Haslam Announces Transportation Grant For Morristown

Grant to fund Phase 5 of Turkey Creek Greenway
 
MORRISTOWN – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner John Schroer announced today the award of a $700,805 transportation alternative grant to the city of Morristown for Phase 5 of the Turkey Creek Greenway.
 
Phase 5 of the Turkey Creek Greenway will be nearly 6,000 feet of 10-foot wide multimodal asphalt paved path that will connect the trailhead at the Freddie Kyle Trail at Cherokee Drive and travel north to the trailhead at Wildwood Park. The trail, which will be located within the old abandoned Peavine railroad right-of-way, will include three crosswalks and two small bridges across Turkey Creek. 
 
Morristown currently has more than 7.7 miles of greenway since the inception of the Greenway Master Plan.
 
“These types of projects strengthen our communities,” Haslam said. “Making our cities and towns more pedestrian friendly and improving our recreation areas improves the lives of Tennesseans. We want Tennessee to continue to be the very best place to live, work and raise a family, and projects like these are important to making that a reality.”
 
The transportation alternative grant is made possible through a federally funded program formerly known as transportation enhancement, and is administered by the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
 
“Through these grants, TDOT has funded more than $318 million in non-traditional transportation projects,” Schroer said. “This program has assisted communities all over the state in their efforts to revitalize downtowns, highlight historic areas, provide alternative means of transportation, and increase opportunities for economic development.”
 
A variety of activities, such as the restoration of historic facilities, bike and pedestrian trails, landscaping and other non-traditional transportation projects, are eligible for grant funds under the federal program.
 
State Sen. Steve Southerland (R-Morristown) and Rep. Tilman Goins (R-Morristown) represent Hamblen County in the Tennessee General Assembly.