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Commission approves ARPA-funded Cherokee Park wetland project after TDEC waives matching requirement
Summary
The commission approved a consent-agenda item to build a stormwater retention wetland at Cherokee Street/West Walnut funded entirely by a state grant after a waived local match; project cost nearly $3.3 million and is expected to finish by Sept. 2026.
Deputy City Manager Randy Trivette and Public Works Director Jason Miles described a Cherokee Street stormwater retention basin that will be built as a park-like wetland near West Walnut Street to manage runoff and provide public amenities.
Trivette told the commission that Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) waived the city’s matching requirement after recent storm events in the region, converting what would have been about a $597,000 local match into a 100% grant-funded construction project. Trivette said the construction cost will be nearly $3,300,000 and that the project will function primarily as stormwater detention while providing walking paths, landscaping and additional parking.
Trivette and Miles said the design will be approximately 60% complete by January, that the project will be bid after design completion and that construction is likely to take about 18 months with a project completion target of September 2026. They said the park-like approach follows the city’s broader strategy of combining required stormwater infrastructure with public recreation where feasible.
The item was part of the consent agenda approved by the commission. Commissioners recorded their votes in favor during the consent motion.
Other consent items discussed with public works included annual mowing and litter pickup contracts. Trivette said the state reimburses municipalities for certain interstate mowing and litter pickup up to acreage-based limits; the city conducts additional mowing beyond what the state reimburses to maintain appearance.
Why it matters: The grant-funded wetland will address stormwater coming off recently renovated West Walnut Street, add public green space and reduce the city’s capital outlay because the state grant covers full construction costs after the match waiver.
No amendments or alternative funding directions were proposed during the commission meeting; the item advanced as part of the consent agenda vote.
