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Cross County Partnership reports progress on All Star bike trail, Smoky Mountain Innovation Park; Mountain Strong relief funds exceed $1 million
Summary
A partnership representative told Cocke County commissioners that the All Star bike trail project has property-owner support and that trail construction plans call for a 10–11 mile first phase; updates also covered grading at Smoky Mountain Innovation Park and distribution totals for Mountain Strong flood relief.
A representative of the Cross County Partnership updated the Cocke County Board of Commissioners on several economic-development and recreation projects, including progress on the All Star bike trail, grading at the Smoky Mountain Innovation Park and distributions from the Mountain Strong flood-relief program.
On the All Star bike trail project, the representative said the partnership has met with an engineering firm, U.S. Forest Service officials and two property owners who have agreed to work with the county to establish a trailhead. The partnership said it will need to use grant funds to acquire a parcel for restrooms and changing stations at a parking lot. The speaker said the partnership must obtain a special operating permit from the U.S. Forest Service (identified in the record as an "SF 2 99" permit) and submit a business plan; the speaker said they expect to find someone to write the business plan within 30 to 60 days and then submit it to the Forest Service.
The representative described a three-phase design for the trails and said "about 10 to 11 miles" are planned in the first phase. The partnership reported meetings with local groups, including the Appalachian Mountain Biking Club and the Southern Outdoor Regional Biking Association (names as stated in the meeting record).
On the Smoky Mountain Innovation Park, the representative said grading is well under way and that one pad remains. The speaker said the work is supported by a TVA grant and that engineers are designing sewer work; funds have been allocated and the county may also use Department of Economic and Community Development (ECD) aid, TDEC or ARPA funds as appropriate. The engineer of record was identified as Robert Campbell in the meeting record.
The partnership reported Mountain Strong flood-relief distributions across multiple phases: $257,000 in phase 1, $539,500 in phase 2, $144,000 in phase 3 for Hartford-area businesses, and ongoing phase 4 property-tax repayment. The representative said total distributions to date exceed $1,117,297.64 (presented in the meeting record as "a hundred and 17,297 and 64¢" plus earlier totals) and offered a detailed breakdown on request.
No formal action by the board on these reports was recorded in the transcript; the items were presented as updates in the commissioners' reports portion of the meeting.
