CARYVILLE, TN (WLAF) – In July, the Caryville Board of Mayor and Aldermen met with Brandon Johnson chairman of the Caryville Cares Playground. Johnson came to give the board an update on the progress of the playground. During the meeting, he requested the board have a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Caryville Cares.

The MOU would state that the town would maintain park security, maintenance, and cleanliness in the perpetuity. The town would agree to not change, add or remove any signs, name(s) of the park without Caryville Cares permission, not including signage that has to do with the park’s operations (ex: hours, safety warnings). Aldermen Josh Monday expressed concerns about potential legal ramifications for future boards if the MOU was not followed. Alderwoman Vickie Heatherly stated that she did not see the need for a MOU. At one point in the discussion, Johnson told the board that if there wasn’t an MOU, then we (Caryville Cares) won’t build the park. See the related story HERE.

Last Monday night, Alderman Patrick Pebley brought up the topic of the playground and an MOU. Pebley spoke on behalf of Johnson. He reported on what the group wants included in the MOU. They would like the town to take care of the upkeep of the park which would entail mowing, weed eating, etc. Caryville Cares would take care of the equipment, padding and sound garden. The group does not want the town to change the park name without consent from Caryville Cares, but if the group ceases to exist, the town could change the name if they so desired. Pebley reported that once the MOU is done, work can begin on installing the equipment at the playground.

After a lengthy discussion, it was decided that Caryville Cares would be responsible for having the MOU created by an attorney and present it to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen. The town’s attorney Adam Bullock could not create the document due to him being a part of the Caryville Cares group. They felt this would be a conflict for him. (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED – 08/21/2023-6AM)

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