Kingsport set to open V.O. Dobbins Sr. Community Complex
KINGSPORT – City leaders will host a very special ribbon-cutting and dedication as the V.O. Dobbins Sr. Complex is formally dedicated on Friday, September 24, 2010 at 4 p.m. at the facility.
The $8.2 million project is a centerpiece of Kingsports effort to rejuvenate the Riverview Community, and will feature the unveiling of a new state historic marker denoting the structures original usage as the largest African-American high school in the greater Tri-Cities Tennessee-Virginia area, the former Douglass High School.
A dedicated Douglass Alumni Association office as well as a Douglass Community Room pays tribute to Kingsports African-American heritage at the site in a time when segregation was mandated by law. As part of the preservation effort, three trophy cases will hold old school annuals, pictures, and other memorabilia, as well as about 40 sports trophies dating from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. The school closed in 1966 with desegregation.
This day marks the fulfilling of Kingsports commitment to the Riverview community, Mayor Dennis Phillips said. The progress here, helping folks who want to help themselves, empowering those who cherish Kingsport, its all a remarkable change and really proves that good things happen when we all work together and no one worries about who gets the credit.
On the day of the ribbon-cutting, building tours and refreshments will be available, and a shuttle bus will be operating from the Eastman Employee Center Parking lot to the V.O. Dobbins Center. Special guest speakers include Dr. Carroll Van West, the director of Historic Preservation at Middle Tennessee State University, who will be speaking on the importance of Douglass as a Rosenwald School, as well as the historical preservation of Culture.
Dr. West has conducted field research at Douglass and its relationship to Tennessees New Deal era landmarks.
Also, Vernell Allen, of Detroit, a member of the Douglass Tigers Basketball team of 1947 will be on hand for a trophy re-dedication, and an open invitation has been extended to past Douglass team members as well.
The newly expanded and remodeled V.O. Dobbins Complex also added a three story non-profit wing, a new two-story educational wing as well as a new regulation-size gymnasium. Agencies housed within the facility include;
Neighborhood Service Center of Upper East Tennessee Human Development Agency, Mountain Region Speech and Hearing, the United Way of Greater Kingsport, the ALS Association Tennessee Chapter, Susan G. Komen for the Cure Tri-Cities, the Palmer Foundation, Kingsport Tomorrow, the American Legion and the Tri-Cities office of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of East Tennessee.
In addition to providing a vibrant nucleus to the community, and preserving an important part of Kingsports heritage, I believe the non-profit center is a unique approach that allows these agencies to stretch vital dollars and magnify their impact by limiting administrative expenses, City Manager John Campbell said. I am convinced that this shared, one-stop-shop approach to offering a variety of community services will serve the city well in the years ahead.