Cookeville Officials want to use disaster relief funds to make sewer system improvements and repairs to the Cane Creek pump station.
City Administrator James Mills said the county was allocated an estimated $10 million from the state’s Community Development Block Grant Program following the 2020 tornado. Mills said the city is eligible for an estimated $2 million of those funds. The project improvements will add more sewer capacity to the pump station, Mills said, to accommodate future growth in the area.
“After discussions, and I consulted with Barry, I felt like this was the best use,” Mills said. “Anytime we can get money for infrastructure, that’s gonna be my priority, and I hope you all agree with that.”
Mills said the distribution of the funds was based on the percentage of the county and city that were damaged. Mills said approximately 80 percent of the tornado damage was outside of the city. Mills said this is not the first time trying to retrieve the funds.
“We have been working on this for two years, at least two years” Mills said. “This is something that we have been back and forth on this for two years. Of course, the only restrictions on this for us, was that it had to benefit or be located in the area that suffered the damage.”
Turner said UCDD will be the one administering the grant on behalf of the city. Cookeville Water and Sewer Director Barry Turner said the project is due.
“It’s a project that needs doing,” Turner said.