Ocoee stakeholders optimistic over upcoming tourism season
jwalton@timesfreepress.com
DUCKTOWN, Tenn. — With gas prices down and federal stimulus money on the way, it looks like it could be a bright summer season for tourist destinations in the Ocoee area. “The Ocoee is a crown jewel of outdoor recreation in the United States, and this is an (economic development) engine for the entire area,” U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., said Monday during a meeting at the Ocoee Whitewater Center. Officials from the National Forest Service, Tennessee Department of Transportation, Tennessee Overhill Association, and Polk and Bradley counties spoke, along with Ocoee Outfitters Association President Carlo Smith. Cherokee National Forest Supervisor Tom Speaks said stimulus funding will help the national forest add jobs to “do work we haven’t been able to” complete. He also said the Whitewater Center expansion with a new sandwich shop will allow visitors to stay there longer. Tennessee Overhill Director Linda Caldwell said when gas prices were high last September, ridership dropped sharply on the Old Line Railroad through the Hiwassee Gorge. But calls already are coming in about trips. Lower gas prices also are boosting rafting-trip bookings, and rafting business owners expect a banner year, officials said. Cleanup of the Ocoee River from a silt spill upstream has been finished, and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation recently gave an all-clear. At the meeting Monday, TDOT spokesman Wes Hughes said plans for the Corridor K highway through Polk County are going in a new direction. A consultant is working with a 14-member steering committee to look at options to present to TDOT. Members include representatives of trucking firms, the Sierra Club, travel groups, local residents and school board members, he said. “This is a huge project and they will address obstacles as they go along,” he said. Previous ideas were scrapped because environmental concerns and expenses. Costs for the road were estimated in 2008 at $1.8 billion, but Mr. Hughes said new plans will reduce the price. Also discussed Monday was the idea of a connector for Corridor K and Corridor J, which would mean a highway from North Carolina to Nashville. Beth Jones, executive director of the Southeast Tennessee Development District, said it needs to be more than just a road for Polk and Bradley counties but a transportation corridor for the entire state. NOTE: Also ran in the Southeast Tennessee edition. Photo Southeast Tennessee Development District officials, from left, Chuck Hammond, Cleveland, Tenn., City Manager Janice Casteel and Tennessee Department of Transportation spokesman Wes Hughes talk before Monday’s meeting at the Ocoee Whitewater Center.
