The Great Smoky Mountain Journal
Source:
Tuesday, January 01, 2019 02:39 PM
Campbell County Residents Demanding Changes, Improvements To Stinking Creek Road Which Is In Poor Condition
Trina Baird said she has replaced tires three times in four years on her car because the road is so rough. The 17-mile road includes numerous cracked, cratered and crumbling areas.
Baird said, "To drive on it is horrible. The noise is horrible, the sound is horrible, you're constantly hitting holes, you have to swerve and miss a pothole, every few feet."
Business owner Sheila Westray said she is frustrated that despite a dozen years of paying business taxes related to her family's ATV resort, she has seen no major roadwork.
Westray said, "We have a very loyal customer base that comes several times during the year. And I hear the question over and over: 'When are they going to pave the roads?'"
County leaders said they are looking into the possibility of using state money to help cover the cost of revamping the road. It would cost an estimated $1.2 million.
Campbell County Mayor E.L. Morton said he hopes the work can start this year, explaining, "My vision for the county moving forward is that Stinking Creek exit becomes a business center. So, we need a good road there, and the residents certainly deserve it."