2016 Accomplishments - A Year In Review of City Activities

I know I say this every year, but wow, it seems like this year has flown by! 2017 is just around the corner and this will be my last article for 2016. As usual, I want to take some time to reflect on what we as your local government have accomplished this year. Aside from the usual annual renewal and activities it’s been quite a year for us!

The Twins baseball team has been a hot topic this year as staff have worked diligently to develop options and alternatives for improvements, talked with Minor League Baseball Officials, had countless discussions with Twins Officials, and presented the Twins needs to groups in the community. All of this culminated in the creation of a committee dedicated to keeping the Twins in Elizabethton and City Council approving an improvement plan this past fall. It appears 2017, if the Twins dedicate to staying, will be a year of hard work getting a facility improved and prepared.

This past year also saw two organizations working together for the betterment of our community – the Elizabethton-Carter County Community Foundation and the City. Together we were able to work with the Community Foundation in order to purchase and take ownership of the Bonnie Kate Theater with the goal of renovating the facility into a performing arts center. Such a facility in Elizabethton has great potential! This would allow various plays and shows as well as other entertainers to perform in Elizabethton bringing cultural opportunities for local residents and enhancing the quality of life the city can provide.

2016 also saw some construction projects as well. Construction started on the new restrooms in downtown. The restrooms will provide an opportunity for us to have bigger festivals and encourage visitors to stay longer without the fear of needing to find a restroom. We also saw the development of some new recycling centers this year. One being located at Lion’s Field and the other being located at the Elizabethton Housing Authority. These additions as well as the one located on Mill Street and the Cherokee Park Drive recycling center provide additional opportunities for citizens practice living “green” and reusing non-renewable resources.

I am also very proud to say that at this time last year our Water Resources Department has replaced just over 15,746 feet of old, leaky water lines, but this year so far, they have replaced over 19,897 feet of these older water lines and are on track to beat last year’s replacement record of 31,492 feet in one year by over 8,300 feet to 39,794 feet replaced by the end of this year, hopefully setting a new record for the department.

A few other items of accomplishment this past year has been the creation of a new Joint Economic and Community Development Board as well as joining the new regional Northeast Tennessee Regional Economic Partnership, the Planning Commission and City Council adopted new sign regulations city-wide, and the city applied for and received over $530,000 in grants for Tweetsie Trail crossing safety, a new splash pad, and safe school crossings on West G Street.

What would you like to see accomplished in 2017? Be sure to let us know! Through next year, let’s continue to talk about it!