Where bullfrogs once sunned themselves poolside, there’s a splash pad for youngsters, but there hasn’t been a usable pool for Etowah, Tennessee’s humans for more than a decade.
Now, thanks to state grants and an anonymous local donor, McMinn County’s easternmost town now will construct a long-awaited new pool and pool house to replace the former 1970s-era pool facility that was closed in 2007.
STATE GRANTS FOR PARKS AND RECREATION PROJECTS
The following list shows the amounts of grants awarded in five rural Chattanooga region counties, the amount of local matching funds required and the work included in the project being funded.› COFFEE COUNTYManchesterGrant amount/local match: $336,000/$336,000Project: One prefab concrete restroom building; LED lighting for the Championship Soccer Field; and renovation of the Fred Deadman Playground for ADA accessibility standards› MARION COUNTYWhitwellGrant amount/local match: $60,500/$60,500Project: Whitwell City Park ADA compliance improvements, renovations to the existing bathroom at the walking track, construction of new bathrooms, access paths and parking› McMINN COUNTYEtowahGrant amount/local match: $375,000/$375,000Project: Construction of a new 30-foot-by-60-foot swimming pool and pool house at Etowah City Park and for ADA compliance.› RHEA COUNTYSpring CityGrant amount/local match: $29,644/$7,412Project: Phase I construction of the Veterans Lakeside Greenway project, convert an old highway bed to a multiuse trail and for ADA compliance› VAN BUREN COUNTYFall Creek Falls State ParkGrant amount/local match: $100,000/$25,000Project: Resurfacing of the Lake Trail along the lakefront at the park, and a parking area on the end of the trail adjacent to the dam will be expanded, paved and an ADA-compliant parking space addedSource: TDEC
Three baby bullfrogs rest between two larger bullfrogs basking in the early morning sun in September 2015 at the old city pool in Etowah, Tenn. The pool, closed in 2007, has since become the new home of a splash pad. A new pool will be built nearby, thanks to recently awarded grant funding and a generous local donor.Of $901,144 in grant funding announced for five rural Chattanooga region communities, Etowah got the most at $375,000, followed closely by Manchester at $336,000. The other three projects are in Whitwell, Spring City and at Fall Creek Falls State Park.
The grants announced Aug. 20 are part of more than $15 million in grants from the Local Parks and Recreation Fund and Recreational Trails Program to help pay for recreational projects across the state.