Governor Bredesen Announces Enhancement Grant for Cleveland

Enhancement Grant for Cleveland/Bradley County Greenway:
 Left to right, Dewayne Bunch, TDOT Commissioner Gerald F. Nicely,
 Assistant to City Manager David Jones, Director of Parks and Recreation Patti Petitt,
 City Engineer Brian Beck, Gov. Phil Bredesen, City Manager Joe Cate, and Mayor Tom Rowland.

Nashville, Tenn. — Governor Phil Bredesen announced today that the state will provide the city of Cleveland in Bradley County with an enhancement grant in the amount of $495,987 to assist with the Mouse Creek Greenway Project.

The City of Cleveland and Bradley County began planning for the development of a Mouse Creek Greenway in 1997. The purpose of the project is to provide a trail for alternative transportation. Phase One and Two of the Greenway have already been completed, with the assistance of a $706,000 TDOT Enhancement Grant in the past.

“This joint project between the city of Cleveland and Bradley County is the product of years of planning and commitment,” said Governor Bredesen. ”This year’s grant will assist with the third phase of this project, taking the trail forward another 4,000 feet. I’m proud the State of Tennessee can make investments like this to enhance local communities for the benefit of citizens and visitors alike.”

According to the grant application, Phase Three of the Greenway will begin as a sidewalk on 8th Street and end as a trail on the east side of Mouse Creek, crossing an 80-foot pedestrian bridge halfway between Willow and 17th Streets.

The grant is made possible through a federally funded program administered by the Tennessee Department of Transportation.

“Including this year’s enhancement grants, TDOT has helped fund approximately $189 million worth of transportation related projects such as the restoration of historic facilities, bike and pedestrian trails, landscaping and other non-traditional transportation projects,” said TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely. “These grants were made possible in the 1990s when Congress established a grant system funding activities designed to strengthen the cultural, aesthetic and environmental aspects of the nation’s transportation system.”