CLEVELAND, Tenn. — Not long ago, a big field along Paul Huff Parkway was said to be the site of a new shopping center with buffer landscaping.
But then the financial empire of developer Steve A. “Toby” McKenzie, who owned the land, crumbled into bankruptcy. The property went to Northwest Georgia Bank through foreclosure.
Now the big field, scraped clear of topsoil and with no trees around, becomes a big mud spot when rain is heavy. Last weekend, the mud spilled onto Paul Huff and Mouse Creek Road, making the busy intersection almost impassable for a while.
“It’s horrible,” City Councilwoman Bambi Hines said. “There’s so much runoff from it.”
After heavy rain, the roads around the site — Mouse Creek, Paul Huff and Valley Head Road, across from E.L. Ross Elementary School — are impassable, Mayor Tom Rowland said.