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above: Veenstra and Kimm engineer Greg Roth speaks to the Knoxville City Council about downtown street reconstruction.

The Knoxville City Council approved a proposal for engineering services totaling $604,000 for the replacement of downtown streets and sewer repairs last night. After some discussion, the council agreed having a plan in place for the 16 streets included in the “2010 Downtown Streetscape Project” would give the city a more accurate cost estimate to present to voters in the future, and start the process to replace the 100-year-old sewer systems under the downtown before an expected failure occurs. The engineering services would be paid for through an upcoming general obligation bond-issue. Engineers from Veenstra & Kimm also said during the council’s bi-monthly meeting that seven of the 16 streets could qualify for federal funding. Veenstra & Kimm said last week the total project could cost around $9 million, and it’s expected once engineering cost services are complete, voters would decide whether to renew a local-option sales tax to pay for the project. [simage=807,400,y,center] In other news, Councilwoman Deb McClung was presented with a plaque honoring her service on the council for exactly 365 days since being appointed to the seat vacated by Councilman Kurt Sorensen last year. McClung is not seeking reelection, and she said last night she was honored to tackle various issues with the other members.