BY THE NUMBERS1,200 feet: Number of feet the Tennessee Valley Authority built on a section of the Riverwalk10 feet: Width of Riverwalk in most areas8 feet: Width of section the county surveyed
A one-mile stretch of the Tennessee Riverwalk near the Chickamauga Dam will remain open for pedestrian and bicycle traffic despite some complaints from walkers, officials said.
"We are not going to change it at this time," said Ron Priddy, Hamilton County director of parks. "It's going to remain the same."
Complaints from pedestrians prompted county officials to conduct an informal survey of park visitors about whether the stretch of Riverwalk should be considered as pedestrian-only. County officials said park rangers stopped people on the Riverwalk two weeks ago to ask about the potential change.
But if county officials wanted to change that section of the Riverwalk - or just about any section of the Riverwalk - they would encounter problems, records show.
The section of the Riverwalk that faced scrutiny was built in the early 1990s by the Tennessee Valley Authority, records show. And TVA officials say the deal was for the section to always be open for both cyclists and pedestrians.
Travis Brickey, TVA spokesman, said a contract signed by TVA and Hamilton County in 1997 makes that clear.
"It states it must be used for public recreation," Brickey said. "That includes bikers and walkers."
If any kind of change were to take place, "TVA would have to review it," Brickey said.
Other sections of the Riverwalk also have stipulations, according to state records. Most of the trail from the Hubert Frye Center to the 21st Century Waterfront received federal funding, which has its own rules, records show.
Jennifer Flynn, spokeswoman for the Tennessee Department of Transportation, said there are contracts in place that say the walkway would be used as a multiuse trail for pedestrians and bicycles. It received federal dollars for such usage, she said.
"If any part of the facility was paid for with federal funds, and it was stated in the contract it was to be part of multiuse facility, then the local government either has to keep it open for use as a multiuse facility or pay back the funds," Flynn said.
Priddy said last week he was not sure about the specifics of the contractual agreements, but said there may be some playing room within the language.
"I don't know if multi-use means walking or rollerblading," he said.
But he said it doesn't really matter because "there's no immediate plans" for closing any portion of the Riverwalk to anyone.
Phil Pugliese, bicycle coordinator for the city of Chattanooga, said he did not think there was any "serious intent" on the part of county officials to shut down a portion of the path to cyclists. He said what is needed is education of cyclists and walkers alike.
There could also be some changes made that could help, such as perhaps striping the path, he said.
"The Riverpark is an important corridor for everyone," he said.
Ron Pairamore, a Signal Mountain resident, came down to run along the Riverwalk last week. He said he has no problems with cycling, but on the Riverwalk it seems to have gotten out of hand with some of the speeding.
"When it first started, it was a great idea," he said. "It's getting kind of dangerous."
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