Hermitage Springs Sidewalk Project Proposed

The Dale Hollow Rural Planning Organization will apply for a grant to build a sidewalk connecting the Hermitage Springs School to the Hermitage Springs Park.

Dale Hollow RPO Coordinator for Transportation Issues Mark Dudney said the project would help protect children following the recent construction of the park. Dudney said Clay County would benefit from the $1.25 million grant.

“They would be responsible for five percent of the total project cost and the state covers the rest,” Dudney said. “So they are very competitive grants for that reason, but if you get them it’s almost like having a 95 percent state investment into your community.”

The grant is provided by T-DOT every year to help with transportation needs for pedestrians. Dudney said the project’s mission is to provide the school a safer route to the park.

“The school resource officer at the Hermitage Springs school has to stop traffic to sort of walk the students safely to the park,” Dudney said. “And even if you are a motorist coming around the curb there, when you are approaching the school it’s limited sight distance there.”

Dudney said that the project, titled the Hermitage Springs Pedestrian Safety project, has a long road ahead of it. The application deadline for the grant will be July 15th. Dudney said he expects to hear something later this fall.

“We are not there yet,” Dudney said. “We are meeting our Clay County partners next week and we are going to do a site visit and we have to do a lot of documentation and stuff, so we are not there yet, we have just submitted our intent to apply.”