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The Kingsport Archives will host an Open House from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on October 13 to showcase their new and expanded location. The archives are located on the fifth floor of city hall (415 Broad Street).
Following the open house, Dr. Tom Lee will present a lecture in the 3rd floor BMA room at 5:30 p.m. entitled “1822 King’s Port: Gateway to Tennessee.” Both events are free and open to the public.
Established in 1994 to preserve the history and heritage of the City of Kingsport, the Kingsport Archives was located on the lower level of the Kingsport Public Library for years.
The archives is comprised of at least 800 collections of documents, photographs, books, maps and videos of individuals, organizations, industry, business, and non-current city records pertaining to the history of Kingsport for preservation and research purposes.
When Kingsport purchased the old Regions Bank building on Broad Street, city leaders decided to reserve space on the fifth floor for the archives.
The new archives is larger than its old location and more accessible to the public. It includes a research/reading room for the public, employee space to process donations, and a large storage room with specialized shelving for the actual collections.
“We’ve been working for more than a year in getting our new archives moved, furnished and ready for the public, so we’re excited to show it off,” said Archivist Brianne Wright. “We think the public will be overjoyed with our new space and its features.”
For more information about the Kingsport Public Library visit www.kingsportlibrary.org.
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Buster K. (BK) Addington has been an integral part of Wastewater Maintenance since 1990
The Tennessee Chapter American Public Works Association awarded BK Addington the 2022 Murphy Snoderly Award. Addington, an employee of the Kingsport Sewer Department for over three decades, has proven to be a constant resource when it comes to the knowledge, understanding and nuances of the city’s systems. The phrase city employees know him best by says it all –“If I can help you, I will.”
Addington was nominated for his instrumental part in developing the sewer program from a reactionary stance to progressive proactive maintenance. He has served as a Utility Worker, CCTV operator, and is currently the crew leader over CCTV inspections.
Through influencing and providing a positive role model, Addington has helped his coworkers to not only adopt good work documentation to continue to improve maintenance plans, but also learn and retain asset knowledge for troubleshooting and plan enhancements.
“I have been fortunate to work alongside BK since I began with the city,” said Deputy City Manager Ryan McReynolds. “He has consistently modeled exceptional customer service that will have lasting impact for years to come in Kingsport.”
Not only does he have vast and extensive experience for the City of Kingsport, he’s been called upon by neighboring cities to help get residents back in sanitary sewer service. Addington has also been asked to assist when needed through the City of Kingsport’s Interlocal Agreement process.
When he isn’t helping other cities, Addington can be found in the community inspiring the youth. During the city’s annual Public Works Day, he stationed at the CCTV inspection equipment. Over the years, his knack for recognizing interest has helped the sewer division grow with employees who have the same passion for their job as he does.
To view BK Addington’s story in the America Public Works Association magazine, please visit this site: http://tnpublicworks.com/magazines/Sept-Oct2022/mobile/index.html
The award’s namesake, Murphy Snoderly, was an engineering and public works consultant for the University of Tennessee Municipal Technical Advisory Service. He believed that the “working people,” who perform tasks like garbage pickup or pothole repair and without whom a city could not function properly, should be recognized for all that they do. Only operations level employees—working people—are eligible for the Murphy Snoderly Award.
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Construction is complete on the outdoor basketball court and pickleball court at the Lynn View Community Center and both are now open for public use. The courts are adjacent to the Lynn View playground (257 Walker Street), located on the gymnasium side of the building.
The athletic courts are the third round of improvements made to the Lynn View campus within the past few years. Other amenities added in this third round include new fencing around the courts, a canopy over a gathering space, a bike rack and water fountain.
Kingsport’s Parks and Recreation Department is planning to add picnic tables and a small piece of playground equipment to the site in the near future.
Improvements to the Lynn View campus were funded in part with a $450,000 Project Diabetes grant Kingsport received in 2019. These improvements included a new walking and running track around the football field and the playground, which included two climbing and slide structures with monkey bars.
Per the grant, the funds had to be spent on projects that aimed to help reduce diabetes and obesity and improve wellness initiatives within the community.
For more information about Kingsport’s parks visit www.kingsportparksandrecreation.org.
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