Hickory Nut Gorge recovery, construction, timeline, Chimney Rock Park: What to know

Yahoo

04-03-2025

BAT CAVE - Jim and Marcie Kane moved to Bat Cave in August 2024, having fallen in love with the Hickory Nut Gorge community. Just over a month later, they were hiking up Grant Mountain to escape Tropical Storm Helene flooding, past where a waterfall had wiped out the road, they said.
In a little house 30 feet above Hickory Creek, the couple said they thought they'd "be fine." Though they were blessed not to get any flooding in the house, the river "took out the road instead," Marcie Kane told the Citizen Times.
Jim Kane, 84, reminisced on how they had pictured themselves driving the three or so miles to Chimney Rock to grab dinner, or ice cream, or to simply walk amid the beauty of the surrounding peaks. Despite their still-standing house, there's a lot of loss, he said.
"Chimney Rock was our community to get to know. The other day, I just realized, we got some isolation now because we've lost that community. I think they're going to build back, but for the time being ...," Kane trailed off, shaking her head.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation held public meetings in Bat Cave and Lake Lure at the end of February to receive public input on the agency's proposed plans to reconstruct U.S. 74 Alternative, U.S. 64 and N.C. 9. All three are vital throughfares to bring visitors and business to towns in the Hickory Nut Gorge — east of Asheville — that rely on tourism spending, after Helene wiped away the fall season right before its peak.
More: 'Don't forget us': Bat Cave residents decry 'disaster tourists,' comment on recovery plan
NC DOT engineers are working to restore access to Chimney Rock State Park. In less than six months, Lago Vista Road could be extended the necessary quarter-mile to connect with Chimney Rock State Park Road, which could serve as the new temporary pathway for park visitors and a much-needed economic boost.
"(DOT) almost has the temporary road completed, and they hope to open it up to traffic in March, and I think that's when things will get a little bit back to normal," said Mike Patton, DOT resident engineer leading the U.S. 64 construction.
NC DOT engineers have proposed four possible options for replacing the bridge to the park, which was destroyed by the Broad River during Helene.
Replace both the Chimney Rock Park Road and Southside Drive bridges where they stood.
Build one bridge to serve both the park and Southside Drive, near where the Southside Drive bridge used to be, either with a roundabout or an intersection.
Build one bridge near where the original Chimney Rock Park Road used to be, either with a roundabout or an intersection.
Rebuild the Chimney Rock Road bridge where it used to be, to serve both the park and Southside Drive. This option would require a review under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, which could take up to a year.
"The park is hoping to reopen by Memorial Day, so those (bridges) are certainly going to be a priority," said Brian Burch, senior project manager with HNTB and lead on the U.S. 74A project.
The Citizen Times reached out to North Carolina State Parks to confirm a timeline for reopening.
More: Sneak peek at I-40 reopening through Pigeon River Gorge after Helene: expect delays
The French Broad River Metropolitan Planning Organization has asked NC DOT to consider adding biking accommodations to U.S. 74A, according to Burch. Pointing to the proposed road concept, Burch said they would add 2-foot paved shoulders wherever possible on each side of the road, expanding it to 11 feet wide from Bat Cave to Chimney Rock.
"Which is not really a bike path, but it does improve safety," Burch said.
Since these are emergency response projects, Burch said there are some limits to funding. The Federal Highway Administration will reimburse the state for replacing the road that was there before. Since there was no multiuse path along the highway before, there would be some funding challenges to making the road multimodal.
"It's possible we may be able to build something back that Federal Highways would agree is prudent and they would reimburse the state for that," Burch said.
"We're not far enough down the road yet to know that, but I know Chimney Rock Village is certainly interested in that and the DOT is interested in that."
Travel on the three main highways through the area remains limited to locals only. Construction is scheduled to begin March 3 for U.S. 64, which will be the "lifeline" for the area, according to Patton. Since the roadway wasn't as badly damaged, they hope to finish U.S. 64 as soon as possible, and use the two-lane road to bring staffing, material and equipment in to reconstruct U.S. 74A.
The goal, Patton said, is to get U.S. 64 back to two lanes within five or six months. The contract for the project ends in September 2026.
Once reconstruction starts on the Gerton section of U.S. 74A sometime in March, the project could take 18 to 24 months to complete, depending on how long they can close the road for heavier construction periods, according to Burch. If closures are extremely limited, it could add as much as a year to the project, he said.
Burch said they are expecting to start work on both the Chimney Rock bridges and U.S. 64 bridge in the summer, with remaining work on 74A in Chimney Rock to start late in the summer or early fall.
Both NC DOT's projects are currently in the public comment period. Comments for 74A Chimney Rock can be submitted online at https://publicinput.com/US74AChimneyRock or via email at [e-mail].
Information on the 74A project in Bat Cave and Gerton can be found at publicinput.com/US74AGerton The public can submit comments on the webpage or by emailing [e-mail].
Ryley Ober is the Public Safety Reporter for Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at [e-mail] and follow her on Twitter @ryleyober
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Hickory Nut Gorge after Helene: road construction, Chimney Rock Park