Courtesy of City of Tallahassee
The first portion of FAMU Way and the Capital Cascades Trail will be celebrated on Thursday.
Florida A&M University will partner with the City of Tallahassee, Leon County and Blueprint 2000 to host two events. The official grand opening will take place on FAMU Way from 10-11 a.m. There will be available parking in Myers Industrial Park.
The next event is a community celebration from 6-8 p.m. at “Under the Over,” located on FAMU Way near the Bronough Street overpass. FAMU architecture students selected the community gathering spot. Parking for the celebration will be available at the corner of FAMU Way and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
Kamry Williams, a fourth-year nursing student, is excited about the celebration.
“The celebration is at the perfect time. We’ll all be in a mood for festivities since it’s homecoming. It should be nice,” Williams said.
FAMU Way will be closed starting at 8 a.m. on Thursday for the grand opening ceremony. All Saints Street and Eugenia Street will also be closed temporarily. The roads will be reopened by noon.
Another section of FAMU Way between Adams Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard will be closed at 3 p.m. to begin preparation for the block party and community celebration. The road will reopen by 10 p.m.
Tallahassee Resident, Antonio Banks, is ready for travel times to reduce.
“All of this construction makes traveling on the south side a hassle because it makes things a lot slower when you’re trying to go somewhere. I won’t be at the celebration, but I’m happy it’s about done,” Banks said.
The FAMU Way Extension will extend FAMU Way from Wahnish Way to Lake Bradford Road when it is completed. The Capital Cascades Trail project by Blueprint 2000 has a linear park, bicycle paths, playground, multi-use trail, pedestrian walkways as well as other features that will accent the FAMU Way extension.
Patrick Herrington, an alumnus of FAMU, is glad to see the city making progress.
“I haven’t been to Tally in a while, so to come back for the game and to see it looking good, makes me a proud Rattler. It’s gonna be even better whenever I bring people to show off my old stomping grounds,” Herrington said.
These events celebrate the enhancement of phase one, which still is not completed. Phase one also includes expanding FAMU Way and Cascades Trail to Pinellas Street. This expansion is expected to be completed in 2016.
For more information, feel free to visit the City of Tallahassee’s website at https://www.talgov.com/famuway/famuway-proj-overview.aspx .