January 2019, Jordan Rockwell, Community Planner with the East Tennessee Development District, requested assistance from the ETCDC with developing a park in Caryville located on TVA-controlled property at the corner of Main Street and Lake Lane. Due to the location, the park could become an important gateway into the Caryville community. ETCDC accepted the request and received assistance from volunteer advisor,  Nathan Hunter, Landscape Designer with the IBI Group.

In March 2019, Jordan Rockwell, Councilwoman Vickie Heatherly, Councilwoman Beth Lawson, and other stakeholders met with Nathan Hunter and Leslie Fawaz for a programming meeting at the Caryville Park site. At that meeting, the group discussed the extent of the park development, views from the interstate into the park, connections to Main Street, and additional parking. The stakeholders requested that the team consider amenities such as a dog park that could be used by the local community and interstate drivers traveling with their pets, a fenced playground, splash pad locations, toilets, and sports court areas for basketball and other sports.

With all of the input gathered, the design team developed a master plan considering the wants and needs of all the stakeholders. The master plan for the area closest to the Old Highway, which has a TVA easement, contains a gated area for playground equipment, a 1/4 mile walking trail, landscaped areas, pavilions, splash pad, and a small outdoor amphitheater space that connects to an area for a community Christmas tree. School Hill Street at the center of the two areas of the park is to be widened to allow for parallel parking and the plan adds an enhanced stained asphalt crosswalk to promote connection to the Shoney’s Restaurant and proposed sidewalks to connect to other businesses on Main Street. The master plan for the other half of the site will have a fenced dog park with separate areas for small and larger dogs, an area for a splash pad, a sports court for basketball, soccer, etc., a toilet building, and a pavilion. The master plan was presented at a called Caryville Planning Commission meeting held on August 8, 2019.