For those of you who travel Gentilly Road on a regular basis, you may have noticed survey crews up and down the busy corridor that leads from Georgia Southern to Brannen St. and the mall area.
      I spoke with city of Statesboro engineer Robert Cheshire who said the crews were there preparing for the installation of a sidewalk.
       "Right now, we are having survey work done from Fair Road to Brannen Street, and possibly down to Jones," Cheshire said. "We began the work at the beginning of July which is the start of our new fiscal year. The funds for the project were appropriated for this fiscal year."
      Cheshire said once the survey and design are completed, other issues will have to be resolved prior to construction.
       "There is limited right-of-way along Gentilly, and we will have to take that into consideration along with easements," he said. "Once all of that has been dealt with, then the construction of the sidewalk will go out for bid. Hopefully, it will be completed in the spring of next year. I think that is a reasonable time frame."
      I will admit that I have been very vocal about having a sidewalk on that street. As much as anything to me, it has become of safety issue.
      I drive down Gentilly several times a day, and most of the time someone is walking on the side of the road, and generally it is a university student.
      At night it is particularly dangerous.
      If you look carefully, you will see a very worn path all of the way down the road attesting to its consistent use.
      I applaud city leaders for recognizing the need for a safe corridor connecting the university with Statesboro's busiest retail area. In Cheshire's words, "it was really a missing piece that needed to be completed."
      I could not agree more.
      So, until next Tuesday, I bid you au revoir.

      Got a scoop for Jan? Call her at (912) 489-9463 or email her at jmoore@statesboroherald.com