Willow Park Elementary

School District

West Fargo Public School District #6

Grades

Kindergarten through 5

Average Enrollment:

532 students

Arrival is 8:10 AM

Dismissal is 2:40 PM

Existing Conditions

Willow Park Elementary is a Kindergarten through 5th grade school in the West Fargo Public School District. The school is located approximately one mile north of Interstate 94 and 45th Street Interchange
on the western edge of West Fargo’s commercial center. Approximately 67 percent of Willow Park Elementary students qualify for free and reduced meals and 37.1 percent are English language learners.

The school was constructed in 2018 to meet the needs of the growing community. The school is bound by 14th Avenue S to the north, 48th Street S to the east, 15th Avenue S to the south, and 50th Street SW to the west. 13th Avenue S and 45th Street S are high traffic volume roadways with high traffic speeds and long crossing distances. These roads are considered hazardous roads that students are not expected to walk or bike across. The adjacent roadways surrounding Willow Park Elementary are local roadways serving residential and commercial uses.

The adjacent properties are primarily multifamily residential and commercial on large, irregularly shaped blocks. Sidewalk connectivity is limited through these areas, which encourages students to cut through apartment complexes and commercial parking lots.

Observed Circulation & Challenges

Willow Park Elementary is located in a commercial and multifamily neighborhood, which creates unique challenges for students walking and biking to school. There is no designated school zone speed limit.

Along 15th Avenue S, a marked, raised, signed crosswalk with flashing beacon is located at the west driveway of the parking lot. It is a common crossing and has good yielding behavior by motorists. Several students were also observed crossing at the east driveway, which does not have ramps or a marked crosswalk. The intersection of 15th Avenue S and 48th Street S is a 4-way stop with long pedestrian crossing distances. Observed driver yielding behavior was good during field visits.

West of the school along 50th Street SW, the curvature of the road and parked vehicles make visibility challenging during dismissal. There is no direct pedestrian route west of 50th Street SW to the multifamily residential area.

17th Avenue S, south of Willow Park, is a wide roadway with high traffic volumes. As noted on the Observed Circulation and Challenges Map, challenge E is an unmarked and uncontrolled pedestrian crossing with no additional signage or crossing enhancements. This is a barrier for students walking and biking from the south.

Opportunities for Improvement

Opportunities for improvement at Willow Park Elementary include the installation of a school speed zone surrounding campus, pedestrian crossing and connectivity improvements, and bicycle parking upgrades.

Two high impact opportunities for improvement require further study. One is a pedestrian connection between 15th Avenue S and 17th Street E (see opportunity F). Currently, students must navigate through a commercial loading area and parking lot to reach multifamily housing along 14th Avenue E. The other is a crossing improvement on 16th Avenue S between an existing trail and 48th Street S to determine the appropriate location for crossing enhancements (see opportunity H).

Crossing opportunities for improvement at 15th Avenue S on the east side of Willow Park Elementary include high visibility crosswalk markings and curb extensions. Curb extensions or a median safety island along with high visibility crosswalk markings, signage, an RRFB are recommended for consideration at the intersection of 17th Avenue S and 51st Street S.

Suggested Safe Route To School

This map was designed to illustrate suggested routes to school for students based on existing infrastructure. Metro COG is not liable for anyone that uses this map.

Last Updated: February 2020