City leaders broke ground Thursday on a $3 million project that will change the face of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
About 50 people gathered at the far south end of the project at Exchange Street for a special ceremony to mark the start of the much-anticipated work. For the next year, contractors will work their way north from this spot to Gwinnett Street.
They will install new brick sidewalks, ornamental lighting, pedestrian crosswalks, and a new roadway.
“I’m glad today that, through the work of a lot of people, we are getting this done,” said District 1 Alderman Van R. Johnson. “So let’s get with it, let’s do it soon, and let’s do it fast.”
The streetscape plan resulted from an extensive public input process guided by the Savannah Development and Renewal Authority and involving residents, business owners and other stakeholders along the corridor.
This phase of the work, which cuts through three aldermanic districts, is being funded with Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax and Georgia Department of Transportation dollars.
“This form of neighborhood revitalization is one of Council’s top priorities,” said District 2 Alderman Mary Osborne.