County manager updates Commission on Dunnavant Valley Greenway

A feasibility study regarding the Dunnavant Valley Greenway has been completed, and the Friends of Dunnavant Valley Greenway are working on the next steps, County Manager Alex Dudchock told the Shelby County Commission during its first meeting of November.

The feasibility study was done through an APPLE Grant, which was set to determine if the project extending the greenway would be a recreational trail or a federally funded project, County Chief Development Officer Chad Scroggins said at the Nov. 13 meeting. 

“The feasibility study leans toward that it would be a recreational trail, which would keep it out of the highway’s right of way,” Scroggins said. A federal project would require more time, possibly five or 10 years, Scroggins said.

The trail currently runs 1.5 miles from its entrance on Shelby 41/ Dunnavant Valley Road toward the 1996 Fields Complex, near Sports Blast. The next phase of the project, which was studied through the APPLE Grant, would connect to the existing trail and continue to the north side of Mt Laurel, past the elementary school.

“It would be the next leg on that trail that is used significantly,” Dudchock said, adding information about a senior group that walks the trail frequently.

The trail would also connect to the area where a pedestrian tunnel is already being constructed, Scroggins said, meaning the new leg of the trail would connect more areas than just along Dunnavant Valley Road and into Mt Laurel.

Shelby County will not take the next steps, Dudchock said, but rather will wait for the Friends of Dunnavant Valley Greenway to enter discussions with private landowners about agreeing to a conservation easement.

Once those discussions are underway, Dudchock said the county will step in and execute a public right of entry on the property. Scroggins said the county will also help in the grant application process, as it has for trails within Oak Mountain State Park and in other areas of the county.

There is no established timeline for the project.

Also at the meeting, the Commission:

• Approved fiscal year 2018 committee assignments and board appointments. These appointments designated county representatives for various groups around Shelby County, as well as Commission committees for the upcoming fiscal year. They became effective Nov. 27.
• Awarded bids for gloves for the Sheriff’s Office; seed and fertilizer, hardsteel, and asphalt for roads and transportation.
• Awarded a bid for the construction of the Highway Operations Building to Wayne David Construction, in the amount of $231,526.
• Approved an agreement for Jesse Creek Mining LLC regarding mining along Shelby 260. County Engineer Randy Cole said the agreement includes several notes regarding safety, rebuilding the road, posting bonds and other items. According to the agreement, JCM will rebuild the road as it mines.
• Approved a resolution regarding the extension of the Kendrick Cemetery. The application for the extension was submitted by James Harold Isbell, and the cemetery is located on a 12.56 acres off of Shelby 41.