UPDATE: State Representative Yusuf Hakeem has canceled a town hall meeting in Eastdale on Thursday after a proposal to move the Moccasin Bend Mental Health Institute to the community was dropped.
Rep. Hakeem was planning to hear from Eastdale constituents about their concerns for the proposal before the area was dropped from consideration.
State Senator Bo Watson said Thursday that the Tennessee Department of General Services will continue to look for potential sites for a new regional mental health facility to replace the facility at Moccasin Bend.
Stay with Local 3 News for updates to this developing story.
PREVIOUS STORY: State Representative Yusuf Hakeem is hosting a town hall meeting on Thursday to hear from Eastdale constituents about a proposal to move the Moccasin Bend Mental Health Institute to their community.
Hakeem, who represents District 28 which includes Eastdale, said the state of Tennessee submitted a letter of intent to potentially move Moccasin Bend to a site off of Tunnel Boulevard in an effort to expand the facility.
Hakeem said that can’t happen at its current location because of the area’s historic significance which dates back more than 12,000 years, including evidence of early Native American villages and Civil War history.
Rep. Hakeem said he’s concerned about the impact the potential move would have on the growing subdivisions in the area.
Eastdale residents have been pushing back about proposals they say could cause overpopulation and traffic.
He contends that there are several other Hamilton County areas that should be considered before disrupting the Eastdale area: “I believe we should look at all of our options before we arbitrarily make such an impactful move. I’ve been made aware that there is possibly as many as a half-dozen other potential sites that should at least be considered that have the available space, would keep all of the facility’s jobs in Hamilton County, and not put our neighborhoods at a disadvantage. So, I’m inviting everyone to come out and let their voices be heard.”
Hakeem will be ed at the town hall by Councilman Dennis Clark and Councilman Ron Elliott.
The meeting will take place on Thursday, June 5 from 6:00-7:30 PM at the Eastdale Community Center at 1312 Moss Street.
