Greene County Mayor Kevin Morrison brought much anticipated news a month earlier than expected on Saturday.
“Yesterday I got the unofficial word, Erwin Highway 107 Bridge will open this Friday. “
Official plans for reopening of the bridge have yet to be announced by TDOT, but Morrison’s comments indicate the $57 million fast track project is ahead of schedule.
Prior to last years collapse, the bridge carried about 15,000 cars a day. Morrison calls the bridge “a very vital transportation communication link with certainly the south side of the county and the 107 corridor up to South Central and Washington and Unicoi County. Kiewit Construction has done an amazing job. I can’t begin to thank Governor Bill Lee, TDOT, our local legislative delegation State Representative David Hawk and State Senator Steve Southerland for all of their support and their hard work in getting this vital transportation link up and going. “
The mayor, speaking with Radio Greeneville outside the Appalachian Auditorium at St. James, gave an update as well on other projects around Greene County concerning the recovery efforts from the September flood damage.
“There should be good news forthcoming on Highway 351 with the Ernest Bridge there. We’ll get some exciting news coming sometime in the middle of June with Bird’s Bridge. That’s a county-owned project that should be complete about that time given the fact that we have favorable weather. Still however, down here in this neck of the woods, Caney Branch, St. James, the southwestern area of the county we’ve got Poplar Springs Bridge that we’re going to get repaired too.”
Mayor Morrison also gave a river clean up and road repair update saying, “the river clean up should be wrapping up sometime by the end of this month, the middle of next month. We’re excited to get these big trucks off the road so that we can begin to then establish a plan to repair our roads. And I know that they’ve taken a tremendous beating with these heavy trucks and this heavy debris. We’re going to fix the roads and we’ve got the money to do that, so we’re not going to have to bear that burden as well.”
First things first however as plans are underway to celebrate the return of Kinser Bridge later this week, Morrison saying “it was an exciting day yesterday to hear from our state representative to tell me that come Friday, with a rededication ceremony to Sgt. Elbert Kinser who gave his life, we’ll have the Erwin Highway bridge open.”
