Academy Street cuts through the heart of Kalamazoo College, its brick design setting it apart from the average asphalt streets of the city.
But as you get near the train crossing heading downtown, you’ll run into long, metal barriers that bar any further travel.
“I'm around. I ride my bicycle in the neighborhood. I walk in the neighborhood. This is part of my neighborhood,” Kalamazoo resident Steve Allen.
Allen lives in Kalamazoo’s West Main Hill neighborhood. He said he noticed pretty quickly when the road closed in 2022, and added that it has remained closed ever since.
So, Allen reached out to WMUK to find out what will become of it.
To get answers, we met with Kalamazoo Public Services Director James Baker and Dennis Randolph, public works manager and traffic engineer for Kalamazoo.
At the Academy Street barriers, Randolph explained the road was closed because the culvert beneath it failed, making it unsafe.
But that was four years ago, so why hasn’t it been fixed?
“At the time that this culvert failed, we were applying for a number of federal grants to do the two-way conversions downtown, but also to work on the Arcadia Creek, which is what goes under this culvert or through this culvert.”
The city got the $38 million grant in 2024. It’s meant to uncover and restore parts of Arcadia Creek and reduce flooding.
Randolph said they will use some of the funds to fix the culvert, but adds, other work on the project needs to be done first.
He said he expects construction on the Academy phase to begin in March.
Public Services Director James Baker added that the grant was essential to fixing the culvert, as it would have cost the city $3 million.
“To put that in perspective, our local street capital project fund is about a million dollars a year. So, that's like three years of street projects that wouldn't get done on local streets, if we had to funnel that money just into that project.”
Peake Road
Peake Road is a short street in Kalamazoo’s West Main Hill neighborhood. No one lives on the road, which runs along a small park, with the wooded edge of a residential property on the other side.
The city blocked it off in 2022, leaving Steven Allen curious as to why another street in his neighborhood was closed.
But, according to Kalamazoo Public Works Manager Dennis Randolph, the road is actually still open, but only for pedestrians.
“A number of people had approached the city and asked if they could or we could convert the street to a play street. And community development, public service worked with those folks to implement a play street out there.”
Randolph said a play street is exactly what it sounds like: a street where children can play safely.
He added that cities around the country have embraced this idea, and added that Kalamazoo has no plans to reopen Peake Road to motorized traffic.
Michael Symonds reports for WMUK through the Report for America national service program.
