INDIANAPOLIS — For six years, Dakota Pawlicki has called Fountain Square home and like many others, he enjoys walking around the neighborhood southeast of downtown Indianapolis.
"When we talked to our neighborhood residents, walkability and accessibility, that’s what they want the most," said Pawlicki, a board member for the Fountain Square Neighborhood Association.
While the commercial corridors are well maintained, he said residential sidewalks are being ignored.
"A lot of the sidewalks in the residential part of the neighborhood have not been fixed or repaired at the same rate that our commercial corridors have," Pawlicki said. "If you are wheelchair-bound or if you have a stroller, or if you are a new parent, it is really hard to navigate many parts of our neighborhood."
It's why the Fountain Square Neighborhood Association launched the "1000 ft for FSQ" project earlier this month.
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The group hopes to raise $37,500 to fix 1,000 feet of rundown sidewalks by Jan. 26. The Indianapolis Department of Public Works will then match that amount through a grant, bringing the total to $75,000.
The project is led by FSNA in partnership with Southeast Community Services.
"We have until the end of the month to raise those dollars from either people who want to donate or businesses who know having a walkable neighborhood is just as important for business as the facade outside of their business," Pawlicki said. "We can all agree that sidewalks are something we all need. It doesn't matter who you are. We all want to be able to walk on a sidewalk, to walk our dogs, to take our kids to the park."
A group of volunteers has already identified dozens of areas to fix.
"They walked around and photographed the blocks. We created our own little database of problem sidewalks through the entire neighborhood," Pawlicki said.
FSNA is accepting cash, pledges and other donations. Pawlicki said it's a small investment that can go a long way.
"We are hoping we can make a small impact one foot of sidewalk at a time," he said.
Click here to find out how you can donate.
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