(STURGIS) – The City of Sturgis recently received a grant for road safety improvements.

The City received $472,100 in a Highway Safety Improvement Program Grant from the Michigan Department of Transportation. The grant funding will be used to re-work the intersection of East Lafayette Street, the east leg of the Sturgis Middle School parking lot and North Franks Avenue.

The East Lafayette and North Franks Avenue Project was applied for as a collaborative effort between the City, the St. Joseph County Road Commission and the Sturgis Public Schools to resolve safety issues at the intersection. This is due in part to the high volume of traffic associated with the Middle School.

While the City and the Schools have worked together to try and improve issues during school pick up and drop off, a complete solution to the problem requires infrastructure improvements to the intersection.

The improvements to be funded by the grant include two major components. The first is a single-lane roundabout designed to simplify traffic movements and reduce vehicle speeds while efficiently moving traffic through the area. It also includes defined pedestrian crossing points.

The second component is street lighting at the intersection, which will improve visibility for both cars and pedestrians in low light conditions.

The City intends to complete the East Lafayette Street and North Franks Avenue Project in 2023. The construction budget for the project is $590,000, with the MDOT grant covering approximately 80 percent of the cost. The remainder of the project will be funded by the City.

Also impacting the need for this project is the planned extension of North Franks Avenue between the Doyle Community Center and East Lafayette Street in 2023. A long desired expansion project, the extension of Franks Avenue is separately budgeted by the City at $450,000.