Richmond Hill City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to buy 24.75 acres in the Cherokee Village area for $69,000 in hopes of easing what councilman Russ Carpenter termed “major drainage problems” in the neighborhood while also becoming part of the city’s master plan for sidewalks and walking trails.

The land, which straddles Sterling Creek, was purchased from Richmond Hill’s Mulberry Company. It is between Live Oak Drive, Boyd Drive and Timber Trail and much of its wetlands.

The council voted to buy the land using SPLOST funds after a brief executive session at the end of Tuesday’s regular meeting at City Hall.

Carpenter said it took a year to negotiate the deal, which “makes it possible to alleviate a drainage issue that affects several of the nearby subdivisions.”

What’s more, the councilman said the city hopes “to include this tract in a future system of sidewalks, walkways, and bike paths that will connect several of our neighborhoods, from Cherokee and Melrose over to Turtle.

Richmond Hill City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to buy 24.75 acres in the Cherokee Village area for $69,000 in hopes of easing what councilman Russ Carpenter termed “major drainage problems” in the neighborhood while also becoming part of the city’s master plan for sidewalks and walking trails.

The land, which straddles Sterling Creek, was purchased from Richmond