The Martin Luther King Jr. Drive Corridor sits between the city’s downtown and Winston-Salem State University. The upgraded design plans include planting trees and installing pedestrian friendly sidewalks.

A public meeting to discuss the proposed improvements will be held this evening in Winston-Salem.

The MLK Corridor project will cost around $3-million. Greg Errett, with the city’s transportation department, says 80 percent of the money will come from federal grants. Errett says besides adding visual appeal, city leaders hope the project will also encourage economic development in the area.

“If you go around Winston-Salem State on MLK Jr. Drive they have already done a very good job of landscaping and establishing some fences and upgrading the intersections with high visibility crosswalks and pedestrian signals. We want to carry that same sort of design concept North from WSSU campus and take it all the way around to U.S. 52 that leads to downtown,” says Errett.

Erret says the city’s history will also be incorporated into the project.

“In the future, residents can establish historical markers along the corridor. We want to celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr., as well as other residents and community leaders,” says Errett.

Construction on the project is expected to begin this fall. The public meeting will be Wednesday, Jan. 23 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Mount Zion Church on File Street.

Residents can also stop by the city’s transportation office to review the MLK Corridor improvement plans.