Feedback on Knoxville, Maryville, and E. Tenn. in General (Kingsport: co-op, live in)

[Beretta]

Originally Posted by hiknapster

Unfortunately, I do, too.

Kindred spirits!

[gemkeeper]

Originally Posted by goodbyehollywood

What's the point in being clandestine? Wouldn't it be hard to drum up business that way? Hmmm... though come to think of it, I have gotten DMs from realtors, so maybe some do have a stealth approach.

But I'm not a realtor. I'm really, really not.

I am relieved to hear that someone else has gotten DMs from real estate agents, goodbyehollywood! I've had a couple myself. I thought "Do I have SUCKER printed on my forehead?" (Actually, I had it removed quite a while back. It was a redundant message!)

I'm sorry now that I wasn't thinking or I would have checked their posts to see if they have "real estate agent" anywhere in their profile. I may still have those messages; I'll check.

Hiknapster and SmokyMtnGal, we must be keeping good company. I, too, am ADHD. Wish they knew something about it waaayyyy back when I was going to public school. I was constantly in trouble: "What? We had a homework assignment?" I have great empathy for anyone raising a child - or spouse - with ADD! I have about 10 different projects on the go right now, am spinning my wheels with most of them and the most important one is to sell this house so we can get on to Blount County, TN!

[hiknapster]

I've never been contacted by a real estate agent. I don't give them much bang for the buck, since I'm looking in the $125,000 and under price range.

I had one child, now grown, with severe ADD and Lauren has a touch of it, I believe, like me.

[Catsndogs]

Originally Posted by pdq

Well it's exactly in the middle of Knoxville and Chattanooga. Takes 1 hour to get to either. It is somewhat affordable since their are few jobs and the few have low pay. That given, it's still probably more affordable than Knoxville or Chattanooga. In so many ways (good and bad), it's a town still living in the past. I wouldn't say it's any more friendly than any other small town in the US. Really they're all about the same, it's only the perception of a new place that makes them seem better. Once the newness wears off, it's like any town USA. Unless you're from Camden NJ...

Some questions on Maryville and Sweetater:
Venturing out from Maryville recently, we visited Sweetwater for only the second time in 2 plus years. 'Didn't get to see beyond the Really nice "Main Street" area and fabulous "in-town" homes-restored victorians and lots of others...wow. As is so typical of East Tennessee downtowns there are beautiful residential areas. Still, if you look around the main street area...you don't see the shopping center, court houses (old and new), good size library and restaurants that Maryville offers away from her main street area. It was a quick trip to Sweetwater and noticed several antique shops, a bistro and other nice shops, the center square with the Southern train donated by the VFW. Lots of flowers around, Produce for sale, the hospital and some kind of large industrial bldgs a few streets over. . I know from a previous trip there is a good size section with car dealerships. I didn't see housing developments and for some reason cannot get Realtor.com to come up, tonight.

How similar or different are the two? One thing that keeps coming back on Maryville is that there is not much going on downtown. There has been a lot of development in Mayville but why is Downtown not prospering? Why are there so many vacant buildings (noticed one with a sale sign in the lobby). The old Maryville courthouse bldg. is restored, I think...why a whole new court/justice bldg? Since we took our house off the market in Maryville we are again trying to get out and see new territory. Madisonville has a neat downtown. Sevierville was great during the fair last year with Ricky Skaggs-free. What is up with downtown Maryville? Thanks much.

[pdq]

Originally Posted by Catsndogs

Some questions on Maryville and Sweetater:
Venturing out from Maryville recently, we visited Sweetwater for only the second time in 2 plus years. 'Didn't get to see beyond the Really nice "Main Street" area and fabulous "in-town" homes-restored victorians and lots of others...wow. As is so typical of East Tennessee downtowns there are beautiful residential areas. Still, if you look around the main street area...you don't see the shopping center, court houses (old and new), good size library and restaurants that Maryville offers away from her main street area. It was a quick trip to Sweetwater and noticed several antique shops, a bistro and other nice shops, the center square with the Southern train donated by the VFW. Lots of flowers around, Produce for sale, the hospital and some kind of large industrial bldgs a few streets over. . I know from a previous trip there is a good size section with car dealerships. I didn't see housing developments and for some reason cannot get Realtor.com to come up, tonight.

How similar or different are the two? One thing that keeps coming back on Maryville is that there is not much going on downtown. There has been a lot of development in Mayville but why is Downtown not prospering? Why are there so many vacant buildings (noticed one with a sale sign in the lobby). The old Maryville courthouse bldg. is restored, I think...why a whole new court/justice bldg? Since we took our house off the market in Maryville we are again trying to get out and see new territory. Madisonville has a neat downtown. Sevierville was great during the fair last year with Ricky Skaggs-free. What is up with downtown Maryville? Thanks much.

The downtown area doesn't thrive because of "progress". The majority of people today want easy access and convenience. They need modern, constantly remodeled, businesses and restaurants. The quaint old downtown areas just don't do it for most people.

Very sad what we've become.

For example, there are two good pizza places in Maryville, one downtown, and one in a strip mall. The downtown place is quaint and charming. The strip mall place looks like any fast food restaurant. The prices are the same, the food good at both, but the strip mall place almost always has more business. Why? Convenience. This is the same reason Knoxville has never been able to effectively bring their downtown back. It's just the type of people who live here.

Best of luck.

[Monicaabc]

Originally Posted by pdq

The downtown area doesn't thrive because of "progress". The majority of people today want easy access and convenience. They need modern, constantly remodeled, businesses and restaurants. The quaint old downtown areas just don't do it for most people.

Very sad what we've become.

For example, there are two good pizza places in Maryville, one downtown, and one in a strip mall. The downtown place is quaint and charming. The strip mall place looks like any fast food restaurant. The prices are the same, the food good at both, but the strip mall place almost always has more business. Why? Convenience. This is the same reason Knoxville has never been able to effectively bring their downtown back. It's just the type of people who live here.

Best of luck.

That's very interesting PDQ. My hometown is a lot like that. From an outside point of view it seems that E. TN is still going through a ton of change. Everywhere we look places seem to be GROWING. Don't give up hope on the downtown thing. Here in P'cola, as I've seen in other cities, when all the new wears off, people seek out those quaint, original places. Convenience I love but lets face it NOTHING is original with all the convenient businesses.

[Catsndogs]

Originally Posted by Monicaabc

That's very interesting PDQ. My hometown is a lot like that. From an outside point of view it seems that E. TN is still going through a ton of change. Everywhere we look places seem to be GROWING. Don't give up hope on the downtown thing. Here in P'cola, as I've seen in other cities, when all the new wears off, people seek out those quaint, original places. Convenience I love but lets face it NOTHING is original with all the convenient businesses.

Good points, pdq and Monicaabc: Hopefully, in short time, it all will evolve...That old court house in Maryville is so nice ... I guess it just wasn't big enough or couldn't be restored until they got some people out of it. The bldgs vacant downtown: too bad some of us are not wealthy...we would think of great uses... additional condos, antique mall...inside shops with a center court and bistro's...gourmet kitchen thing...chamber of commerce/visitor/info center, local pottery/artisans/painters, the body farm store (maybe just something to develop like the science stores). a second floor covered walkway, a small section of street blocked off with no traffic..like Chestnut Street was last time I was there in Philly. Wish the builders and developers would stop building houses and develop the downtown...like Greenville, South Carolina kind of thing. Way cool.

[gemkeeper]

This is a very interesting idea concerning preserving quaint downtowns. Maybe some of you have read "The Tipping Point" by Martin Gladwell. It is a very interesting read that is aimed at marketing, but is actually a commentary of how a small simple action can change the course of an industry, a town, a revolution, etc.

Just a short for instance: Hush Puppies were big in the 50's and 60's, the popularity waned, the company was just hanging on. In the early 90's a surplus store in the East Village in NYC stocked a bunch of Hush Puppy shoes and some students, rising artists, other East Village residents started to notice these trendy shoes coming out of the East Village. It began to be cool, first among wealthy students attending universities in NY and the art crowd to wear Hush Puppies. Within a year or two, the Hush Puppy Co. was busting at the seams to make enough shoes for the entire country. They are now a thriving successful company again. It took one sale to cause the "tipping point".

To make a long story even longer (sorry), the same thing can happen in any small downtown. It takes just one word of mouth to make a just barely there little eatery the hit of the town (the downtown Pizza Shop). It takes just one innovative entrepreneur to refurbish an old building rather than tear it down for a new office building - and turn it into chic downtown condos or some of the same kinds of shops that you could find in a mall (bookstores, coffee shops, etc.), or an antique shop or some catchy little music open-forum cafe. Others will follow; downtown will be the place to be on Friday nights after a long workweek.

Nobody have that kind of money? How about 5 somebody's going together? Downtown Maryville is lovely as it stands, but it is a diamond in the rough. So many charming older buildings that could live a new life if given the chance. A few "tipping points" and it is the spot that Maryville"s residents want to look for some unusual art pieces or have a great Saturday lunch in some of those lovely old rundown buildings, now lovingly restored.

Don't misunderstand me. I am not looking for change and another tourist trap. We love Maryville and so many other small towns because of what they are today and the people who live there. But, what we all should want to avoid is disgarding the old and throwing up the new and shiny. There goes the charm out with the truck that is hauling away the century-old bricks. What a shame!

[pdq]

Hey Gem,

Well the downtown pizza place is well known, in fact it's won best restaurant of the year for many many years in the Metro Pulse and News Sentinel readers polls and others. They have another location in Knoxville that does fairly well. The Maryville location does ok but it's not bustling like the fast food strip mall place is.

A few years back Knoxville had a wonderful stone fired pizza place in a great location, it just couldn't make a go of it. The pizza was truly the best around and priced the same as a papa john or whatever. At least we still have Harby's and Tomato head, for now anyway.

Unusual, quality businesses have a difficult time making it here.

Catsndogs,

I agree if I were wealthy I would develop and save many things, but I also realize that if I actually were wealthy I wouldn't be living here. I guess I'd be restoring quaint old downtowns in the Pacific Northwest or somewhere.

Best of luck.

[Catsndogs]

We weren't here when Greenville, S.C. was developing into the neat downtown it is now...I will try to find some background on that just to know how it happens.

Gem - neat stuff you shared about The Tipping Point. I would like to participate in the rejuvenation of a lively downtown. Too bad someone didn't carry on Roy's Record Shop. This is not to be negative about the present place called Maryville but it is a shame there isn't more of a draw except for special occasions...like the Festival. Any place can have shopping malls and strip malls and any place does. The street rod and antique car thing in the parking lot by Sears is nice. It says people like Bye Gone Era stuff...all ages go to that. As abc said - not to give up. Is it just us baby boomers that are interested?