HAPPY CAMP, Calif. – A project 12 years in the making is finally becoming a reality.
The Karuk Tribe secured a grant for the completion of the “Safe Streets Project” in Happy Camp.
District Two of the California Department of Transportation laid out its plan to implement sidewalks, a small median, and bike lanes along Highway-96 throughout the city during an open house Wednesday night.
The $12.2 million project could be finished by 2026.
The tribe originally applied for the grant in 2010 making this project one of tenacity and determination.
“To say that this project has been a labor of love would be a tremendous understatement, it really has demanded and required the perseverance and commitment by the Karuk Tribe,” Caltrans District Two Native American Liason, Kendee Vance said.
Vance says the project will help more kids be able to bike to school, citing a significant population of kids that live within two miles of their school.
Vance thinks the project will also help get more people out of their cars in the Happy Camp community.
© 2023 KOBI-TV NBC5. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated.