October 8, 2019
By: Dwayne Page
The City of Smithville is embarking on a plan to eventually build new sidewalks and improve pedestrian crossings and is hoping to obtain a grant of up to almost $1 million to help make it happen.
During Monday night’s regular monthly meeting, the aldermen adopted a resolution to authorize the submission of an application to the Tennessee Department of Transportation for a Multi-Modal Access Grant.
This program is a 95/5% match for construction of up to $1 million. If fully funded, the city would receive $950,000 in grant funding with a $50,000 local match requirement for construction of new sidewalk and crosswalk improvements along the State Route 26 (Highway 70) and State Route 56 (Congress Boulevard) corridors and intersections.
Ragan-Smith Associates of Nashville will design the project at a cost of up to $5,000.
The grant application will be filed and if approved be administered on behalf of the City by the Upper Cumberland Development District.
UCDD representative Virginia Alexander addressed the mayor and aldermen Monday night.
“In June we applied for the letter of intent for the Multi- Modal Access Grant for a project that would be on Highway 70 for intersections at Highway 70 & 56 and Highway 70 and Short Mountain Road and for sidewalks up to the Industrial Park on Highway 70. TDOT asked that we put in a full application so that is what this resolution is addressing and we can request up to $950,000 with a $50,000 match. It’s a 95/5% project which is very rare to find especially with road projects,” said Alexander.
“We are working with Ragan-Smith to come up with the design for this project and we will have to do a request for qualifications for engineers when the grant is awarded. For their services they (Ragan-Smith)are asking for no more than $5,000 depending on the scope of work. They will be coming up to look at the project and drawing some preliminary sketches and work on the budget for us,” Alexander continued.
It may be at least January before its known if the City will be awarded the grant.
“They will take the winter time to review the applications and probably announce in January. Contracting takes from four to six months depending on TDOT’s schedule. You probably would not have to spend any funds until the 2020-21 fiscal year,” added Alexander.