No WhiteWash!

The City of Kingsport, Tennessee has removed an old family cemetery on the construction site of the John Adams School in the Rock Springs Road area that was recently annexed.

I recall quite some time ago, a WJHL TV interview with Kingsport’s City Manager, John Campbell that indicated that they had a problem because they recently discovered a cemetery at the site of the future John Adams School.

It is interesting that this “recent discovery”, that was discussed in the interview had a new road cut around the family graveyard many months before leaving the graveyard about eight feet above the road.

This graveyard was know to local residents and was listed on the U.S. Geological Survey topographic map as the Hargis Cemetery. It was also listed on many web sites giving the longitude and latitude coordinates for the exact location of the cemetery.

I was aware of the cemetery because of my interest and research in genealogy. I do recall that the ancestors in this cemetery were from the 1800’s or earlier.

It is sad to see that the City of Kingsport chose to remove this cemetery when it is quite possible that the folks buried there fought for the freedom that we have now in this country. The school buildings were not being built on the graveyard site, but I guess the city felt it was an eyesore.

I would like to tell the City of Kingsport that before you jump onto your bulldozers in recently annexed areas in the county, you might want to check out the old cemeteries. There are lot’s more in the Rock Springs Rd. area.

Can the city move the cemetery, yes they can. Can you vote for leaders that reflect your views and positions, yes you can.

The recently announced dropping of six annexation lawsuits by property owners apparently has given the City of Kingsport, Tennessee a reason to celebrate.  The ink on the local newspaper article (Plaintiffs drop Rock Springs annexation lawsuits), concerning the lawsuits had hardly dried when Assistant City Manager, Jeff Fleming posted information on his blog touting the victory while most citizens were still asleep.

The Mayor of Kingsport needs to understand that while the six lawsuits have been dropped, there are still more lawsuits out there that have yet to be decided on.  There has been much ill feeling caused by the City of Kingsport over it’s annexation policies.

The City of Kingsport tactics on this annexation issue will not be forgotten by those folks that were in the annexation area.  The city’s use of using a carrot and stick with annexations, and comments made by city officials will not be forgotten by the newly captured voters when it come time to vote.

The much bigger issue here is why did they want to annex outlying county properties.  The city wants to grow and because of it’s declining population, it needs to annex to get the revenue to afford the lavish spending spree it is on.

If you are a city resident, you may not think that all of this annexation stuff affects you.  But, it does by higher sewer and water rates.  The water and sewer funds are called “enterprise funds” which means that the water and sewer departments has to be self-supporting.  If the city wants to expand their water and sewer lines and there is not sufficient funds to cover the expense, they raise the water and sewer rates.  You might even call raising the water and sewer rates a “hidden tax.”

But you may ask, can they do it?  Yes they can, because Tennessee is one of only a handful of states that permit “forced annexation”.  If you have a problem with Tennessee’s annexation policy, then make your views know to your state representatives.

Mayor Dennis Phillips is running for reelection, but instead of celebrating victory, he might want to say “Whoops…..what have I stirred up?”

Kingsport, it’s seems likes to talk about all the success that it is experiencing, but one needs to ask the question, if Kingsport is doing all that well, then why don’t they use some of that money from that success and pay for projects instead of borrowing money.

It appears that this ramped up spinning started the day that Eastman Chemical announced the $100 million cost reduction.  Part of this cost reduction was that no Eastman Chemical employee would get wage/salary increases in 2009.

There has been many newspaper articles about this success lately and the Kingsport Times-News has announced that there will be many more to come.  Some of the newspaper articles are poorly researched and it is very clear to this blogger, that the author of the newspaper is not doing investigative reporting.  It appears that the newspaper is taking the City of Kingsport word as the gospel.

An example of spinning data was reported by Jeff Fleming, Kingsport Assistant City Manager, that the Kingsport area (Sullivan County) had the 3rd best unemployment rate in Tennessee.  What Jeff Fleming conveniently failed to do is mention that the City of Kingsport rate was 7.2 percent.  You can check it out yourself by going to the link: Kingsport Area = 3rd Lowest Unemployment in Tennessee.  The first part of the post that Jeff Fleming is the press release from the State of Tennessee.  The percentages posted at the bottom are from Jeff Fleming’s selected extraction of data from the Tennessee numbers.  Also, see previous post on a citizen reaction to City of Kingsport claims and Tennessee – November 2008 Unemployment rate for Tri-Cities area.

There may be a concern in the City of Kingsport about the public perception of the Tax, Borrow, and Spend label that has been given to city leaders.  It is quite possible that the “spin” the city has been doing lately is to justify all the spending.

Also, it is an election year where four Board of Mayor and Alderman positions are up for grabs.

The Kingsport Times-News is a willing participant in the spin on how great things are going.  But, one needs to look at the role of the top two management positions at the newspaper.  Keith Wilson who is the publisher and Ted Como as editor are not exactly innocent and unbiased bystanders.

These two newspaper people are deeply involved with the City of Kingsport and economic development in the region.  You could do a goggle search on Keith Wilson and Ted Como to see for yourself their involvement in local government affairs.

It is difficult if not impossible to find a politician, whether early in their career or a political office veteran, who has not given in to political pressure, special interest groups, lobbyists, or the good-old-boy-network practice of you-help-my-cause-and-I’ll-help-yours

There is nothing wrong about talking about success, but please cut out the spinning of data.

East TN Conservative blog gives a perspective below on how annexation has not worked for the  Lynn Garden area.  I have to admit, the Lynn Garden community does look like it has been forgotten.  The City of Kingsport could put up some large signs that say something like “Last Chance to Shop before Leaving State”.

I know the City of Kingsport cares about the area because they put up a Red Light Revenue Camera just before the state line.  The red light camera is Kingsport way of taking from the community, but not giving anything in return.

Get in your car this week drive to Lynn Garden. Take a gander at what the city does for its roads, how it helps small business. The city destroyed this once great community. Local small businesses are closing shop, crime rate up. This is annexation a community closest to the center of Kingsport has been long forgotten. Now MeadowView is the center of Kingsport. It’s where all tax money flows after all. Drive across the Lynn Garden Stone drive bridge. Drive in the center or the roads will shred your tires. I know most go through here on the way to VA to buy food so the next time open your eyes a bit and look around. Drive through the neighborhoods

Wondering

Jun 12, 2008

“Just when will the promised sidewalks show up in Lynn Garden? It has been 20 years since annexation, they are long past due. This is the way that Kingsport and any other city that forces annexation works. They make all kinds of promises that they have no intention of keeping just to get more tax money!”

We have lost a School, post office, hardware store, and Grocery store. Most importantly we lose the community.

Dale St. John

“I lived in Lynn Garden when the annexation took place there. All it does is divide a community, hurt the schools and cause bad feelings from which it never fully recovers. The thing that makes me boil is that one of the leading proponents of the drive to annex did not live in Lynn Garden. This person managed a business there. He is long gone,not living in Kingsport or dealing with any of this.He was a good man, but either did not understand the consequences or did not care. Oh, at first you did not have to tap on to the sewer, but when they dynamited to install the lines, it messed the septic systems up and you then had to get the city sewer any way or shell out to fix your the damage it caused your own. What has happened to Lynn Garden since? Just look at some the stories of businesses that have closed. Annexation like this causes bad feelings among people who were neighbors for years, which leads to loss of community. It lost its identity and the residents have never felt they are a part of Kingsport and probably never will. This is what annexation caused and has never found a cure for, which is evidenced by closing of schools, low enrollment for existing schools and in many cases the loss of local businesses.”

I will be interviewing local businesses soon about this. Get their take on what the city means to them and how it has works for the Lynn Garden community.

Also a report on how the City swayed someone not to move to Lynn Garden.

City Manager, John Campbell has signed a petition to request annexation into the City of Kingsport, Tennessee.

John Campbell, in the terms of his agreement with the City of Kingsport either must request annexation into the city within six months or move into the city within two years.  The annexation timeline has passed and now the City of Kingsport, Tennessee is faced with enforcing the agreement, if John Campbell has not moved into the city.  John Campbell’s two year timeline to move into the city is about two weeks away.

John Campbell stated that he did not start the petition, but stated that it would be better if his neighbors initiated annexation.  It would not surprise me that John Campbell provided his neighbors with encouragement and guidelines on what to do to be annexed.

Something is started to smell about this subject.  It will be interesting to see what the BMA decides to do.  Will they enforce the contract with John Campbell or just help old John out?  If the city did not live up to it’s contract with John Campbell, then I am sure John Campbell would have something to say about it.

A comment made on this blog makes a good suggestion.  “Put John Campbell on leave without pay till he complies with his contract. The time is up with John Campbell to move into the city. Give 30 Days to move and then terminate his employment if he does not comply.”

John Campbell has had ample time to comply with his contract.  Two years, in my opinion is ample time to sell a house, buy or build a house.  Maybe Mr Campbell should look at one of those homes that has wheels attached to it.

I think I know what the BMA decision will be, because John Campbell seems at times to control the BMA decision making process.

Also see my previous post,  Kingsport, Tennessee City Manager prefers not to live in the city he manages

Update: Kingsport, Tennessee may have the law on their side to condemn property, but read below and then decide if it is the ethical thing to do.

The City of Kingsport, Tennessee voted on second reading to start legal proceedings to condemn property for a new fire station in the Rock Spring Road area.

The owner paid $476,149 for the property in 2003 and the City of Kingsport offered $330,000 to buy the property. The city had the property appraised at $240,000 and the owner of the property had it appraised at $440,000. A bank has a $450,000 lien on the property.

Alderman Marsh voted against condemnation while Mayor Phillips and his band of followers voted for stealing the property from the owner.

The city is determined to take this property from the owner, because it is the less costly route than obtaining other property that owners are willing to sell. Other property in the area would require more expensive site preparations.

The condemnation proceedings will be a trial by jury and the bank will also be a party to the suit. The jury may select the $240,000 appraisal done by the city or award a higher amount. City Attorney, Mike Billingsley stated that once committed to this lawsuit that there is no backing out if the jury awards a much higher amount.

See previous post below for much more detail on this issue.

Fire fight erupts as city attempts to steal property for new fire station

Kingsport, Tennessee Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted on first reading to steal property from a Virginia real estate developer. Kingsport has been trying to purchase 2.33 acres to build a new fire station in the Rock Springs Rd area. The City of Kingsport had the property appraised at $240,000 and offered $330,000 even though King VA LLC paid $476,149 for the property. The owner of the property put the property up for sale and the city claimed it had three contracts with the owner.

The city of Kingsport is putting their own spin on this property deal claiming that the owner would not honor the contract. It was pointed out by Vice Mayor Mallicote, who is an attorney, that the owner has an “out” clause in the contract. I do believe that they call this a contingent offer. The owner has refused to sell now and the city has begun condemnation proceedings. City Manager, John Campbell stated, the owner paid over $400,000 for the property. Mr. Campbell, quit the spin route, the real amount paid is $476,149.

It appears that the city is not willing to accept “no sale” for an answer and is willing to go the condemnation route when four of the current BMA members might be thinking of campaigning for another term when their term expire next year.

Alderman Marsh voted against condemnation proceedings and stated that there were other sites that could be used for the fire station.

City Manager, John Campbell, stated that if the condemnation matter goes to trial, then the owner might have to accept the $240,00 appraisal on the property. Aldermen Joh, who is the designated aldermen to deal with real estate matters for the City of Kingsport, stated at a June 16, 2008 BMA meeting, she did not pay much attention to appraisals since they can vary greatly. This comment by Aldermen Joh was given concerning the low appraisal done by the city versus the higher appraisal done by Kingsport Firefighter Association for their property. Alderman Joh is the owner of Blue Ridge Properties which is a real estate firm with many offices in the Kingsport area. I wonder if a jury trial decided that the property was worth $500,000, would the City of Kingsport still want it?

King VA LLC, 410 North Ridge Rd, Ste 100, Richmond, Virginia, is the owner of the 2.33 acres that the city wants. At the same address is Harper Associates, LLC, who deals in real estate development and investments. Harper Associates to me is well connected politically and is accustomed to dealing with city governments. They appear to care for the communities by sponsoring many events for the general public.

Listed below are the recent sale dates and prices paid for the property that the city wants to buy for $330,000.

The property is located on Rock Springs Rd and Blakley Dr.and is very close to interestate26.

BMA minutes on the subject is below

5-14-07

10. Consideration of an Approval of Offer for the Acquisition of Real Property located at Rock Springs Road and Blakley Drive for the Future Fire Station (AF: 162-2007).

Motion/Second: Mallicote/Munsey, to approve,

The offer of $330,000 for 2.33 acres owned by King VA, LLC and to authorize the mayor to execute an agreement for purchase in a form approved by the city attorney

Passed: All present voting “aye.”

12-03-07 WS

BOARD COMMENT. City Manager Campbell informed the Board that closing on the Rock Springs fire station property is imminent.

It might be a good idea for cooler heads to prevail. It seems that the city manager and the BMA have dug their heels in and are set to fight this one out. They might want to listen to Aldermen Marsh’s suggestion to look at other properties. In my opinion I see it as a no-win for the city if they prevail in the suit. Treating an out of state real estate developer this way may affect future developments in Kingsport when the word gets out. I wonder if Kingsport would treat Somera Capital Management or General Growth Properties this way. There is a very good chance that General Growth Properties manages property built by the property owner that the city is suing.

Maybe a little fire hose action is needed to cool everyone down.

Kingsport, Tennessee Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted on first reading to steal property from a Virginia real estate developer. Kingsport has been trying to purchase 2.33 acres to build a new fire station in the Rock Springs Rd area. The City of Kingsport had the property appraised at $240,000 and offered $330,000 even though King VA LLC paid $476,149 for the property. The owner of the property put the property up for sale and the city claimed it had three contracts with the owner.

The city of Kingsport is putting their own spin on this property deal claiming that the owner would not honor the contract. It was pointed out by Vice Mayor Mallicote, who is an attorney, that the owner has an “out” clause in the contract. I do believe that they call this a contingent offer. The owner has refused to sell now and the city has begun condemnation proceedings. City Manager, John Campbell stated, the owner paid over $400,000 for the property. Mr. Campbell, quit the spin route, the real amount paid is $476,149.

It appears that the city is not willing to accept “no sale” for an answer and is willing to go the condemnation route when four of the current BMA members might be thinking of campaigning for another term when their term expire next year.

Alderman Marsh voted against condemnation proceedings and stated that there were other sites that could be used for the fire station.

City Manager, John Campbell, stated that if the condemnation matter goes to trial, then the owner might have to accept the $240,000 appraisal on the property. Aldermen Joh, who is the designated aldermen to deal with real estate matters for the City of Kingsport, stated at a June 16, 2008 BMA meeting, she did not pay much attention to appraisals since they can vary greatly. This comment by Aldermen Joh was given concerning the low appraisal done by the city versus the higher appraisal done by Kingsport Firefighter Association for their property. Alderman Joh is the owner of Blue Ridge Properties which is a real estate firm with many offices in the Kingsport area. I wonder if a jury trial decided that the property was worth $500,000, would the City of Kingsport still want it?

King VA LLC, 410 North Ridge Rd, Ste 100, Richmond, Virginia, is the owner of the 2.33 acres that the city wants. At the same address is Harper Associates, LLC, who deals in real estate development and investments. Harper Associates to me is well connected politically and is accustomed to dealing with city governments. They appear to care for the communities by sponsoring many events for the general public.

Listed below are the recent sale dates and prices paid for the property that the city wants to buy for $330,000.

The property is located on Rock Springs Rd and Blakley Dr.and is very close to interestate26.

BMA minutes on the subject is below

5-14-07

10. Consideration of an Approval of Offer for the Acquisition of Real Property located at Rock Springs Road and Blakley Drive for the Future Fire Station (AF: 162-2007).

Motion/Second: Mallicote/Munsey, to approve,

The offer of $330,000 for 2.33 acres owned by King VA, LLC and to authorize the mayor to execute an agreement for purchase in a form approved by the city attorney

Passed: All present voting “aye.”

12-03-07 WS

BOARD COMMENT. City Manager Campbell informed the Board that closing on the Rock Springs fire station property is imminent.

It might be a good idea for cooler heads to prevail. It seems that the city manager and the BMA have dug their heels in and are set to fight this one out. They might want to listen to Aldermen Marsh’s suggestion to look at other properties. In my opinion I see it as a no-win for the city if they prevail in the suit. Treating an out of state real estate developer this way may affect future developments in Kingsport when the word gets out. I wonder if Kingsport would treat Somera Capital Management or General Growth Properties this way. There is a very good chance that General Growth Properties manages property built by the property owner that the city is suing.

Maybe a little fire hose action is needed to cool everyone down.

Kingsport, Tennessee has approved a plan to give Sullivan County residents the option of paying the sewer tap fee ($2,250) either up front or monthly installments when they are annexed.  The monthly installments cost would be $30.00 per month for 120 months.  If one chooses to pay using the installment method, then the original $2,250 sewer tap fee would grow to $3,600 when paid in ten years.

Kingsport, Tennessee in my opinion is getting close to being in the loan shark business.  This new installment deal would be like making minimum payments on a credit card where the balance seems like it takes forever to pay off.

This plan was adopted to help ease the concerns that Rock Springs homeowners had over annexation.  In a recent visit to the area, I see that the sewer pipe is being installed.  The sewer pipe is following the Rock Springs Branch creek and in some cases the sewer pipe is close to houses and for the most part not very close to houses.  I saw many rocks and local residents tell me that there has been extensive dynamiting.

If I were a Rock Springs Road homeowner, there is no way I would consider hooking up to the city sewer line.  My reasons are that most of the houses are beyond the 200 feet that requires you to either hook up to the city sewer or pay the sewer tap fee.  With the vast amount of limestone rocks in the area, it could be very costly to dig the line to the house. If I was having problems with my septic system, then I feel it may be the cheaper route to go by installing a new septic system.

Kingsport City Code

Sec. 106-236. Requirements for proper wastewater disposal.

(c)   Except as provided in this section, the owner of any house, building or property used for human occupancy, employment, industry, recreation or other purposes located where sewers are available is required at his expense to install suitable toilet facilities therein and to connect such facilities directly with the proper public sewer in accordance with this article and the city plumbing code within 90 days after the date of official notice to do so, provided that the sewer is within 200 feet of the structure and at a suitable elevation. Any residence, business or industrial establishment having sewers available for 90 days shall be considered a user whether connected or not and shall be subject to paying all valid charges imposed by this Code and appropriate fees as established by resolution of the board of mayor and aldermen.

In a recent City of Kingsport letter sent to Rock Springs residents, 10 homeowners requested annexation out of 218 homeowners polled by the city in areas 7 and 8.  See post Rock Springs residents make their views known to Kingsport, Tennessee concerning annexation

The citizens of the Rock Springs Road area have expressed their displeasure by not responding to the letter sent to them by the City of Kingsport, Tennessee.  Kingsport, Tennessee had sent out 218 letters to Sullivan County residents in areas 7 and 8 stating that they would be given a choice to be annexed and they had ninety days to make their minds up.  Out of the 218 letters, only ten residents wanted to be annexed and one of the ten was from an area to be annexed in 2010.

The city continues to put their spin on annexations.  In the quote from February below, City Manager John Campbell states that is a lot of interest in people wanting to be on a sewer line and now John Campbell is saying that a reason for the lack of response to the letter is because residents don’t want to make their neighbors mad.

“One thing we’ve learned is we’ve had to be able to adjust at a particular time. What wasn’t anticipated was we would have an attorney in Knoxville suing everyone in the state over annexation, whether he knew anything about the annexation or not,” Campbell said. “We’ve got some areas that probably have some people who would like to be in. There’s a lot of interest in some people wanting to be on the sewer line, and because of what we’ve done, it’s developed a lot of interest from developers.

“There are other ones out there who are interested. Part of what they run into are, while they want to be annexed, they don’t want to make their neighbor mad,” Campbell said. “Certainly we would have liked to have seen more, but at the same time there are some other people still looking at it.”

Let’s get real Kingsport.  The lack of response from county residents to your letter is that they simply do not want to be annexed.  It should be very clear to the Kingsport elected officials that their future on the BMA may end when the next election occurs.  If forced annexations continues, it would not take many voters to vote against the current BMA members.  See post City of Kingsport, TN Elections.

The Eastman press release below states that Eastman has had a great 2008 first quarter for earnings.  This is great for Eastman, but no credit is given for the corporate welfare that they will be receiving from the City of Kingsport, Tennessee. See link Kingsport BMA approves tax break for Eastman.

Kingsport is fortunate to have a company such as Eastman in the Kingsport area.  The size of Eastman in the Kingsport area causes a major problem when the chemical company has a bad year and lays off workers.   Quite simply, Kingsport needs to work to get manufacturing firms that can offer good paying jobs to locate in the area.  It appears that Kingsport is pushing more retail stores in the city, but this policy will not help retail stores if the citizens do not have money to spend.  Build a good base of different companies (non retail and Eastman) and the area will begin to prosper.  Kingsport might even keep citizens from leaving the area to look for jobs.

Kingsport may not be able to lure new companies to locate here without the help of the county and State.  A Metropolitan form of government could add some clout in dealing with the state for assistance.   Recently, Chattanooga, Tennessee  lost to Mississippi to build a new $800 million plant.  The State of Tennessee was very much involved  in the negations.  In Lenoir, North Carolina, Google will be building a $600 million data farm that will provide 210 good paying jobs.  Wages at the Google Caldwell County facility will vary by job function, but the average wage is expected to be more than $48,300 not including benefits, which is substantially more than the county average of $27,300 without benefits.  Lenoir, NC had been hard hit by furniture plant closures due to furniture made overseas.  Retail, now is coming back to Lenoir.

The approach above in my opinion would be better alternative to increase revenue as compared to revenue through annexations.  If Kingsport is successful in getting new companies to locate here, then maybe then they can order a dome to sit on top of the Empire of Kingsport City Hall building.

Eastman Announces Higher First-Quarter 2008 Earnings Expectation

KINGSPORT, Tenn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Eastman Chemical Company (NYSE:EMN) today announced that first-quarter 2008 earnings per share excluding gains and costs related to strategic decisions and actions are expected to be above the high end of the current range of analyst estimates on First Call which is $1.30 per share. This solid performance was primarily due to continued strong sales volume and higher selling prices offsetting higher raw material and energy costs.

Eastman will announce first-quarter 2008 sales and earnings on April 24, 2008, at approximately 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The company will host a conference call with industry analysts on April 25 at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time. To listen to the live webcast of the conference call, go to www.investors.eastman.com, Presentations. To listen via telephone, the dial-in number is 913-312-0865, passcode number 6775748. A web replay will be available at www.investors.eastman.com, Presentations. A telephone replay will be available continuously from 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time, April 25, to 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time, May 2, 2008, at 888-203-1112, passcode number 6775748.

Eastman manufactures and markets chemicals, fibers and plastics worldwide. It provides key differentiated coatings, adhesives and specialty plastics products; is a major supplier of cellulose acetate fibers; and produces PET polymers for packaging. As a Responsible Care® company, Eastman is committed to achieving the highest standards of health, safety, environmental and security performance. Founded in 1920 and headquartered in Kingsport, Tenn., Eastman is a FORTUNE 500 company with 2007 sales of $6.8 billion and approximately 10,500 employees. For more information about Eastman and its products, visit www.eastman.com.

Forward-Looking Statements: The statements in this news release concerning expected first-quarter 2008 sales volume, selling prices, raw material and energy costs, and earnings per share excluding certain gains and costs are forward-looking. Such statements are based upon preliminary information and management assumptions and expectations and are subject to risks and uncertainties inherent in projecting results. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the expectations expressed in the forward-looking statements, in addition to those identified with such forward-looking statements, are detailed in the company’s reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Form 10-K for 2007 and the Form 10-Q to be filed for the quarter ended March 31, 2008