MILFORD, Del.- With shops, parks, and city buildings sitting right in the heart of Milford, walkers and bike riders need safe paths to get around. The next phase of the city's streetscape project aims to address that.
One of the proposed changes is an eight to ten inch wide walking and riding path on the north side of Northeast Front Street to Northeast Fourth. The shoulder would be taken out and a new curb would be built with some ramps for easy access.
Planning Director Rob Pierce says this will be a start to improve alternate transportation towards Route 113.
"We want to try to beautify that corridor and improve it from an aesthetic look and from an accessibility look or feel for pedestrians and cyclists," Pierce said. So, I think it's kind of a grander vision to extend from the downtown towards that overpass.
The sidewalks in this phase of construction would end between Northeast Front Street and Northeast Fourth Street. Owner of the River Lights Cafe Danny Perez says that the sidewalks are a good idea considering the amount of bikers and walkers that are here in the city.
"Since we started putting the restaurant here, we've been seeing more people walking and more people riding their bikes," Perez said. "And there is a local bike path here that they ride through here. And in the summer I think there is a contest and they go through here all the way down to Lewes."
Drainage and pipes will be installed at the new parts of the roadways. Two crosswalks will be added at the ends of the construction, with the hope of making downtown Milford easier to get around and pleasing to the eye.
According to the Delaware Department of Transportation, the construction would begin in the fall of this year and would be completed by spring of 2022.