The 21st Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Virtual Holiday Parade

Tennessee/Virginia Fellowship Against Racism and East Tennessee District Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship presents the 21st Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday VIRTUAL Parade. This year’s parade commemorating MLK Jr. Day will be a virtual event beginning at noon on Monday, January 18, 2021.

Kickoff with Media: 12 p.m.
Video Launches: 12:10 – 12:40 p.m.

The theme of the 2021 parade is “Our Past & Where Do We Go From Here?” You can watch from home on Bishop Ronnie Wayne Collins’ YouTube page or via TVFAR’s Facebook group. Please visit Douglass-Riverview News and Current Events for more information.

If you wish you contributed to monthly service events, January 18 through March 31, they are as follows:

  • Diapers & Wipes $10/Baby (Putting Babies First)

Make your tax deductible contribution payable to:
Joshua Generation Int’l, Inc. (JGII)
P.O. Box 3390, Kingsport, TN 37664-3390

For more information, please contact Bishop Ronnie Collins at (423) 956-0675 or email rcollins.j316@gmail.com.

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Phipps Named Interim Police Chief

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The city is beginning the formal hiring process to replace Police Chief David Quillin, who retired late last year after 35 years of service. In the meantime, Dale Phipps has been named Interim Police Chief. Phipps has nearly 33 years of service himself with almost half that time as Deputy Chief overseeing administration and operations. He is also a husband, father of three, grandfather of six, and is active in the community.

He is a graduate of East Tennessee State University (A.S. Law Enforcement / B.S. Criminal Justice) and the F.B.I. National Academy. Prior to entering the law enforcement profession, he served four years in the United States Air Force Security Police.

During his career with the Kingsport Police Department he has served as Patrol Officer, Field Training Officer, and Supervisor of the Vice and Narcotics Unit before eventually returning to the Patrol Division as a Watch Commander. Throughout the years he has served in several specialized roles including S.W.A.T. Team Operator, Community Relations and Crime Prevention Officer, and Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) Instructor.

The Kingsport Police Department has been internationally-accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) for 29 years—an achievement earned by only 1,148 of the more than 17,000 state and local law enforcement agencies in the U.S.

“Police Chief is one of the most important selections a city must make,” said City Manager Chris McCartt. “We will use a thorough and competitive process comprised of both internal and external candidates, but until then the department is in Phipps’ very capable hands.”

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Kingsport Public Library Hosts Winter Reading Challenge

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From January 1 to 31, Kingsport Public Library will participate in Beanstack’s Fourth Annual Winter Reading Challenge, “Books Like Us,” sponsored by Simon and Schuster (S&S). KPL challenges all of Kingsport to read during the month and keep track of their reading on the library;s Beanstack site at kingsportlibrary.beanstack.org to help win prizes for Kingsport. Prizes include virtual author visits and book collections.

It is easy to participate! Register each family member at kingsportlibrary.beanstack.org or on the Beanstack mobile app. Log your reading minutes from January 1 to 31. The more you read, the greater the chance the library will win book collections or virtual author visits.

Have questions or need help getting started? Contact the Kingsport Public Library at 423-224-2539. Happy reading, Kingsport!

For more information about the Kingsport Public Library, visit kingsportlibrary.org.

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Now Accepting Art Submissions for New City Hall Gallery

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The Kingsport Office of Cultural Arts is looking for regional and local artists to be featured in the new city hall main lobby. Art submissions will be entered into an artist database and future exhibits at the new city hall will draw from this database of submissions. Exhibits will be temporary, lasting one month to three months. If you would like to be considered for exhibiting your work, you may submit via email or mail a packet to the Kingsport Office of Cultural Arts.

If emailing, please send all inquiries/submissions to KingsportArtEntry@gmail.com.

When submitting your work, please include the following information, along with 5-9 photos of your work and a copy of your artist statement.

Subject line of your email:  “City Hall + [Your last name]”

Please include all of the following information in the body of your email:

Name:

Company Name (if applicable):

Phone Number:

Email address:

Type of Art (Art Medium):

How many pieces do you have available to exhibit?

Have you exhibited your artwork before?      If so, where?

Please attach the following items to your email: 

  • Your Artist Statement (If you have one.)
  • 5-9 pictures of your work (Please make sure your images are a small enough file size to send through email if choosing this option. Do not exceed 12MB per email)

If mailing, please include all application info, a copy of your artist statement and 5-9 pictures of your work. Mail your submission packet to the address below:

City of Kingsport, Office of Cultural Arts
1200 East Center Street
Kingsport, TN 37660

For more information about submitting art for the new city hall gallery, please email KingsportArtEntry@gmail.com.

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Kingsport Public Library to Continue Curbside Service Only

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As the world continues to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, the City of Kingsport has no higher priority than the health and safety of its citizens and employees. With this in mind, the city has made the decision to extend the closure of the Kingsport Public Library building through January. Materials will be available for curbside pickup and staff are available to answer questions. The status of the building closure will be evaluated at the end of the month.

Curbside pickup for materials, including hotspots and digital access packs, will be available by appointment Monday – Saturday, 9:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. Appointments can be made by visiting the event calendar at kingsportlibrary.org or by calling 423-229-9465. Same-day appointments MUST be made by 3:30 p.m. for same-day pickup. If you are not sure what books to request, try the Next Read service available at kingsportlibrary.org.

Steps for curbside pickup:

  • Materials must be placed on hold in order to be picked up. Place holds by logging in to your account on org or by calling 423-229-9465.
  • Limited to 10 holds per card
  • Items placed on hold are not guaranteed to be available
  • Schedule an appointment for curbside pickup by visiting the event calendar at org or by calling 423-229-9465
  • Offered Monday – Saturday, 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
  • Appointments must be schedules by 3:30 p.m. for same day pickup
  • When you arrive at the library, park in spot on New Street and call 423-229-9366 to let us know you have arrived
  • Be ready to tell us who you are picking up books for.
  • Let us know the make, model and color of the vehicle.
  • Open your trunk.
  • When the staff member brings out the books, hold your driver’s license up to the window so they can verify your identity.
  • Books will be placed in the trunk.

**All returns, except digital access packs, MUST be placed by you in the outside book returns. Hotspots may be placed in the media return box. Staff members are ONLY able to take digital access pack returns at curbside delivery.

**No donations will be accepted

**Staff are unable to collect fines

Even though the Library building will be closed, your Kingsport Public Library card provides access to many digital services. Explore e-books and e-audiobooks through Libby, Tumblebooks and hoopla; enjoy free access to digital magazines through Libby; get creative with Creativebug; learn a language with Transparent Language; watch a movie or TV show through hoopla; or research your family history with Ancestry from home. If you need help getting started with the digital services or have a question staff will be available Monday – Saturday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. by phone at 423-224-2539.

Watch kingsportlibrary.org and the library’s social media channels for updates and for virtual programs created by the library. Visit kingsportlibrary.org for up-to-date information.

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A New Way to Celebrate Christmas at Allandale

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One of the most popular Kingsport traditions for many residents is to attend the “Christmas at Allandale” tours to view all of the beautifully decorated Christmas trees.  These trees have been decorated annually by Friends of Allandale for the enjoyment of the community and region.

Due to the spread of the pandemic, Allandale has elected to adjust their Christmas plans to ensure a safe holiday for all. Allandale, along with Friends of Allandale and a collection of sponsors, will be offering a free Allandale campus drive-thru tour this year.

The drive-thru tour will take visitors through the 25-acre Allandale campus, fully decorated and decked out in Christmas cheer. As you go through the drive-thru, you will see lighting on the mansion, barns, and in the garden, as well as various standalone lawn decorations.

The drive-thru tour will run nightly from dusk to 11 p.m.  Visitors should enter through the main mansion entrance, dim car lights, drive behind the mansion, by the barns and ponds, and finally exit past the barn. For their safety, all visitors will be asked to remain in their cars.

Thank you to all of the wonderful sponsors for making this event possible: Armstrong Construction, Buddy and Debbie Waggoner, Citizens Bank, Dalton Direct Carpets, Friends of Allandale, Jerry and Emma Miller, Hamlett-Dobson Funeral Home and Town & Country Realty.

For more information about Allandale Mansion, please visit allandalemansion.com.

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Kingsport Holiday Changes: Garbage & Trash/Yardwaste

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The City of Kingsport will be adjusting garbage routes due to the Christmas holiday. There will be no changes associated with New Year’s Day.  Please see the changes below:

Garbage changes will be as follows:

Friday, December 25, there will be no pickup.
Saturday, December 26, crews will pick up Friday’s route. Due to icy conditions, Friday route pick-up has been delayed to Monday, Dec. 28.
Friday, January 1, crews will pick up normal route.

This will include the black and blue-lidded carts due to the pause of the recycle pickups. All garbage and recycle carts are currently being picked up with the same truck.

Trash/Yardwaste changes will be as follows:

Friday, December 25, there will be no pickup.
Saturday, December 26, crews will pick up Friday’s route. Due to icy conditions, Friday route pick-up has been delayed to Monday, Dec. 28.
Friday, January 1, crews will pick up normal route.

City landfill changes will be as follows: The landfill will be closed on Friday, December 25 and Saturday, December 26 as well as Friday, January 1 and Saturday, January 2.  The landfill will return to normal hours of operation beginning the week of Monday, January 4, 2021.

During the week of December 28 thru January 1, the city will be picking up additional holiday garbage (boxes and bags) placed outside the cart. Garbage must be placed in bags or be boxed.

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Kingsport Carousel to Close Temporarily

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Starting December 23, the Kingsport Carousel will be closed for the holidays.

The carousel is usually closed for certain days in the holiday season, but this year it will be closed for the week of Christmas and New Year’s out of an abundance of caution for both patrons and staff. City staff will reevaluate opening the facilities after January 3, taking into consideration the current viral spread in the Kingsport community.

Thank you for your understanding as we do our part to help slow the spread of COVID-19 in our community.

For updates about the Kingsport Carousel, please visit arts.kingsporttn.gov or follow the Kingsport Carousel Facebook page.

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Public Input Meeting #2 for New Skate Park and Bike Park

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Many community members have a continued interest in the Scott Adams Memorial Skate Park Complex & Bike Park. So far, the community has provided fantastic opinions for the project! After the first workshop on November 19, over 120 responses were received and those responses have directly helped the skate park design.

The second public input meeting will be held online Thursday, December 17. After the meeting, a new online feedback survey will be available for citizens to submit comments and design input to be read and recorded by the project team.

What: Public Input Meeting #2

Where: Virtual Zoom Meeting

When: December 17
Skate Park Session from 6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Bike Park Session from 7:15 p.m. – 8:15 p.m.

Join the virtual community workshop via zoom by using this link: bit.ly/park-input2

Please direct any questions to 423-229-9457.

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Kingsport Hires New Economic Development Director

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The City of Kingsport has a new Economic Development Director: John Rose.

As Economic Development Director, Rose supports City Manager Chris McCartt and works closely with the city’s Development Coordinator, Elizabeth Rowe, to advance Kingsport’s economic development efforts.

“I’m very excited to start this position with the City of Kingsport,” Rose said. “There are many projects I’m looking forward to working on. Kingsport has been my home for over 20 years and I’m grateful for this opportunity to help the city grow and thrive.”

Rose received a Bachelor of Arts in Organization Management from Tusculum College (now Tusculum University), located in Greeneville, TN.

While Rose has worked within the City of Kingsport for 20 years, he was most recently doing consultant work for developments and helping to develop properties. Before that, Rose was Operations Manager at Vic Davis Construction and subsequently filled the position of Director of Operations at Edinburgh Group. His time and experience in Kingsport’s development arena has greatly helped to prepare him for his new position of Economic Development Director.

McCartt met Rose nearly 20 years ago when they worked together on the Broad Street Streetscape project. “We worked very well together on that project and I’ve had the opportunity to work with him on countless other occasions over the years,” McCartt said. “We’re very glad to have him and grateful he’s part of our team.”

For more information about Kingsport’s Economic Development, please visit www.kingsporttn.gov.

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