Image Credit: Townsend TN Chamber of Commerce
The Tennessee Conservative [By David Seal] –
Proposed legislation has been introduced that would facilitate deannexation of the Townsend Visitor Center and event venue, returning it to the jurisdiction of Blount County.
Senate Bill 965/House Bill 980, if enacted, would create a pathway for “tourism development authorities” in Tennessee to deannex from a city back to the county.
There are 5 such tourism development authorities in Tennessee. In Townsend, the Smoky Mountain Tourism Development Authority bills the Townsend area as the “peaceful side of the Smokies.”
Here is the situation.
The Blount Partnership is a non-profit organization that promotes tourism, economic development, and industrial recruitment for Blount County. It is the tourism component of their mission that has some of the 550 Townsend residents concerned.
The city of Townsend, Tennessee approved the location and construction of a 41-acre tourist and event center on the edge of their municipal territory. Now that it has been up and operating for about a year, some local residents are expressing concerns about the traffic and noise associated with events.
Blount Partnership Annual Report states that the Balloon Festival alone drew 10,000 people, the Scottish Festival 12,000. There are many more events scheduled, and it is presumed that more are being recruited.
In response to citizen concerns, the city of Townsend has signaled that it may want to limit certain special events through the approval process, which are considered on a case-by-case basis.
Operators of the tourism venue, Blount Partnership, are not pleased with limits being placed on the size, scope, and type of events that may be imposed by the city of Townsend. That is why they are asking for legislation that will allow them to break the shackles of the City of Townsend, should they decide to exercise it.
Opinions vary on the controversy from one citizen’s group to another.
The Blount County Conservative Sentinel issued a statement on Saturday February 15, 2025, that was sharply critical of the proposed legislation and effort to deannex the tourist center from Townsend. Their statement in full is linked here.
The Blountly Conservative group took a free market and property rights stance and called for a balanced approach between tax revenue and the inconvenience of increased tourist traffic. Their full statement is linked here.
The Tennessee Conservative News reached out to Blount Partnership President and CEO Bryan Daniels via phone for comment but has not received a response as of publication time of this report. We also attempted to contact Townsend Mayor Don Prater, but those efforts were unsuccessful.
According to The Daily Times of Blount County, the sponsors of the deannexation bill filed the legislation at the request of the Blount Partnership.
Updates will be published as information becomes available and as stakeholders respond to our requests for comment.
About the Author: David Seal is a retired Jefferson County educator, recognized artist, local businessman, 917 Society Volunteer, and past Chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party. He has also served Jefferson County as a County Commissioner and is a citizen lobbyist for the people on issues such as eminent domain, property rights, education, and broadband accessibility on the state level. David is also a 2024 winner of The Tennessee Conservative Flame Award & has received an accolade from the Institute For Justice for successfully lobbing the TN legislature to protect property rights. David can be reached at david@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
