Kingsport Planning Commission Records, 1917-1999

KM Manuscript Collection 41

INTRODUCTION

Title: Kingsport Planning Commission Records

Collection Number: Kingsport Municipal Manuscript Collection KMMC 41

Physical Description:

Creator: Planning Commission

Repository: Archives of the City of Kingsport

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Provenance: The Kingsport Planning Commission Records was donated to the Archives of the City of Kingsport by the planning commission sometime after 1993.

Access/Restrictions: There are no restrictions on use of this collection for research purposes. The researcher assumes full responsibility for observing all copyright, property, and libel laws as they apply.

Processed by: This collection was processed by Kari Roueche and opened for research in May, 2013.

COLLECTION CITATION

This collection should be cited as:

Kingsport Planning Commission Records, 1917-1999. KM Manuscript Collection 41, Archives of the City of Kingsport, Tennessee.

BIOGRAPHICAL/HISTORICAL NOTE

Since 1945, the City of Kingsport Planning Commission has been involved in several efforts regarding the growth, population, living environment, and planning of the city. Its various functions have included citizens’ advisory committees, annexation, neighborhood rehabilitation and relocation, transportation, zoning, and city services planning. Beginning in 1957, Robert Clear directed several areas of Kingsport’s development, including as the planning commissioner and as the first Development Services director. At his retirement after 37 years of service, a conference room located in the Development Services Building at 201 W. Market St. was named in his honor. While the planning commission still exists, it functions under the umbrella of the Development Services Center. The city has maps of many past and current annexation projects on its website at http://gis.kingsporttn.gov/node/41.

SCOPE AND CONTENT

The Planning Commission Records were pared down from a very large acquisition of city files, the bulk of which dated from the 1950s through the 1970s. Files retained mainly pertain to the geographical growth of Kingsport. The collection consists of minutes, agendas, memos, public notices, surveys, ordinances, and reports. There are several bound items that relate to commissioned proposals and various studies prepared for the city planners to use in annexation and improvement projects. Glass plate negatives of aerial photography have been scanned and are located in the collection’s digital file. They represent greater Kingsport in the mid to late 1960s.

ARRANGEMENT

This collection is arranged into two series. Both are without subseries.

I. Annexation

II. Miscellaneous

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Series I, Annexation, 1917-1984, Boxes 1-3.

This series contains files concerning neighborhood and street annexation proposals, protests, meetings, and cases. Most folders generally include copies of associated ordinances and a map of the area of concerned. Of note is documentation concerning the Mason and Dixon matter, the Eastman Chemical Co. annexation, and one folder with maps dating from as early as 1917. Several folders relate to the annexation of Bays Mountain and the expansion of the park. The folders are arranged alphabetically by street, neighborhood, and report name.

Series II, Miscellaneous, 1956-1999, Boxes 4-6, 1 oversized folder.

The Miscellaneous series includes ten years’ worth of notations made by Robert Clear, Planning Commissioner, on BMA meeting agendas, from 1969-1978. There are also incomplete minutes from Housing Authority and Zoning Commission meetings. Reports and studies commissioned by the Planning Commission regarding economy, education, flooding, housing demand, population, and soil are also a part of this series. The files are arranged alphabetically.

BOX AND FOLDER LIST

Series I, Annexation, 1917-1984, 1-3.

Box 1

1. Allen Drive, 1982

2. Amersham, 1964-1968

3. Annexation Census Data, ca. 1960s

4. Annexation Study, Lewis A. Gorham, 1971

5. Annexation Study, December, 1977

6. Bays Mountain Annexation, 1971-1972

7. Bays Mountain Park Expansion, 1976-1980

8. Beechnut Hills, 1968 & undated

9. Briarwood-Mystic Hills, 1976

10. Brookshire Hills, 1976

11. Brookside, 1969 & undated

12. Chestnut Hill, 1983

13. Chestnut Ridge, 1963-1964 & undated

14. Colonial Heights, 1976-1977 & undated

15. Cook’s Valley, 1981

16. Country Gardens Apartments, 1968

Box 2

1. Leland Davis/Hwy 93 Property, 1984

2. East and Barker Properties, 1963-1964

3. Eastman Annexation, 1982-1983

4. Fort Robinson, ca. 1974

5. Hawkins County, 1964

6. Don Hill vs. City of Kingsport, 1976

7. Idle Hour Road, undated

8. Lewis Lane, 1972-1974

9. Maps, 1917, 1942, 1953, 1956, 1957, & undated

10. Mason & Dixon vs. City of Kingsport, 1976-1977

11. Preston Farms, 1975

12. Preston Forest Area, 1969-1975

13. Ridgefields Area, 1965-1968

14. Rotherwood Heights-Lewis Ln., 1974-1975

Box 3

1. Securities Company Tract on Bays Mountain, 1970-1971

2. Sevier Terrace, 1964-1977

3. Skyland Lane, 1974

4. Southside and Holston River Mtn., 1977-1980

5. Trammell Annexation, undated

6. Transbarger Dr., 1983

7. Rotherwood Hills-Bays Mountain, 1962-1977

Series II, Miscellaneous, 1956-1999, 4-6.

Box 4

1. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1969

2. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1970

3. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1971

4. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1972

5. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1973

6. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1974

7. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1975

8. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1976

9. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1977

Box 5

1. Agenda Notes re: BMA, Robert Clear, 1978

2. Bays Mountain Master Plan Report, 1974

3. BMA Minutes, October 1973-July 1974

4. BMA Transcript, 6 February 1962

5. Economic Study, First Tennessee-Virginia Development District, 1974

6. Educational Planners, Sullivan County Data, 1982

7. Jeffrey Flemming, “Regional Zoning,” 1984

8. Flood maps & study, 1956 and 1959

9. Historic Zoning Minutes, 25-26 July 1993

10. Housing Authority Minutes, April-October, 1993

11. Housing Demand Study, ca. 1975

Box 6

1. Neighborhood Analyses, 1968

2. Population and Economic Study, Sullivan County, 1970

3. Projections/Economic Base Analysis, Metro Area, undated

4. Soil Resources, Sullivan County, September 1970

5. Water & Sewer Plan, Sullivan County, June 1970

Box 7 (Oversized Folder)

1. Kingsport Comprehensive Plan Update, 1975

2. Downtown Kingsport, Gateways/City Development Plan, ca. 1998-1999