Thomas Turnbull, left, and Jason Thompson with the Cleveland Parks and Recreation Department shovel filtering river gravel into the 25th Street median between Peerless Road and Keith Street last week. Workers recently completed the first of three green makeovers planned for state Route 60 medians running east from Interstate Highway 75 to the Spring Creek Crossing development.
Photo by correspondent Paul LeachAT A GLANCEPhase One: Peerless Road to Keith StreetTDOT funding: $101,604Phase Two: Peerless Road to Interstate 75 (exit 25)TDOT funding: $119,198Phase Three: Keith Street to Spring Creek CrossingTDOT Funding: $120,000Source: Tennessee Department of Transportation
CLEVELAND, Tenn. -- City workers recently completed the first of three green makeovers planned for 25th Street medians running east from Interstate 75 to the Spring Creek Crossing development.
The opening phase of the beautification project, chiefly funded by the Tennessee Department of Transportation through its Roadscapes program, is located between the busy thoroughfare's intersections with Peerless Road and Keith Street.
Roadscapes projects "are aesthetically pleasing and make communities more appealing and inviting," TDOT spokeswoman Jennifer Flynn said.
Cleveland's TDOT Roadscapes grants, announced between March 2007 and December 2010, amount to nearly $341,000. The city will match 20 percent of the state funding.
"These grants are a partnership between the state and community organizations to create more inviting spaces for Tennesseans to live and work by adding environmentally friendly landscaping projects along our key roadways," then-Gov. Phil Bredesen said in announcing the grants.
The reworked median -- where more than a dozen trees, more than 60 shrubs and several hundred perennial flowers reside -- is "a modified rain garden," said Dan Hartman, urban forester for the city.
Perforated drainage pipes now lie 18 inches beneath the greenery, covered by 200 tons of river gravel and fill dirt, Hartman said. The gravel layer "percolates" water, cleaning it naturally while also moving it quickly away from the road, he said.
Normal rain gardens are designed to retain water runoff, Hartman said, but flooding concerns meant that the median also had to swiftly drain rainwater.
He said the median garden worked as intended a few weeks ago when an evening downpour dropped 2 inches of rain in a couple of hours. The rising water in the median "never came close" to spilling over the asphalt, he said.
While the hardy shrubs and plants absorb water runoff from the street, they still require irrigation, Hartman said. An underground drip system keeps the greenery moist while conserving water, according to the forester, who said timed sprinkler systems can waste water.
Paul Leach is based in Cleveland. Email him at paul.leach.press@gmail.com.