Project Overview

This project was granted $1.8 million of Active Transportation Program (ATP) funds to provide St. Anthony’s Mobile Home Park residents, as well as others in the area, with an accessible hard-surface pedestrian route to downtown Mecca and to encourage active modes of transportation, such as walking and biking.

St. Anthony's Mobile Home Park is separated from downtown Mecca by the Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR) tracks with one crossing at 4th Street.  To encourage residents to safely cross the tracks at 4th Street, instead of elsewhere along the tracks, the pavement along the west side Grapefruit Boulevard and State Route 111 was widened and painted to provide a pedestrian route between St. Anthony's and 4th Street.  From there, concrete sidewalk was constructed along the north side of 4th Street from Grapefruit Boulevard, over the tracks, to the roundabout at Hammond Road.

Other related work included widening the intersection corners at 4th Street and Grapefruit Boulevard to improve the turning radius for large trucks making right turns, and to provide for a safe pedestrian street crossing.  This required the widening of the existing concrete box culvert that carries drainage water under 4th Street, and the replacement of traffic signal poles at the intersection.

Making the connection from St. Anthony's to the existing sidewalk at Hammond Road provided the residents with access to schools, markets, post office, library, Boys & Girls Club and medical services throughout downtown Mecca.