There has been a lot of discussion lately about expanding the
recreational opportunities in Elizabethton and Carter County. The Carter
County Parks and Recreation Board has discussed creating an extension
to the Tweetsie Trail, both City and County boards have discussed
opportunities for multi-sports facilities, and planners from across
Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia have been discussing the
development of a master plan for the Overmountain Victory Trail.
While the goal of Parks and Recreation Departments and Boards is to
provide open-space and recreational opportunities for their citizens and
not primarily tourism, many times we see others from outside the area
interested in the recreational opportunities that are available in a
nearby community and, therefore, travel to see and partake of these
assets. The activities, programs, and facilities that the parks and
recreation boards are discussing are no different. These are all very
exciting opportunities!
The Overmountain Victory Trail is
especially of interest because of it’s significance and the support it
can draw. As many of you know, the Overmountain Victory Trail is the
route that the Overmountain men took from Washington County, Virginia to
Sycamore Shoals, and then on to King’s Mountain. Here they successfully
defeated the British in a battle. This battle is commonly noted as the
turning point in the Revolutionary War in favor of the Patriots.
This trail also brings with it National recognition, since it is a
federally recognized park. With that comes additional funding from the
Federal Government and national marketing helping to put Elizabethton on
the map again and giving us a unique federal park through our county.
Developing and implementing these activities help build Elizabethton
and Carter County’s asset base. It gives us something to be proud of,
gives us something unique, and gives others the desire to discover more
about Elizabethton and Carter County.
Uniqueness is the
cornerstone of Tourism. People travel to see and experience something
different, something they cannot find more locally near their home. As
we continue to work on and develop unique assets in our cities and in
our county, we will find more and more people wanting to discover and
experience what we have to offer. What else can we be doing to welcome
them and show them more of what makes us unique? Let’s talk about it!
Monday, February 22, 2016
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
Local Planning Greases the Gears of the Free Market
The political season has begun in American and while I don’t
typically dip into politics too much in my column, I do want to touch on
one point as it is applied to our city -- the economy. This year is a
particularly interesting presidential election year, because we have
almost complete opposite approaches to the economy. On the one hand we
have Senator Bernie Sanders proposing more socialist or communal
economic policies and Senator Ted Cruz as well as Mr. Donald Trump
proposing more laissez-faire or free-market economic policies. While I’m
not going to take sides, I do want to talk about how such an approach
works on the local level and the role that planning plays in economic
policy.
In a city setting many people feel that a free-market approach to development is the best approach and this may be true. But as we’ve seen in Elizabethton, a free-market approach can lead to problems down the road. West Elk Avenue is an example of this. Free-market development was allowed to happen along this corridor. As someone wanted to develop a piece of property, it was split off and developed with little thought to larger impacts and long-term implications. Today, we deal with traffic problems that will only grow worse, because the free-market drove the development in this area and resulted in no frontage roads, multiple driveway cuts and smaller lot sizes. This creates slower traffic flow, more traffic lights, and, thus, more congestion along the corridor.
Another example is the downfall of the Rayon Company. The free-market demanded less rayon, the industry began to suffer and the Elizabethton economy began to fall as well. The free-market did not bring new industries or companies to Elizabethton and, in the end, we ended up with stagnant or falling household incomes.
Don’t take me wrong, I am far from a socialist, communist, or other economic structure you can think of...a laissez-faire or free-market economy is, in my opinion, the only player on the field because it’s been proven to work! But I also believe in appropriate planning on a local level. In my opinion appropriate planning greases the gears of a free-market economy and makes it work better and more efficient. If appropriate planning had been done along West Elk Avenue, there would likely be more lots for the free-market to development, less congestion allowing higher traffic counts, and making it more attractive for new business. If appropriate economic planning had been done when the Rayon plants started layoffs, new industries might have moved to Elizabethton to help fill the unemployment gap, the skills of the former employees may have been retained in Elizabethton, and household incomes may have continued to increase.
A free-market economy works, but on a local level it is important for the government to keep their thumb on the pulse and, when necessary, step in and grease the gears of the free-market by planning for the future of our city. Let’s talk about it!
In a city setting many people feel that a free-market approach to development is the best approach and this may be true. But as we’ve seen in Elizabethton, a free-market approach can lead to problems down the road. West Elk Avenue is an example of this. Free-market development was allowed to happen along this corridor. As someone wanted to develop a piece of property, it was split off and developed with little thought to larger impacts and long-term implications. Today, we deal with traffic problems that will only grow worse, because the free-market drove the development in this area and resulted in no frontage roads, multiple driveway cuts and smaller lot sizes. This creates slower traffic flow, more traffic lights, and, thus, more congestion along the corridor.
Another example is the downfall of the Rayon Company. The free-market demanded less rayon, the industry began to suffer and the Elizabethton economy began to fall as well. The free-market did not bring new industries or companies to Elizabethton and, in the end, we ended up with stagnant or falling household incomes.
Don’t take me wrong, I am far from a socialist, communist, or other economic structure you can think of...a laissez-faire or free-market economy is, in my opinion, the only player on the field because it’s been proven to work! But I also believe in appropriate planning on a local level. In my opinion appropriate planning greases the gears of a free-market economy and makes it work better and more efficient. If appropriate planning had been done along West Elk Avenue, there would likely be more lots for the free-market to development, less congestion allowing higher traffic counts, and making it more attractive for new business. If appropriate economic planning had been done when the Rayon plants started layoffs, new industries might have moved to Elizabethton to help fill the unemployment gap, the skills of the former employees may have been retained in Elizabethton, and household incomes may have continued to increase.
A free-market economy works, but on a local level it is important for the government to keep their thumb on the pulse and, when necessary, step in and grease the gears of the free-market by planning for the future of our city. Let’s talk about it!
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