An Open Letter to the Knox County Commission

2010 December 02

Dear Knox County Commissioners,

I respectfully request that you vote to send the East County Sector Plan back to the Metropolitan Planning Commission with instructions to retain the existing sector plan designation on the northwest quadrant of Midway Road, thereby rejecting the concept of a business park at that intersection.

The reasons for this request are:

1. There are better ways for The Development Corporation, The Chamber of Commerce and Knox County to utilize its development funds.
2. Businesses targeted by the sector plan won’t locate at Midway Road.
3. Focus on what’s working – Downtown Redevelopment
4. Missing justification to support further investment in Midway Road Business Park.
5. No controls are proposed to limit future build-out costs
6. Location exacerbates sprawl and pollution
7. Preservation of rural character contributes to the attractiveness of Knox County.

To expand on these,

1. There are better ways for the Development Corporation, Chamber of Commerce and Knox County to utilize its development funds. The $17,000,000 slated for Phase I build-out Recent loss of tenants in the existing Forks of the River Park has created opportunities to redevelop existing buildings and lots. A modest expansion of Forks of the River is contained in the 2010 East County Sector Plan; existing funds could be used to implement this expansion. Development Corporation marketing efforts could be refocused on other business and industrial parks with full sewer services and existing infrastructure.

Personally, I would like to see the funds used on projects that have been proven to work, such as downtown development (see point #3 below).

Meanwhile, the Chamber of Commerce should focus on attracting new, entrepreneurial businesses and on programs that strengthen and grow existing small businesses. I recently looked at the Chamber’s website, taking the perspective of a small business owner, and I discovered very little information that would be relevant to me. If the Chamber focused on growing existing businesses and on providing new workforce skills to our area residents, we could stimulate job growth in that manner.

Finally, as for Knox County – I ask why we are using our scarce financial resources to fund speculative development efforts? A big detriment to the area is a workforce that desperately needs improved education. I believe our taxpayer dollars can be better spent on education, reducing our debt load or returned to the taxpayer.

2. Businesses targeted by the sector plan won’t locate at Midway Road. The sector plan recommends either a “business park” or office and technology park. It defines a business park (BP-2) as “Primary uses are light manufacturing, offices, and locally-oriented warehouse/distribution services. Retail and restaurant services, which are developed primarily to serve tenants and visitors to the business park can be considered” (emphasis added).

First – as an office or technology park – this is a long way from anywhere. It’s a 15 minute drive from population centers in the northeast county, 20 minutes from downtown, 30 minutes from West Knoxville and over 40 minutes from the airport. There are no restaurants or retail at the intersection today. Greenways do not connect Midway Road to the rest of Knoxville. I work for a software company, and employees of technology companies like to be in urban places with lots of restaurants, parks and modes of alternative ad mass transit. They also like to expand their professional network. None of that exists at Midway Road, nor is it likely to exist in the next 10 years. Scratch off technology companies. Similar items also scratch the location off as an office park. Really – how many people go to an office park thrilled to have lunch in a cafeteria every day, or to bring in their own lunch and microwave it?

For light manufacturing uses - the lack of a sewer system will discourage most manufacturing uses from the site, especially when they learn about the karst topography of the area. I would not want to be a company liable for polluting the local groundwater through an on-site septic system. I just don’t see “light” manufacturing locating to the Midway Road Business Park.

Finally, as a local distribution site there is an advantage of interstate access, but there are no nearby businesses to deliver to. Any distribution function that locates at the intersection will incur a fixed time and fuel penalty for every delivery to the Knoxville area (west, south, and north) that its competitors, located downtown, north or west, will not incur. It doesn’t stand to reason that a local distribution business would locate at Midway Road.

3. Missing justification for further investment in the Midway Road Business Park. I’ve been following the dialogue on Midway for four (4) years, and I have not seen any studies from the Development Corporation or Chamber of Commerce that justify the claim of 2,000 direct and 2,000 indirect jobs for the park. I have not seen a list of businesses that were considering Knoxville and rejected the location due to a lack of available land to locate to.
Any business plan requesting funding for investment should have the supporting documentation and justification available. It isn’t anywhere to be found. It appears to me that this venture is speculative in nature. The taxpayer funds ($27,000,000 for land acquisition and Phase 1 build-out) and detrimental impact to the community (see point #7) has not been justified in any manner, let alone to a degree that should be required for the large investment amount and impact.

4. Focus on what’s working – Downtown Redevelopment. The past ten years have seen a remarkable turnaround for the downtown area. Some of the difficult projects have already been completed, but other projects, such as South Waterfront, wait in the wings and require assistance.

If I were a business looking at the Knoxville area, I would want space in the downtown area with access to the restaurants, retail, recreation and historic amenities. A technology firm or a corporation will find the downtown area much more attractive than the Midway Road interchange, and continued investment in the area will yield increased dividends for the Knoxville area.

5. No controls are proposed to limit future build-out costs. The announced cost of Phase 1 build-out is $17,000,000, assuming that there are no nasty sinkholes or surprises with the proposed drip septic system. I have not seen the costs for future phases of the project, nor have I seen what the Development Corporation and Chamber will propose to do to market the land if they are unable to find tenants for the property that will comply with the guidelines of the existing proposal.

What will the cost be to KUB ratepayers if, in five or ten years, The Development Corporation claims that a sewer treatment plant is essential for development of the park? There is no control that will prevent this. There are no controls or provisions for Phase 2 build-out.

As a taxpayer, I demand on responsible use of public funds. I’m sure every other resident of Knox County demands the same. A lack of controls and a myopic focus on just Phase 1 of the proposed Midway Road Business Park makes me quite nervous.

6. Location exacerbates sprawl and pollution. Located at least four (4) miles from the nearest restaurants and retail establishments, the Midway Road interchange is a poor location if the County is trying to control urban sprawl. The fact that it is on the boundary of the Planned Growth Area is surprising; the Planned Growth Area unfortunately appears to encourage urban sprawl in this case. Sprawling out westward along I-40 and Kingston Pike is not an endearing characteristic for the Knoxville area; duplicating that sprawl towards the east is not a progressive, well-planned growth strategy for our community.
Sprawl places significant challenges to providing items and amenities that our citizens support (e.g. greenways, bike paths, parks, mass transit and convenient access to retail). Why in the world would you want to encourage urban sprawl in this case?

In addition to sprawl, our area suffers from poor air quality. I was shocked to see the haze in the air during July and August when I moved here three years ago. I asked personnel from the Transportation Planning Office about plans for mass transit of any form to the Midway Road interchange, and they indicated that there would be no mass transit services. It is unlikely that the business park will be staffed entirely by nearby residents; any workers commuting from South, West or North Knox County will have a lengthy commute and exacerbate our area’s air quality problem. The negative impact on our health and our area’s appearance cannot be offset by a few thousand jobs.

7. Preservation of the rural character contributes to the attractiveness of Knox County. The East County area provides Knox County its rural characteristics and charm. In the French Broad, Carter and Mascot areas you can find a number of older homes, family farms and traditional ways of life that no longer exist west, north and south of Knoxville proper.

This rural nature, so close to an urban center, adds a lot of charm to the Knoxville area for visitors as well as prospective residents and businesses. One of the reasons that I moved to the Knoxville area three years ago is the rural nature of East and Northeast Knox County. I live 15 minutes from downtown, but I’m still on the edge of the country. Mules and draft horses are used to plow the field in front of my house. I have been able to preserve a farm that has been in my family since 1797 and includes buildings from 1841 that make up a representative complete, agricultural settlement from our past.

I theorize that it is this close link to our roots, to Appalachia and its traditions, that provides Knox County a lot of its charm and character - aspects that differentiate us from urban centers like Atlanta and Nashville. To retain our charm and character, we need to retain some areas of Knox County as rural. The rural interchange along I-40, separating the tourism mecca of Pigeon Forge from the Knoxville urban area, is a welcome transition zone.

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One thing that has been absent from the discussion is dialogue over the future direction of Knox County. I hear folks say that we need growth, but actually, I question that. Certainly we will grow through immigration. But is our goal to reach a certain population – is that what we’re shooting for? Is our goal to identify areas of strength and invest in those? Is our goal to preserve the status-quo at all costs? I haven’t been able to discern a “vision statement” for Knox County since I moved here. Maybe we need something like that.

This is a big decision for the Knox County Commission. It represents a crossroads between speculative development and controlled expansion. I personally vote for controlled expansion. Members of the community have put forth a plan to recoup the investment in land that has already been made through conservation easements; I support this direction for Midway Road. If that’s not tenable, then the property could be held in a land bank for 10-20 years until a clear need emerges. It absolutely shouldn’t be developed today, now, when there are so many better uses for the funds and the development is speculative at best. Exercise your control of TDC and the Sector Plan to influence this.

I would like to commend the MPC planning staff and community on the rest of the East County Sector Plan. The French Broad Conservation Corridor, Carter Town Center and other concepts are excellent ideas that will preserve the character and attractiveness of the Knox County area as well as enhance quality of life and economic development activities.

Very truly and respectfully,

Kevin P. Murphy