Celebrating the completion of the Fountain Lake sidewalk project on Tuesday, city and AARP/Vitality Project leaders encouraged Albert Lea residents to take advantage of the new sidewalks that allow for safer pedestrian traffic around the lake.

During what was a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the corner of North Shore Drive and Lakewood Avenue, Albert Lea Mayor Mike Murtaugh said the completion of the sidewalks showcases Albert Lea’s commitment to healthy living.

The sidewalks, on Martin Road, Lakeview Boulevard, Fountain Street, Albert Lea Street and North Shore Avenue, fill in the gaps in the walking path around the lake.

Murtaugh said he hopes people recognize that these sidewalks have been scheduled to be completed for several years, and that they weren’t just done for the Blue Zones organization.

The Vitality Project did, however, play a factor in ensuring they were done in a more condensed time.

Specifically, there was 2,150 feet of sidewalk installed on Martin Road, 1,410 feet on Lakeview Boulevard, 751 feet on Fountain Street, 931 feet on Albert Lea Street and 1,147 feet on North Shore Avenue.

Albert Lea residents have something unique in that they can say they want to walk around the lake and actually have the capability to do so, Murtaugh said.

City Engineer Steven Jahnke thanked the community for the support of the construction projects and the contractor who completed the work.

“It’s a special day,” said Blue Zones Health Initiative Director Joel Spoonheim.

When AARP and Blue Zones leaders came to Albert Lea in January at the start of the pilot Vitality Project, they sought to help the community make sustainable environmental changes that would lead them toward healthier, longer lives, he said. These sidewalk changes are part of those environmental changes that were sought.

And as a result of them, the children and residents in the city are going to be safer, Spoonheim said. The changes are permanent.

He said he was thankful the city took three years of planned sidewalk segments and pushed to get them completed in one year.

More than 100 citizens have also identified other gaps in Albert Lea’s sidewalk system that the city will pursue filling in the coming years, Spoonheim noted.

The focus on sidewalks has also moved the Albert Lea City Council to discuss whether there should be a change in the city’s sidewalk assessment policy.

Instead of a policy where the adjacent property owners are assessed 100 percent, the council is considering other ratios, where the city and property owners would each pay a portion.

They will be voting on the assessments and the policy at one of their upcoming meetings.