KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Despite several years of planning and hundreds of thousand of dollars already spent on a new BMX track in South Knoxville, Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs has canceled the plans mid-construction.
The project to build the track at the old football stadium at South Doyle Middle School and new athletic field for the school was originally budgeted at $750,000. The actual cost of the project ballooned to nearly triple that amount.
"If you look at the project as a $750,000 project, it's great. But when you start talking where we were getting to, which was at least 2.5 million, then you start having some serious discussions," said Mayor Jacobs. "For me, it is just too big a risk."
Jacobs said poor budgeting estimates are partly to blame for the cost overrun. The project also ran into sizable expenses related to drainage at the stadium and upgrades to make the site ADA accessible.
Stopping the construction of the track does not stop spending money on the site. A mountain of dirt has already been moved to the middle of the stadium and started taking shape for the track. Removing the dirt will possibly cost another $200,000.
"It's a waste. It's just money thrown down the drain," said Wendy Edwards, board member of the non-profit Knoxville BMX organization. "You know, it's disappointing. We've put in a lot of work. And we feel like we weren't heard."
Edwards said the county is to blame for many of the budgeting issues, starting with who the Public Building Authority hired to construct the track. She says the contractor who was hired had no prior experience building BMX tracks.
"There were other contractors certified by BMX USA and that's not who they chose. It made no sense. The person who designed the track told us the bid that was given was much higher than it should be," said Edwards. "They could have found other ways to save money on this by reopening the bids to a new contractor. Don't kill it, get another bid, do some more research into this, because we're not in a rush. But they [the county mayor's office] didn't want to do that. They just wanted to kill it."
Knox County commissioner Carson Dailey represent South Knoxville. He said even with the budget overruns, he thinks the project would have paid for itself in the long run.
"I'm so disappointed that we did not get a BMX track because it would have put Knoxville even more on the map," said Dailey. "It was going to be a place that hosted national BMX events. Just one national event generates around $3 million for the local economy with visitors to hotels, restaurants, and other money spent here."
Mayor Jacobs said it is time for the county to cut its losses. The county will continue its plans this summer to construct a new high-quality track, shot put and discus circle, bleachers, fencing, concession stand, ADA-approved bathrooms, and sidewalks at South Doyle Middle School.
"That's the upside to this whole thing. The facilities at the school were definitely in need of an upgrade. And I am excited about that," said Jacobs.
The projects are scheduled to be complete before the start of school this fall. However, at the request of Knox County Schools, construction on these projects will not begin until this school year ends in early June to minimize disruptions around the middle school.
PREVIOUS RELATED COVERAGE
Nov. 2, 2018: BMX track project 'on hold' for cost assessments