News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The Upper Cumberland Human Resource Agency plans to re-apply for a TDOT grant that was revoked earlier this year in the midst of agency turmoil.
UCHRA Transportation Director Rebecca Harris said the potential funding would go towards the construction of a new regional transportation hub and administrative office building.
“This would allow passenger amenities and it gives us the ability to also have a maintenance shop that would allows state-of-the-art maintenance equipment to update our fleet,” Harris said.
Harris said having to re-apply for the grant gave the agency an opportunity to reevaluate original plans for the transportation hub.
“With our shared services agreement with the development district, our need for the size office that we originally applied for has deceased,” Harris said. “This is allowing us to apply for something more suitable to fit our needs at this time.”
UCHRA had originally planned to build the new facility on a little more than 5 acres of property on Highway 111. Harris said the agency would like to purchase a totally different piece of property that’s more conducive to the new plans.
“We would still like it to be somewhere on that 111 corridor,” Harris said. “We have preliminary drawings but the actual property has not been pinpointed at this time.” Harris said.
Harris said TDOT will begin awarding the grants sometime after the new year.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation revoked a $3 million grant from the UCHRA in July after an auditor’s report revealed over $130,000 in questionable grant spending by the agency.
