Temporary access road to Anderson County Park could open this weekend
This section of Park Lane at the entrance to Anderson County Park remained in its collapsed condition last Saturday (March 1) after sliding down the hillside toward Norris Lake on Friday, Feb. 21. Meanwhile, a park crew is building a temporary bypass so the park can be reopened to visitors possibly this coming weekend, park Manager Ben Taylor said Monday. (photo:April D. Lively )
The partial collapse of a short section of Park Lane along the bank of Norris Lake near the entrance to the park on Friday, Feb. 28, forced the closing of the road, cutting off visitor access to the main areas of the park.
But the campground, whose entrance is before the collapsed area, is open and reservations are being taken, Taylor said.
Who will rebuild the collapsed section of Park Lane — and when — was still unclear on Monday, as the Anderson County Highway Department said it wasn’t sure who is responsible for maintaining Park Lane in that area, suggesting that perhaps it was either the park staff or the Tennessee Valley Authority.
County Road Superintendent Gary Long could not be immediately be reached for comment.
Taylor said park workers were creating the temporary entrance route, which will “cut around the [park’s] maintenance area.”
The connection will not be paved, but it should be passable for vehicles pulling boats to and from the launching area, he said.
“It will be tight, but it’s the best we can do until the road gets reopened,” Taylor said.
He referred The Courier News to the Anderson County Highway Department for information on the Park Lane repair work and timeline.
Again on Saturday, orange cones and barrels were stretched across Park Lane just past the entrance to the park’s campground, cutting off access to the main park area, which includes the boat ramps, picnic areas and beach.
Access to the campground was not affected by the road collapse, and it opened officially for the summer on Saturday (March 1), Taylor said.
Just the northbound side of the road, nearest to the lake, collapsed down the lake bank.
But there were concerns that more of the road could fall as well, which led county officials to close the road rather than allowing traffic to use the unaffected lane to bypass the collapsed section.
Although no cause was given for the collapse, it did occur after the previous week’s heavy rains caused Norris Lake to fill to more than three feet above its normal summer water level, creating some flooding in low-lying areas.
For now, access to the main park area is open only to emergency crews, park staff and county road workers.
