Many attending a recent meeting concerning the privatization of facilities at Fall Creek Falls left with as many unanswered questions as they arrived with. Sparta Live says the town hall-type meeting was held at the Fall Creek Falls Inn and was facilitated by Democratic officials Senate Minority Leader Lee Harris and state Rep. John Ray Clemmons. Both men have expressed growing concerns on the subject and are holding such meetings across the state. Representatives from state Dept. of Environment and Conservation were also on hand. They stated that Requests for Proposals to run assets at the park, such as the inn, cabins, restaurant and golf facilities, were due on March 1^st. Phase II proposals were due March 31, with the potential contract being awarded in May. They wanted to make clear that the rest of the park would stay under park management, including managers, rangers and maintenance. Full-time employees impacted by the closure of the inn would be offered a severance package.  Should the RFP be accepted, demolition and construction would begin after Thanksgiving with a completion date of the new inn set for around January 2020. Local Officials said that they and their constituents were opposed to the idea, but those with TDEC said that it is still not a “done” deal and that citizens could still contact their public officials to give their voice to a specific action they wanted their representatives to support. Picture courtesy of Sparta Live and Tanya Rust.