KELSEYVILLE, Calif. — Thanks to recent action by Congress, a project that will make it safer for children to get to school in Kelseyville will now move forward.

On Thursday afternoon, hundreds of Kelseyville Elementary school students gathered with their teachers and district and county leaders to welcome Congressman Mike Thompson for a ceremonial check presentation in the school’s multiuse building.

Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA-05) secured $10.8 million in Community Project Funding for his district as part of H.R. 2471, the Funding For The People bill.

That funding for the Fifth District includes $450,000 for the Lake County Kelseyville Sidewalk Project, which is part of the Safe Routes to School Program.

The project will fill in a gap in the sidewalk where students walk along Konocti Road, a collector road that is the primary route for vehicles traveling from downtown to Kelseyville Elementary and Mt. Vista Middle School.

It will create one continuous sidewalk along the south side of Konocti Road, beginning at the Cole Creek bridge and stretching over about a third of a mile to Oak Hills Lane.

Thompson said Konocti Road currently has many sections without a sidewalk, which forces students to walk in the bike lane and closer to passing vehicles.

“Providing our students with a safe walking route to school will give parents the peace of mind they need to know their children are safely getting to school,” said Thompson.

At the school assembly, as the students sat on the floor, Thompson and local leaders took to the stage to explain the project.

Thompson handed a large ceremonial check to district Superintendent Dr. Dave McQueen, Board of Supervisors Chair EJ Crandell and Susan Parker, the county’s interim administrative officer.

McQueen offered his thanks to Thompson, as did Crandell, who said the supervisors are committed to working to promote the best and brightest possible future for every Lake County resident.

Crandell said generations of Kelseyville parents will have greater confidence their kids will be safe walking and biking to and from school as a direct result of this project.

“That is the kind of community investment that makes a difference,” he said.

“Your future matters to all of us,” Parker told the students.

Thompson told the children to study hard, listen to their teachers and be careful.

After the event, a young student walked up to Thompson, thanked him and then handed him a thank you note she had drawn herself on lined paper.

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