Plans to construct a permanent median and cobblestone crosswalk across Grand Ave. are now in their final stages.

Macalester will fund the $150,000 to $200,000 project. Director of the High Winds Funds Tom Welna said that the project will be completed this summer.

“The main goal is to provide a safer roadway for pedestrians and motorists,” Welna said. “In addition, it will be a nice amenity to the campus and the community.”

The proposed design includes a nine-foot wide raised median with shrubs, ornamental lighting and red and beige brick. In addition, cobblestone crosswalks will be installed at the intersection of Macalester and Grand.

The plan also calls for the expansion into the street of the Macalester and Grand corners and sidewalks. According to Welna, the narrowed intersection is supposed to signal drivers that they have entered a college campus.

As a result, the Associated Colleges of the Twin Cities (ACTC) bus stop will be moved one-half block south on Macalester St., in front of Weyerhaeuser.

“Some of the nicest roadways in the area have medians—Summit to Lexington Parkway, for example,” Welna said. “We should be looking at following those traditions.”

The Macalester-Groveland Community Council’s Transportation Committee and the Department of Public Works must authorize the design before any construction can begin. However, Welna says that he believes that both the committee and the department will approve the design.

The Macalester-Groveland Council will hold a public forum to discuss the proposed design on Feb. 23 at the Edgecumb Recreational Center on 320 S. Griggs St. Macalester officials will be present and students are encouraged to come.

The final hurdle the project faces before construction can begin is a March 11 design review by the City of St. Paul Public Works Commission.

The High Winds office is working to have the plan authorized before its annual budget expires May 31. “We have the money now and if it doesn’t pass on March 11, we may have to hold off on the project until next year,” Welna said.

Responding to a survey sponsored by the High Winds Fund after the two-phase test design, which included a temporary fence last spring and a raised median, 76.7 percent of residents of the Macalester-Groveland community said they feel that “having an island for pedestrians to stand on was better.” Only 14 percent felt that “the island was worse.”

“[The median is] a great idea and makes perfect sense,” Shane O’Neill ’05 said. “That is not to say that there was a big problem before, but it will make students less guilty about running across the street.”

“I think it’s worth [the money],” Julia Roberts ’07 said. “First of all, it will be aesthetically pleasing, and it will give people a sense of safety.”

Other students are concerned about the price tag. “Because there haven’t been many accidents the money could be used for something else,” Adric Mueller ’07 said. “It isn’t that hard to cross the road.”