STROUDSBURG, Pa. — Work is underway at a borough in the Poconos to upgrade sidewalks in a busy section of town.
It is all part of an effort to increase safety. It is always a busy day at Courthouse Square in Stroudsburg.
But it is not because people are passing through or visiting one of the shops.
It is because crews are re-doing the handicap sidewalk ramps to increase safety in the borough.
Joseph Castro walks through the construction every day, delivering mail.
"It's a little difficult to you know get by and pick up some packages,” said Castro. “But it's alright. I waste more time."
The project is funded through a federal grant and includes re-paving the streets surrounding the square.
Larry Kopp is the borough manager. He said the project needed to get done.
"It's been a long time,” said Kopp. “We actually did core samples of the pavement. It's been a lot of years. They've been putting one on top of the other. So what we're going to do is go down to the base. We're going to make it and build it up again so it looks really good for everybody."
With so many events held here in Courthouse Square throughout the year, it only made sense to re-do the sidewalks and add new removable steel barriers, said Kopp
"When we do larger events we can put those in,” said Kopp. “It will be much safer. So no vehicle can come in and actually hit pedestrians. So we're going to have safety bollards, to make it safer for our visitors and residents."
The new steel barriers that are being put in are paid for by the Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau. They will be installed on the streets surrounding Courthouse Square.
"It's a necessity, it's just I think it was planned at the wrong time when the courthouse is being worked on too,” said Eric Keiling from Canadensis. “So it's a stop. It's four interchanges at a square. Wrong time."
Kopp says while it's a headache now, it will be worth it in the end.
"It's a short-term pain for a long-term gain,” said Kopp.
"I hope it looks better than it was before,” said Castro. “I mean they're doing a lot of good work right now and everything's looking good so I'm pretty sure it's going to look good."
Officials hope the renovation and addition of the new removable steel barriers will help keep people safe in the borough for years to come.
The project is expected to be completed before the end of August.