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Duke Energy Foundation awards $10,000 to Rockingham County TDA for Smith River access project
Summary
The Rockingham County Tourism Development Authority received a $10,000 award from the Duke Energy Foundation on Jan. 21 to support construction of the county's first public river access and takeout on the Smith River above the spray dam in Eden; NCDOT granted an easement for the site.
The Rockingham County Tourism Development Authority received a $10,000 award from the Duke Energy Foundation to support construction of a public river access and takeout on the Smith River, county officials announced at the Jan. 21 board meeting.
Anna Wheeler of the Rockingham County Tourism Development Authority and Hank Henning, Duke Energy’s local government and community relations manager, joined commissioners for a brief recognition. Wheeler described the project as an effort to improve safety and accessibility by creating the county’s first public access above the spray dam in Eden and said the award will help fund construction of a takeout near Highway 14.
Hank Henning said the foundation and Duke Energy value partnerships with county and municipal governments. “Your constituents are our customers,” Henning said, describing the Foundation’s interest in recreation and community livability. Anna Wheeler thanked Duke Energy and noted that the county worked with the North Carolina Department of Transportation to secure an easement on DOT property for the access point.
County officials said the access will reduce the hazards of portaging around the spray dam for paddlers unfamiliar with the river and described the project as a multi-year idea advanced during the current county manager’s tenure. No formal board action was required at the meeting; the grant recognition was presented as part of the recognitions portion of the agenda.
