Six area schools will receive funding from the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) to develop Safe Route to School (SRTS) plans thanks to the hard work of the Upper Minnesota Valley Regional Development Commission (UMVRDC).
MnDOT worked with Regional Development Commissions statewide to solicit applications for this year’s round of Safe Routes to School funding. Grants were available in two categories:
- Planning assistance – Funding to complete a Safe Routes to School plan to help analyze existing conditions, gather public input and identify potential infrastructure and non-infrastructure solutions at K-8 schools.
- Implementation grants – Funding for education, encouragement, enforcement and evaluation activities.
The UMVRDC notified all schools within the region of the SRTS grant opportunity, and Lindsey Knutson, UMVRDC Transportation Planner, worked closely with five school districts to develop six SRTS applications. All six applications were successful in receiving funding.
The following is a list of grants awarded for Region 6W schools:
- Appleton/Milan Elementary School in Appleton – planning assistance
- Benson Elementary and Jr. High Schools – planning assistance
- Stevens Elementary School in Dawson –planning assistance
- MMN Elementary School in Madison – planning assistance
- YME Elementary and Middle Schools in Granite Falls – planning assistance
- Canby School District (including St. Peter’s Catholic School) – implementation grant to hire a SRTS Program Manager for two years at $20,000
All SRTS grants use federal funds and no local matching funds are required from the school or community. Statewide, eight implementation grants and 27 planning assistance grants were funded. To view a complete list of schools receiving SRTS funding, click here.
For more information about SRTS in Region 6W, visit the SRTS page here on our website.
For more SRTS information statewide, visit the MnDOT SRTS webpage.
For questions regarding Safe Routes to School or other transportation issues, contact Lindsey Knutson, UMVRDC Transportation Planner at lindsey.knutson@umvrdc.org or call 320-289-1981 extension 7.
