Kosciusko Mayor Jimmy Cockroft doesn’t want to make downtown Kosciusko harder to get around.
He thinks that changing many two-way streets to one-way streets in downtown will do just that and I tend to agree.
After facing a lot of criticism, mostly from uninformed citizens, the city took another step towards a proposal that will add bike lanes, define parking spots and increase safety around the square.
The project is part of the Charrette and Museum Project to connect the trace with Hwy. 35 and Huntington Street. Other parts of the project include improvements to Strand Theater, Redbud Springs Park and South Huntington Street along with the addition of the Mississippi Native American Museum at the Leonard’s building and Old Trace Interactive Murals around downtown.
The current street plan calls for the conversion of portions of Washington, Jefferson, Natchez, Jackson and Madison streets into one-way roads as well as the addition of a bike-lane to all interior roads and Monroe Street. It would also add crosswalks and better define parking along the sides of the streets.
As a newcomer to the city, I can speak to how confusing and hectic the roads around downtown are. During my first few weeks here, I would find myself driving down unmarked one-way roads and also not knowing where to legally park.
I’ve never been much of a bike rider, but I understand the importance of Kosciusko being a bike-friendly community. Anyone that has driven down the Natchez Trace Parkway can easily notice the bike enthusiast traveling along the road. So wouldn’t it be logical for the city to do what it could to easily divert the bike traffic towards its businesses and historic square?
However, more than anything the most important part of the project is the safety of drivers and pedestrians. Better defining one-way streets with more markings will inform drivers better and make it easier for law enforcement to enforce the rules of the road.
The best thing about the entire project, though, is the price tag. JC Cheek Contractors, Inc. are to develop a pavement and curb marking plan for the city at no cost. The only cost to the city will be paint with city workers doing the work.
Projects like this will help the city grow and make Kosciusko thrive.
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Joseph Brown is the editor and publisher of The Star-Herald
