The city of Red Bank has received a grant from Tennessee Department of Transportation to build a bike trail through the city. The path built along Linden Avenue, paralleling the main throughfare of Dayton Boulevard, will be known as Red Bank Bicycle Boulevard. The 2.2-mile-long path will be part of a larger network of pedestrian and bike paths in the Chattanooga area. The portion running through Red Bank will go from Midvale to Morrison Springs Road and will connect to other sections of the bike path in Chattanooga, on both ends.
The total cost for the paved connector portion through Red Bank is estimated to be $766,920. The grant from TDOT is $613,536 and will require the city to provide a 20 percent match of $153.384. The commissioners unanimously agreed to accept the grant with Commissioner Pete Phillips saying this is the type of amenity that makes a city good. The city’s portion will be paid from the State Street Aid fund.
There are a lot of questions to be answered before the public will be included in meetings to make plans for the Bicycle Boulevard, said City Manager Martin Granum, and he said he plans to keep the Red Bank citizens updated with facts about the project on the city’s website and with emails.
Plans for the property located at the site of the former Red Bank Middle School on Dayton Boulevard are beginning to move forward. The city manager has proposed a plan for developing the 12-acre site in the center of town that will begin by finding the right developer to partner with. A citizens’ advisory committee will be instrumental in determining the type of concept they want to see at the location before the development is planned. The city manager recommends for the city to also use a consultant to help guide the process, and to have an executive leadership team. The decision making will come back to the commissioners multiple times during the process at critical points, said Mr. Granum.
Commissioner Phillips suggested also having a larger look at the area as opposed to strictly focusing on the 12 acres. He said the city surrounding that property needs to be looked at during the same time to be able to see the big picture. Mr. Granum agreed saying that he believes the new development in the center of Red Bank will shape the vision of the whole city. Also factored into what is built there is how Red Bank will satisfy the agreement with the National Park Service for conversion of park property. The city must replace old park property that was used where the current Red Bank Middle and High Schools were built. The 2035 strategic plan for the city will also be a consideration.
A series of unfortunate events is to blame for the failure of a developer to get a special use permit for 1109 Dayton Blvd. before the time allowed to get it had expired, officials said. The permit is for a multi-family housing development. The commission voted to re-approve the project and extend the time to get the needed permits for 45 days.
In regular business, the commissioners approved the purchase of four solar-powered radar speed signs for the amount of $10,896. Payment will come from the State Street aid fund. The signs can be moved to different locations around the city as needed.
An agreement was made between the city and R.J. Young, for an email upgrade for all city users. The entire platform will be replaced for a one-time cost of $25,440 and a monthly charge of $855.
City Manager Granum announced that re-zoning of property at 2101 Dayton Blvd., which currently holds a Save-A-Lot grocery store, will be on the agenda of the next Red Bank Planning Commission meeting. It will be held on Feb. 17 at 6 p.m. The rezoning would allow the old grocery store building to become office space and the adjacent strip center to be replaced with townhouses.