New crosswalk in Norcross benefits blind citizen

Timothy Jones was blind at birth. On Tuesday, July 16, he helped open the new Norcross audible HAWK crosswalk by walking across Beaver Ruin Road directly in front of First United Methodist Church of Norcross.

To travel to and from school independently, it was necessary for Timothy to use a crosswalk to traverse this busy Gwinnett four-lane motorway. Gateway85 CID helped fund and facilitate construction of the project with a special grant from GDOT and financial assistance from Gwinnett DOT. The original plan did not include an audible component but was changed.

“This came about by happenstance,” said Robert Michener, Director of Operations for the Gateway85 CID. “We had identified the need for the crosswalk on the very busy Beaver Ruin Road because of the church, the school, and the many apartment communities located within that area. As project manager, I was out to inspect the progress when I was approached by Timothy’s mother. She asked if the system was audible. It was not.” Gateway85 then made another investment of $15,000 to add sound. The entire project cost $205,000.