There’s now a safer place to get some exercise in Picayune.
Previously, Goodyear Boulevard was the only viable option in the city limits to get in a run or walk without a gym membership. But it means doing so along a busy four-lane road.
Picayune resident Granville Stockstill said he knows some people who have had to think quickly to avoid getting hit by cars while walking along Goodyear Boulevard. Stockstill was one of the first three people to give the Crosby Common’s new walking track a test run Monday morning when it officially opened to the public.
“I think people will enjoy walking on it,” Stockstill said.
The other two residents to be the first to take a trip around the track Monday morning were Desma Carter and William Harry. Carter said she can see using the track as a way to change up her workout routine.
After taking a lap on the track, Stockstill asked Public Works Director Eric Morris about the plan to add lighting along the track. Morris said he hopes to have the lighting installed before the amphitheater, which would open the use of the track to after the sundown.
Until that time the city will restrict use of the track to daylight hours. Currently those hours are 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Once the lights are installed, Morris predicts they will be set to turn off at about 10 p.m.
Work to add additional features to the park is expected to begin at the early part of the next calendar year.
At the most recent City Council meeting, the Council awarded TL Wallace, an $821,513contract to install lighting, a crosswalk from the entrance on Goodyear Boulevard to Sixth Avenue, the amphitheater, bathrooms and a changing room. When the work begins, it is expected to take about six months to complete, previous coverage states.