble Falls laying down 2-plus miles of sidewalk in October

A 6-foot-wide pedestrian walkway under the RR 1431 bridge on the west side of Marble Falls is included in a 2.5-mile sidewalk project set to begin in October. The goal is to safely connect schools and parks. 

“It allows for walking under the bridge as opposed to people and kids having to traverse (RR) 1431 and walk all the way down to a traffic light and still cross a busy highway,” Mayor Dave Rhodes told DailyTrib.com. “Some of them don’t even hit the traffic light and try to cross otherwise.”

The Tri-Campus Connectivity Project will build sidewalks on portions of Avenue Q, Avenue U, Broadway, Northwood Drive, and Terrace Drive, linking Marble Falls Elementary School, Marble Falls Middle School, Falls Career High School, H-E-B, the Boys & Girls Club, and city parks. The project also includes concrete driveway approaches and street curbs.

“The idea is to connect schools and parks and commonplaces,” Rhodes said. “That’s a big part of what this does. It’s not one continuous (sidewalk). It’s connecting what’s already there. It’s a good piece.”

The $1.57 million project, which should be completed in 11 months, will only cost the city around $375,000 thanks to an 80/20 matching grant from the Texas Department of Transportation.

“It was a tremendous grant, so the expenditure to the city is very minimal,” said Rhodes, who believes the sidewalks will be popular with residents. 

“Anytime we put a good path or sidewalk in, people use it,” he said. “They walk and they ride bikes and all the rest. Those are all good things.”

Local contractor Nelson Lewis Inc. will do the work.

Questions about the project may be directed to engineering coordinator/Tri-Campus Project manager Sarah Garcia at 830-262-0232 or sgarcia@marblefallstx.gov.

nathan@thepicayune.com