Residents in South Park and Suncrest will soon be added to the list of Morgantown neighborhoods with "Healthy Streets".
Beginning Thursday, Aug. 20, there will be a soft closure of Demain Avenue from Park Street to Kingwood Street in the South Park Neighborhood. The following week, on Thursday, Aug. 27, there will be a soft closure of Western Avenue from Somerset Street to Lawnview Drive in the Suncrest Neighborhood.
These soft closures will be the second and third of the initiative to take place, following the soft closure of Wagner Road on July 15.
"We want to get the community involved in development of other Healthy Streets", said Morgantown Staff Enguineer Drew Gatlin. "We received some great feedback from our first healthy street on Wagner. We hope to collect additional feedback from citizens in these new areas, which will really help to mold the initiative to the wants and needs of the community. The pilots are subject to change at any time based on feedback."
The City of Morgantown Engineering Department in cooperation with the Traffic Commission and the Bike and Pedestrian Boards created the "Morgantown Healthy Streets" Initiative which provides residents with places to walk, run, wheelchair roll, roller-skate, or bike. "Healthy Streets" are achieved by creating soft-closures of select low-traffic streets and maintaining access only for residents, deliveries and emergency personnel.
The city welcomes general feedback from the community on the initiative, suggestions for additional Healthy Streets or changes to existing routes. Comments can be sent via email to info@morgantownwv.gov.
The city also seeks volunteers to be Healthy Street Captains. These volunteers will serve as "Block Captains". Helping to monitor the streets, maintain signage, and report any concerns or conflicts that might arise. They may also help the city collect observational data. Citizens can visit the Morgantown Healthy Streets webpage at morgantownwv.gov/healthystreets to volunteer.
Image of signage to indicate soft closure of city streets related to the Healthy Streets Initiative.