Archive for category: City News

In its centennial year, the City of Kingsport continues to find innovative approaches to local governance by involving citizens, utilizing new technology, and leveraging a strong relationship between the elected board and professional staff.

 

In recognition of the city’s innovative approach to service delivery, the Tennessee Municipal League is pleased to present Kingsport with the 2018 Award for Excellence in Governance.

 

“Kingsport is incredibly honored to receive this award,” said City Manager Jeff Fleming. “It’s not something we sought or applied for. There are more than 300 cities in Tennessee from the Great Smoky Mountains to the Mississippi River and to be selected by our peers in a surprise nomination is extremely rewarding.”

 

The Kingsport Spirit is alive and well 100 years after the city’s founding. The term was coined by founding father J. Fred Johnson to describe the community’s propensity to come together for the greater good.

“Governance is the process of bringing life to community dreams through citizen input, a representative democracy of elected officials, and a professional staff that innovatively delivers services at a constrained price,” Fleming said.

Leading up to the city’s centennial, officials established the OneKingsport Summit, a two-day period where citizen input was gathered and an advisory committee was formed to help guide the city into the future. The result of the summit were five projects aimed at providing a sustained economic impact and improving quality of life for citizens.

The city also established a 12-member Neighborhood Commission that advises and promotes initiatives to strengthen local neighborhoods. The group serves as a liaison to city officials about programs that could benefit various neighborhoods. To communicate better with residents, Kingsport implemented ‘YourGOV,’ a free service that allows residents to report non-emergency issues and service requests using the web or a smart phone.

Kingsport also worked to improve infrastructure – the foundational building blocks of a city. In 2017, Kingsport finished a $13.7 million raw-water intake project to provide a safe, reliable source of drinking water for generations to come.  Major reinvestments to the wastewater system removed a single point of failure from the Reedy Creek basin.  Ground-penetrating radar was used to obtain objective data and analyze every street in the city in preparation for PaveKingsport, the city’s sustainable paving initiative to ensure that every street is paved within an industry-standard life cycle.  Major gateways and high profile medians have been retrofit with trees and landscaping to provide a favorable first impression. The city also made major reinvestment into parks and greenspace like Centennial Park, Carousel Park, Borden Park and Bays Mountain Park, the largest city-owned park in the state at 3,550 acres. The new Lily Pad Cove Pavilion, along with major park renovations, will ensure that Bays Mountain maintains its prominence as Kingsport’s crown jewel. A fire facilities master plan was developed and funded. The public library has been remodeled and expanded. Dobyns-Bennett High School is undergoing a major expansion made possible by a partnership with Sullivan County for city-county school facilities.

“People seem to be taking notice,” said Fleming.  Kingsport was recently featured in The Tennessean as the 5^th fastest-growing city in Tennessee for the 2017 U.S. Census.

According to the Tennessee Municipal League, “None of these projects would have been possible without the hard work and dedication of Kingsport’s elected officials and city staff, led by City Manager Jeff Fleming. Together, Kingsport officials have managed to provide top-notch traditional services while encouraging and supporting a variety of innovative approaches to service delivery by working together and showing a willingness to implement new and exciting approaches to government.”

“It truly takes a team and I’d put ours up against any team anywhere in terms of dedication, professionalism, and commitment to making a better community,” Fleming added.

This summer, join us for Saturdays with the Chef and discover how to take advantage of those peak season produce items with creative tips and new recipes from our local chefs.

Saturdays with the Chef is a free cooking demo series showcasing local chefs and their recipes using produce available at the Kingsport Farmers Market. Copies of each chef’s recipe will be available at the demo and online, and free samples are also available at each demo.

The series takes place every Saturday morning at 9:00 a.m. in June and July at the Kingsport Farmers Market.

Come sample cooking from featured chefs from Food City and other local businesses, and buy your ingredients from the Kingsport Farmers Market! Buying from our local farmers market not only boosts the local economy but also is a great way to provide healthy and fresh food for you and your family.

The series is sponsored by Food City, Healthy Kingsport, Visit Kingsport and the City of Kingsport.

For more information on the Kingsport Farmers Market, or to sign up for our monthly newsletter, please visit kingsportfarmersmarket.org.

The week of May 20^th through May 26^th is National Public Works Week as declared by the American Public Works Association. Kingsport Public Works professionals will be on hand on Friday, May 25^th, for the popular Public Works Day event. The event is from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Farmers Market Pavilion, with equipment displays, kid-friendly activities and other information as well as several presentations explaining essential daily operations.

City Public Works professionals will demonstrate the work of those who plan, manage, and maintain the city’s essential infrastructure, including water, sewer and transportation networks.

Other Public Works group members also will detail the city’s efforts in solid waste collection and disposal, as well as maintenance of public buildings and grounds.

“We are blessed by an extraordinary group of employees who are dedicated to serving the taxpayers of Kingsport,” said Public Works Director Ryan McReynolds. “We very much appreciate the community taking a few minutes out of their day to visit with us at the Farmer’s Market Pavilion, where we can personally explain the many of services offered by the City of Kingsport.”

Lunch will also be provided for all those who attend!

What:    City of Kingsport Public Works Day

Where:  Farmer’s Market Pavilion

When:   Friday, May 25^th (10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.)

If you have any questions, please contact Sheila Catron with the City of Kingsport Public Works Department at 423-229-9470 or sheilacatron@kingsporttn.gov. For more information, please visit www.kingsporttn.gov.

Join Kingsport is celebrating the 8^th Annual Kids to Parks Day! With activities happening at Bays Mountain Park and with Kingsport Parks and Recreation, your kids will want to spend all day in a park!

On Saturday, May 19^th, Bays Mountain Park will host a day of outdoor fun! Kids to Parks Day at Bays Mountain will take place from 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. The event highlights the nature programs offered at the Park, with extra programs including a touch table from 11:00 – 3:00 p.m. in front of the Nature Center and a scavenger hunt from 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. in front of the Farmstead Museum. Nature program fees apply, but the touch table and scavenger hunt are free.

Kingsport Parks and Recreation is offering up a free rental at one of the Parks and Recreation centers to the winner of a Kids to Parks Day photo contest! All participants have to do is visit one of the four parks on May 19^th, Borden Park, Kingsport Greenbelt, Centennial Park or Preston Forest Park, and snap a photo! Then post your photo on Facebook with the hashtag #KidsToParksDay and follow the Kingsport Parks and Recreation page.

Kids to Parks Day is a nationwide celebration of the great outdoors and is designed to connect kids and families with their local, state, and national parks and public lands. By discovering and exploring our public lands, kids across the country can learn about park stewardship, outdoor recreation, STEM (science, technology, engineering and math), and the history of our country.

By teaching our kids to appreciate and enjoy our public lands, we can foster future outdoor enthusiasts and create the next generation of park stewards and caretakers of these important places.

For more information on Bays Mountain Park, please visit baysmountain.com or call 423-229-9447.

For more information on Kingsport Parks & Recreation, please visit kingsportparksandrecreation.org or call 423-343-9723.