“Hard work pays off big” in sidewalk grant for City of Lytle

At the meeting this past Monday, council discussed the $1.5 million dollar sidewalk grant the City was awarded this October.
“I’m really happy with the work that was put into getting this grant,” Councilman Cate said, noting that it would take in excess of 35 years to save up as much money as TxDot is granting for this project. “I’m really encouraged.”
“We have Main Street and 2790 that are TXDot right way that we can pursue in the future. I think we have heard from a lot of people that they want sidewalks there too.” For now, the City is pursing the sidewalks outlined on the map which include both sides of Cottage and Prairie Street.
“I wanted to briefly discuss what we are going to have to do to come up with 20% matching funds….It’s approximately $383,000 that we are on the hook for, to get that $1.5 million,” Cate said. “I think the sidewalk is a step in the right direction as far as improving our infrastructure, and…the safety of our kids should be a priority,” referring to the sidewalks proposed near the school.
Cate noted that he was advised that with the amount of debt that the city has, they could go out and get a certificate of obligation within a week most likely.
“The timeline for the project on the application….If we get started in January of 2022, they are projecting that it would be done in June of 2024, so it’s almost 2 and a half years I guess start to finish,” Cate said. “If we do this right, this is something that will outlast all of us here.”
Mayor Gonzalez thanked Councilman Cate and everyone who worked so hard to secure this grant.
“It paid off big for the community,” Mayor Gonzalez said.
Cate later noted “I hope that we can pursue projects of this nature on a regular basis.”
“We have a price tag on some other infrastructure projects, and several different options out there,” Cate said.

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Cate then motioned that he table these discussions, until consulting the city’s financial advisor.
The project is to include:
• FM 2790 from Blume Drive to Lytle High School’s 2nd Entrance (~0.45 Miles)
• 2 Cottage Street from FM 2790 to Prairie Street (~0.28 Miles)
• 3 Prairie Street from Cottage Street to Laredo Street (~0.15 Miles)
Project Details: FM 2790
• 2,200 LF of 12-foot-wide shared use path on the west side of the roadway from Blume Drive to Lytle High School’s 2 nd Entrance
• 1,200 LF of 6-foot-wide sidewalk on the east side of the roadway from Cottage Street to Laredo Street
• 75 LF of 6-foot-wide sidewalk on the southeast corner of FM 2790 & Laredo Street to provide a direct connection to Lytle Elementary School
• 8new detectable warning surfaces at street crossings
• 1 new and 2 replacement marked crosswalks with stop bars
• Proposed concrete median to reinforce the stop-controlled approach and the channelized westbound right-turn on Laredo Street at FM 2790
Project Details: Cottage Street
• 2,650 LF of 6-foot-wide sidewalk on both sides of the roadway from FM 2790 to Prairie Street
• 18 new detectable warning surfaces at street crossings
• 4 new and 1 replacement marked crosswalks with stop bars
• Upgrading stop signs at the all-way stop-controlled intersection of Cottage Street & Easy Street
By Kayleen Holder
Editor