Cookeville Public Works will begin demolition of the Stevens Street recycling site Monday.
The front entrance off Stevens Street will close. Public Works Director Mary Beth Elrod said the city is demolishing the building the department uses to store seasonal equipment, with the goal of improving the site.
“So we are gonna be demolishing this building and replacing it with a new building that’s in a better-located spot on the site, so that we can expand the recycling center, have more space for recycling, and create a more user-friendly site,” Elrod said.
Elrod said the demolition is expected to take two weeks to complete and that the front entrance off Stevens Street will be closed daily from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. to ensure safety.
“We are gonna shut the front down so that it can be our construction and demolition zone, and we want to keep the public away from our construction activities,” Elrod said.
Elrod said once demolition is complete, the site will reopen, but may experience periodic closures as construction of a new building begins.
“We’ve got to do some grading and regrading to prepare for new construction, and then we’ll begin building the new structure. We also anticipate building a salt bin,” Elrod said. “So we may do this in multiple steps and send out multiple bids depending on how our budget allows.”
Elrod said residents may access the site by traveling east at the traffic light at the intersection of East Jackson Street and Baron Court. The recycling center will remain accessible during construction through the rear entrance off Baron Court, and signage will direct residents to alternate recycling sites.