City Council - Regular Meeting

And call this City Council meeting to order on August the 4th, 2026. Mary Lee, would you call the roll?

Yes, sir. Fire Robin. Graham. Here. Powers. Here. Aker. Here. Turner.

Here. There are three opportunities to speak on matters of city business this evening. First, attendees are invited to speak regarding the four public hearing items. I will announce when this opportunity is open. If your comments relate to the subject of the hearing, please come to the podium at that time and speak. There's no need to sign up, and then we will have another time later on in the meeting for appearance of citizens of anything that you would like to address council on at that time. Right now, I'd like to ask Mr. Mike Maines, the director of our Parks and Recreation, to lead us in our invocation and our Pledge of Allegiance.

shall we pray dear lord we thank you for this night for the opportunity that we have to come together and discuss the business of the city lord we pray for those that are in need those in our community that may go with be going through a very rough time right now we pray for Blaine and his family. Blaine Brown and be with him Lord during this difficult time. We think the world of him and as with the tremendous loss they have faced. We just ask that you be with him, the family and the kids. Lord be with our city. Those that work here. We ask that you be with our city manager. Matt Slagle. and Mr. Graham as he comes to serve on our city council. Lord, be with them both and help Matt during the times that he will face, the good times and also maybe not so good. Just be with him. We pray this evening for all the blessings that are to come. We have faith in you that you will guide and direct us in city council that we can make Bristol the best place in the world to live. Lord, again, thank you for this evening and be with us as we go through the rest of this week. In Jesus' name, amen. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands,

Okay, Mr. Slagle, are there any additions? No, Mayor, no additions.

Okay.

First, we have one proclamation tonight. It's Farmers Market Week. Councilwoman Akard will read the proclamation, and Taylor Harmon, the Community Engagement Events Coordinator, will accept the proclamation.

Whereas farmers, ranchers, provide citizens with access to healthful, locally and regionally produced foods, through farmers markets which are expanding and evolving to accommodate the demand for a diverse array of agricultural products. And whereas farmers markets and other agricultural direct marketing outlets provide infrastructure to assist in the distribution of farm and value added products, therefore, thereby contributing approximately $9 billion each year to the U.S. economy. And whereas farmers' markets serve as significant outlets by which small to medium, new and beginning, and veteran agricultural producers market agricultural products, generating revenue that supports the sustainability of small family farms and the revitalization of rural communities nationwide, and whereas farmers markets can help promote child health and reduce childhood obesity by increasing children's access to fresh fruits and vegetables, whereas the city of Bristol, Tennessee recognizes the importance of expanding agricultural marketing opportunities that assist and encourage the next generation of farmers and ranchers, generate farm income to help stimulate business development and job creation, build community connections through rural and urban linkages and more. Now therefore, to further aware, to further awareness of contributions made to our community by farmers markets. The mayor of the city of Bristol, Tennessee does hereby proclaim the week of August 2nd through the 8th, 2026 as Bristol's farmers market week in conjunction with the observation of national farmers market week and encourages our citizens to celebrate and support the state street farmers market.

Real quick, I just want to say thank you, Mayor and members of City Council. The Farmers Market's been somewhere that the community's gathered for 27 years now. We're super excited for the future. This past year, we've hired a new State Street Farmers Market manager, Ava White. She was unable to be here today. She's super energetic, creative, and she's bringing new programs to our market to enhance way people see our market she's also bringing back some of the old things we used to do which one of which is this weekend uh... saturday august eighth tomato fest downtown so we invite all of y'all to come down and uh... enjoy some of our locally grown produce and again we thank you thank you all right next we have our board of education report doctor tutor

Good evening, everyone. Congratulations, Councilman Graham and City Manager Slagle. It's great to see you both and as well as the rest of Council this evening. Just have a couple of things to share with you this evening. Shocking, but we're back in school. We started yesterday. So kids are back. We're excited. We've had a great couple of days. I appreciate the public's patience, certainly our family's patience with traffic. It's always a bit of a challenge the beginning of the school year. We've also made a couple of changes, particularly at Holston View, so you might hear about that a little bit. But we are super grateful for the Bristol Tennessee Police Department and all the support they provide us in terms of Managing our traffic needs and hopefully that'll settle down here in the next couple of days I just wanted to remind you and the public that we are offering Universal free breakfast and lunch again this year. We hope we'll be able to sustain that for quite a while and Then just wanted to say thank you again to the police department for hosting the national night out which is coming up this Saturday at Tennessee middle school and And then, um, thank John Luttrell for getting another year of organizing community university. He's, he's just reached out to us to start that process for this new school year. So we're grateful for those partnerships. It's all I have, unless you have questions for me.

Thank you so much. All right. We have four public hearings on tonight's agenda. Um, The first public hearing is Ordinance 26-9, an ordinance to amend the zoning map of Bristol, Tennessee by designating certain property as B3308 Glenwood Road. Ross Peters, Interim Community Development Planning Director, will present this item. This public hearing is now open.

Thank you. Good evening, Mayor Turner and council. Before you is a rezoning request for 308 Glenwood Road property. The property owner's term key foundation precast and the applicant was Seth Minton. The rezoning for this portion of the property that is outlined in red and hatched in red is a portion of the partial. There's already a portion of the partial there in the upper part of the screen that is zoned to B3. So the portion outlined in red is requested from R2 to B3 rezoning. Planning Commission did have this item on their agenda at their June meeting. And of course, back at the July 7th council meeting, this ordinance was passed up first reading by council. Before you is just a little brief B3 overview summary, just some numbers about the general business zone, some general setback information for commercial structures and residential structures, and some of the density requirements that are a part of that B3 zone. This map is showing that 308 Glenwood partial outlined in red again. This map is showing the current zoning that is in the area. Of course, the subject partial that's asked for the rezoning is zoned R2 there. Across the street, if you're familiar with the area, is the Glenwood Cemetery, and it is zoned R1A. which is our single family zoning. And the homes to the southeast are also zoned R2. And the properties that are zoned along, that are located along Bluff City Highway are zoned B3. This map is showing future land use that we have in our rigs. So as you can see again, that subject property is outlined in the red hatch. The cemetery is showing future as recreational or future use. The red is showing up as future commercial use, and the purple is your medium density residential future. So as you can see, the major portion of this partial is zoned red for that future commercial land use. Just a quick overview of the staff analysis. Again, the request is asking for 1.8 acres to be rezoned to that 1.93 partial to be zoned to B3. And part of our analysis is to look at the surrounding properties, and staff has found that they are consistently zoned with their current land use. And again, the future land use map indicates the area will be developed as commercial and medium density density residential in that immediate area. And our analysis concludes that the rezoning conforms to the future land use plan and policy that's in place. Public notification. Signs were placed on the property notifying the neighbors and the passersby that this request is here. Staff also sends out adjacent property owners letters requesting comment if there's comments to be had. And so we've received one comment letter with the question and one comment letter received against the rezoning. And for the public hearing, we published an ad in the Kingsport Times News on July 14th for this August council public hearing meeting.

I'm going back to, maybe I misunderstood this, that part of this parcel, there's two different zonings on the same parcel, or they're just asking for the hatched, I'm going back to the hatched section. Okay, right there. So you've got, are you saying they're just asking for this section to be, re-zoned that is hatched, because it looks like the property line goes on over. That's not hatched. Is that zoned differently already?

Correct. The property is split-zoned currently. So the portion that's on this map, the portion that is in red, is zoned R2, and the request is to zone to B3.

How is it split-zoned if it's one parcel?

We do have partial that are split zoned in the city I believe sometime prior in the past there had been some subdividing that had taken place On this property and it may have created that split zone situation but But the upper portion of the law that's not outlined in red is already currently zoned b3 as we speak So if you move the building over to there, then we would even be having this public hearing, correct?

I

If there was enough space on that small portion, you could, yes. That portion's only about a little bit over a tenth of an acre.

Theoretically speaking. Yeah, you get where I'm coming from. Okay. Is there any other questions from council? If not, is there anyone in the public that would like to speak on this matter? If so, come to the podium.

Good evening. My name is Courtney Raines, and I'm here this evening on behalf of the community, primarily residents that live on Glenwood Road and Tween Hills Road, which is parallel. this site is directly behind where i live and i have spent some time with residents that live anywhere from next door at 316 glenwood road all the way to 377 glenwood road and then on my road all the way from 101 Tween Hills all the way to 303. I have a petition with 13 signatures. It's mostly elderly people. That's probably why you haven't really heard back. I say elderly because I'm 37 and a lot of these people are probably old enough to be my grandparents, but we had conversations about concerns with this request. Risk to quality of life because a concrete plant does put off dust particles and silica. Noise issues, this is a highly residential area. heavy traffic when this was a concrete plant in the past. There were people that live on Glenwood Road that have been there for 20 plus years that were not pleased with the traffic coming in and out and turning around in their driveway, disturbing them and their animals. All of these factors threaten the safety of our community. We have an elementary school not too far away and also a daycare. This kind of hits harder to home as well because I have a child that has cystic fibrosis, which is a lung disease. It's not going to be good for him to be around this type of environment. Um, cause prolonged exposure to concrete dust can cause respiratory problems, environmental health hazards, and these are worse for older people and people with preexisting health conditions. There's also a concern of property value in a residential area when there's an industrial facility nearby. It can decrease by seven to 15%. We need to preserve the health of our residents. Please prioritize health and safety of Bristol's residents over industrial expansion within a residential area. We have further concerns about this rezoning to be three general business, because this is a heavily manufacturing hazardous operation that we believed was supposed to only be permitted within an M two heavy manufacturing district when, when approved through article five, section five dash one at four. We also have concerns about setbacks and buffers through code enforcement. We feel that, um, or we believe that there were supposed to be, you know, um, codes enforced as far as separation distance from residential structures within city limits. Um, and regarding heavy manufacturing properties, is that not supposed to require a 50-foot buffer along any shared property line with a residential zone? That's a primary concern we have as well. I have spoken extensively with Sheriff Young. I don't believe she works for the city any longer. I advised her about some activity that had been going on that was not allowed and therefore a cease and desist order had to be carried out. So there's concerns there with permits not being pulled Tons and tons of gravel and dirt and backfilling that was being done and I spoke with the owner Seth Minton and he said they were getting ready to Pour concrete and put in a parking lot Sheriff young also had a concern about a goalie and

You can go ahead. We have a three-minute time. But go ahead and finish up with the end of your... Oh, I'm sorry. No, no, you're fine. Go ahead and finish up at the end. I just wanted to...

Okay.

Okay.

There was also just a concern because there is a gully on site, which is a deep trench. And that can create serious erosion risk, stormwater compliance violations, and safety hazards. And just another side note I wanted to mention, I spoke to Margaret Fire Robin about this and also code enforcement. That property has not been maintained in two years. It's not been mowed. There are weeds over eight feet tall. Code enforcement said they have tried to reach the owner and it's been almost three weeks, have not heard back. and it's still not been maintained.

Thank you.

I have a petition.

Okay. You can leave it to Mary Lee here. They'll get copies of it and send to us. Anyone else like to? Okay.

Yes. Thank you very much. My name is James Minton, and I'm Seth's dad. And we are just a family business, and we're not making concrete. We're mixing concrete, which is different because what we're doing is making fence. And basically what we're doing is mixing up the concrete And then put it in a mold and you have pants. We're not, and our hours are 8 till 5, Monday through Friday. And as regards to your son, I think it was 65, I'm sorry for that. We are not out there putting out dirty air, dirty sand, silica. Like I said, once again, this is a mixing operation, not a concrete plant. We're not doing concrete trucks coming in and out. That's not our forte. I just want to let you know. Once again, as a family, I take it all personally. And with your petition of 13 people, I take that personally, too. And I will be happy, as I said last time, to open it up. You're welcome to tour the facility. You're welcome to look at it. And I just take your feedback. That's all I have. Thank you for listening.

Thank you. Would anyone else in the audience like to address counsel on this matter?

My name is Philip Gentry. I live in the Hainesville community. I come to observe. I don't come to talk to you guys. My background is all science, and basically I do population dynamics, material specialists. Don't know turnkey foundations. Don't know the mittens. I know the property very well. 1940 was when it was established as a concrete casting place, probably predates any of the houses that are still in existence. So I don't know how it got our tube probably because it was never zoned when it was in Sullivan county. I lived in a vocal when it was county and it predated Hainesville elementary, probably as a city school. So. You would have to compensate the new buyers. I looked online. They paid a substantial amount of money for the property. It was an oversight on the city just not zoning business to start with. You know, would I want to live next to it? No, I would not. But see, I don't know how you can go back and change the use because I knew the that operated that for decades and decades. And I'm pretty sure the date that that business was established as a concrete casting company was 1940. And you guys can check that. So, you know, I'm not here at all to speak about it. Don't know the people. But I think we need to realize how long it's been there, operational as a business. It was just improperly zoned when Bristol took the property over. I think it was a mistake on the city's part. So this Minton family that bought it, I assume they thought everything was cool because I know the real estate agents didn't tell them, hey, this is not zoned properly for the business that's currently operated. I would have seen that, but you know, you might ought to consider that before you make a decision.

All right. Thank you so much. Thank you.

honorable counsel mister mayor uh... my name is least review on uh... license attorney with uh... hunter smith and davis i represent turkey foundations the mittens and i've been assisting them through this whole process first through the bc aid in the planning commission we're here uh... these are good people just trying to bring business to the city and trying to comply with the rules and all that and they did kind of get into a little bit of a situation Zoning and understanding that there are rules to follow and all that and we've explained that to them and we need to do this the right way and we're trying to. The difficult thing about them is that they've invested all this money into this property and they've not been able to do anything with it. i've been representing them for about a year now and i'm not aware about cease and desist order anything like that but they haven't been operating as a business which is the point they've ceased all operations trying to get this reason i'm trying to be able to do business Our clients have lost, from what Seth told me, about 50 grand in contracts that are waiting, but can't be fulfilled because of this. Considering the community's needs, the fact that there are residents around and all that is an important consideration for the Mittens. They have a plan to set up a buffer zone, a green space for the area that directly abuts the residential zoning to mitigate those issues. As you heard from James, it's not necessarily – they're not – I don't know the words he used, but it's a mixing operation. There's not going to be a whole factory or anything like that. It's a mixing operation. So it's going to be low scale. They estimate there's going to be three people working there full time. So it's not a big operation. There's going to be a storefront. People can walk in and see what kind of products they're making. I don't really see this as a large operation as the point I'm trying to make. So with that said, you know, considering the community's needs, which is important, and our clients really do take that into consideration, I just want to show the other side of the coin. All the investment they've made, all the time they've spent into it, all the legal fees they've had to spend trying to do this the right way, and and be able to bring in business to the city, which I think is important as well. Thank you for your time.

Okay, thank you. Anyone else that would like to speak on this matter? Okay. This public hearing is now closed. Next, we have Ordinance 26-12, an ordinance extending a temporary moratorium on the establishment of permanent campgrounds. Mr. Peters will present on this item and this public hearing is now open.

Yes. Uh, for consideration is, uh, the ordinance extending the temporary moratorium on the new permanent campgrounds. Uh, just a little background, uh, at the March, uh, 2026, uh, council, uh, meeting council did vote on second reading to approve a six month temporary moratorium on permanent campgrounds in the city, which would be effective until October of 2026. At the June 2026 Planning Commission meeting, Planning Commission voted to send a council a recommendation to extend the temporary moratorium to January 31st of 2027 as staff has began the process to develop that draft ordinance working on making the permanent campgrounds in the city ordinance the way we need it to have. So at the July 7th, 2026 council meeting, this ordinance was approved on the first reading. And so some of that language there in the ordinance is there on the screen for your consideration. And as far as public notification, again, This public hearing was published in the Kingsport Times at the July 14th, 2026 paper for this August council meeting.

Okay. Would anyone in attendance like to address council on this matter during this public hearing? Seeing none, this public hearing is closed. Next, we have Ordinance 26-13, Ordinance to Amend the Zoning Ordinance to Regulate Recreation. Recreational substance retail use within the city limits of Bristol, Tennessee. Mr. Peters will present again, and this public hearing is open.

Yes, thank you. So this before you is to amend the zoning ordinance regulating recreational substance retail use. So at the June 2026 Planning Commission meeting, PC directed staff to draft a proposed amendment to the zoning ordinance, which included establishing a new definition for recreational substance retail. That was due to some of the jurisdictions nearby, Bristol, Virginia being the closest, adopting very similar ordinances to try to get these types of retail uses in certain areas in the city. And so on July 7th, 2026 council approved on the first reading of this ordinance. This ordinance was a little bit different out of sequence than normal. So the first reading took place in July in front of council and following that first reading at the planning commission meeting on July 20th, planning commission made a recommendation to council for this ordinance. The recommendation included two amendments to be made And so one of those amendments I have highlighted on the screen in yellow, and that addition or amendment was made from Planning Commission in this statement at the end of the recreational substance retail definition states, further, nothing in this definition or zoning ordinance will be deemed to permit the sale, transfer, or donation of any item that is prohibited by Tennessee or federal law. So that was the first amendment that Planning Commission made. The second amendment that Planning Commission offered was to extend the distance. If you recall, in the original ordinance, 1,000 feet was mentioned for the distance to establish between existing establishments or any establishment within 1,000 feet of an existing public library, church, hospital, and that's also been extended from 1,000 to 15 feet under their under their recommendation. Again, this public hearings ad was placed in the Kingsport Times News in July 14th, 2026 for this council meeting.

Would anyone in attendance like to speak on this matter? Seeing none, this public hearing is closed. Next, we have the Bristol-Tennessee Essential Services Highway 394 plan of services. This public hearing is open, and Ms. Peters will... One more. Good seeing you.

One more. So if you recall, about six months ago, the plan of services report for the BTS Highway 394 annexation was brought as a public hearing. This is brought to you because of the annexation of the parcel that is highlighted in blue on your screen. And that annexation was approved back in August of 2025 for this property located on Highway 394. That parcel is approximately 85 acres and is now in the city of Bristol and is zoned M2, which is one of our industrial zones. And as you can see, the TCA code there speaks to the reason why we do give these progress reports after annexation. So on the screen here is the plan of services that was adopted as part of this annexation. And the reason why we come back tonight for this one year is part of that plan of services was for the city to coordinate, install additional streetlights along Highway 394 on the partial with the BTS. And those streetlights would extend from that partial that was annexed to the Weaver-Pock interchange. And so I can report tonight, speaking with BTS, that that project for those streetlights is planned to begin in late spring of 2027. And again, public hearing ad was placed in the Kingsport Times News for this public hearing.

Thank you. Would anyone like to speak on this matter? Seeing none, that public hearing is closed. Next, we have the appearance of citizens that we had a sign-up sheet for, and I'm assuming that, Ms. Raines, that you were for the public hearing. Okay. And the first we have on here is Philip Gentry. Oh, okay. That for the public hearing also.

I just want you to reconfirm. I know you pretty much made up your mind on Skate Park and the Aquatic Center. look at it very carefully even if you're getting grant money there's going to be a cost to the citizens to maintain that facility for quite some time as i said i i go to board meetings i've gone to kingsport i've gone to john city they're fussing and fighting about their pools you will be too if you decide to go that route a pool is like a boat it's something you just pour money down skate park I don't think anybody here ever went to the skate park except maybe Mr. Slagle. I hope the answer is no. When it disappeared from Bristol, I thought maybe that's a wonderful thing. It was not a good facility. You know, if you're going to put it there, but think about what you do with this tax windfall you came into because that money will not be there forever. And I know we're a small city and everybody wants as many amenities as they can get, but I'm not sure that we can afford everything. So when you're talking about doing a special escape park or even an aquatic center, carefully look at the cost that it's going to take to staff and maintain that facility, because I don't know that the money is going to be there down the, down the road. And it's going to be very difficult to push another tax increase through it for a while at least. But that's all I came to say.

Okay.

Thank you, sir.

Thank you. Anyone else? like to address council on any other matter okay next we have appointments uh first we have the better property board and we have one candidate for the position which is mr steve willinger and would anyone like to speak on behalf of mr willinger i will

Mr. Willinger has served on the Better Properties Board before and has done an outstanding job, and he's very involved in the real estate community and is very well versed in the different properties throughout our city. So for that reason, I will support Steve Willinger.

All right. For Better Property Board, Councilwoman Acard has Steve Willinger. Mayor Turner has Steve Willinger. Councilman Graham has Steve Willinger. And Vice Mayor Powers has Steve Willinger.

Okay. Thank you for Mr. Willinger was here earlier. He's there. Oh, thank you. Next, we have two candidates for one open position on the Parks and Recreation Commission. We have Mr. Robert Jenkins and Courtney McDaniel. Would anyone like to speak on behalf of either of those?

That's a tough choice. Courtney McDaniel has contributed greatly to our athletics here in Bristol and currently works with young people. And I can say from personal experience, Robert Jenkins is a great outdoorsman and spends a lot of time in all of our parks. So they're both great candidates.

Councilwoman Akard has Courtney McDaniel. Mayor Turner has Courtney McDaniel, Councilman Graham has Courtney McDaniel, and Vice Mayor Powers has Courtney McDaniel.

I think they're both great candidates.

Thank you. All right, next we have the Planning Commission, and we have two candidates for one open position. We have Michael Smit and Robin Wade. Would anyone like to speak on behalf of these candidates?

Monorail tonight. I have served with Michael Schmidt and I know Robin Wade. She's very interested in serving in our community. Michael was appointed to a term that had not yet been fulfilled. He has worked tenaciously to become a contributing member to the Planning Commission and I will be supporting Michael this evening because he stepped up when we needed someone to be on the Planning Commission. He came to us by way of the Beer Board and has been contributing and would like to give him the opportunity to continue in a full term.

And I can say I've spoken to both of these candidates at length and I think they both would be fantastic. Candidates will do a great job, but. The same of believe Mr. Smith. He stepped up when we had an opening there and has done a great job on the commission and, um, let him continue.

So I too have served with him on the planning commission. He's done a great job and I think he, uh, needs to stay on there.

Councilwoman acre has Robin Wade. Mayor Turner has Michael Smith. Councilman Graham has Michael Smith. Vice mayor powers has Michael Schmidt.

Thank you. All right. We have one ordinance on first reading to consider tonight. It's ordinance 26-14, an ordinance to amend the appropriation of funds and budget for the fiscal year July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027. Holly Varon will present this.

Good evening mayor and council members. So tonight, um, ordinance 26, 14 is the first reading of a budget amendment, um, just to comply with statutory requirements. And that is to amend the general fund to $40,890,297. And that's an increase of $22,518. There's available fund balance to cover that. The capital equipment fund is proposed to increase to $2,626,813, and that is for a piece of equipment that was planned in 26 that rolled to 27. That will also increase the transfer from general fund to capital equipment fund by that same amount, so that will increase to $424,413. And the capital facilities fund is proposed to increase to $42,824,500, which is an increase of $270,000, and that is to be used for improvements at the current animal shelter. And the funding from that has been donated to the police benevolent fund, and that will repay the capital facilities fund each quarter. If that's approved tonight, then second reading and public hearing will be on the next meeting agenda.

Okay. Are there any questions for Ms. Barron? Do I have a motion? Wait, wait.

I'm sorry. Give me a chance. So to be clear, so that the public understands, the revenues that are being shifted or expended through the capital fund for the current animal shelter facility, the $270,000, would you explain a little bit more that this is not coming from the general fund, that it is coming from the police.

So it was from private donations that went to, I believe, the police benevolent account, which is outside of the city. As the city spends money toward those improvements, and that's what that donation was for, then each quarter the city will be reimbursed for those expenses. So there is no city money involved in that.

Right. I just wanted to reiterate and affirm that there are no city – General Purpose Fund revenues being now designated, that it is all through donations?

Yes, for that animal shelter, yes.

Do I have a motion to take action on Ordinance 26-14?

Motion to approve Ordinance 26-14. I have a second. Second.

I have a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? Mary Lee?

Graham? Yes. Powers? Yes. Aker? Yes. Turner?

Yes. All right, we have four ordinances on second reading for consideration this evening. Ordinance 26-9, ordinance to amend the zoning map of Bristol, Tennessee by designating certain property as B3-308 Glenwood Road. This item was presented by Mr. Peters during the public hearing section of the agenda, and I guess are there any questions for Mr. Peters on this matter?

I have some if you don't mind.

Okay, sure.

Let me get my microphone on. Mr. Peters, could you be so kind as to give us a little bit of the history of how many times they have come in front of the Planning Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals, and here?

Sure, yeah. I'll be glad to. So this property, 308 Glenwood Road, has been seen before above the different bodies. Beginning back, and we'll just go back and give a little bit of a timeline, if you will. So in August of 2025, Plenty Commission heard a request for a rezoning on this property from the R2 zone to an M2 zone. That rezoning request then moved on to the September City Council meeting for a first reading, and that rezoning request failed at that first reading, did not pass and move on after that. Just a few short months after that September council meeting in November of 2025, the owner of the property began some operations and some movement of things, which resulted in some phone calls from neighboring properties. Staff reviewed and looked at the property to see some of the activities that was going on. The owner was sent a letter to not operate the concrete plant at that location at that time. And so any type of activity stopped on that property at that moment. Fast forward to March of 2026, the owner filed an administrative appeal to the Board of Zoning Appeals about staff's decision on the activities that was taking place there on the property. And the BZA upheld the staff's interpretation of that letter. And then moving on to the B3 rezoning request, of course, back in June, Planning Commission heard this B3 rezoning request, and then in July, First Reading and Council, of course, last month.

Now, the request is for a B3 zoning.

Correct.

Because if we say, well, it's going to be a concrete plant, and that's why we would vote yes or no on that, that's contract zoning. Correct.

So under the B3 zoning, a concrete plant would not be allowed by zoning. The B3 zoning would allow, does allow some lot manufacturing with a retail use. And so it would, whether they would be making fence from a concrete product or from a vinyl or from a steel perspective, Whatever product they're making, as long as they have a retail on-site that sells those products to the public, that's what would be allowed in that B3 zone.

However, with the B3 zoning, if granted, they could then do anything that's legal in a B3 zone.

Right. Once zone B3, correct, any permitted use in B3 would be allowed to be there, yes.

So if they wanted to put a convenience store there, they'd be allowed to do a convenience store?

If the owner chose to do that in the future, yes, if it was on V3.

Okay, now I've heard some conflicting reports tonight. I've heard that they were operating and stopped by and see what they're doing, and I've also heard they're not operating. Are they operating?

Currently, no, they have not been operating, no.

Okay. Okay, that's what I wanted to find out about.

Well, I'm still of on this of, and, and I'm at the, I feel like that with this, it's kind of where I was last month of the fact that the property has been there since 1940 or somewhere near that. I do believe that this was an issue on the city of the fact that it was been improperly zoned for many many years and has never been fixed it was obviously operating as a business it cannot be it's not like you can just convert this over to be a home you already and i think it says for itself it's split zoned on part of it so if the building was moved over or If they, in this other section here, if they could build a skinny enough building to fit on the property that's already zoned, V3, we wouldn't even be having this discussion. And I think the, I guess one thing I would ask, so, Do they have a business permit with the city?

Is it a business license? A business license. I think they do have currently a business license, yes, a city business license.

OK, well, I guess once again, I'm looking at the fact that if we have, from my standpoint, if we have someone coming to us applying for a business license for this address, assume that on that business permit, it asks of what is being done there?

Do you know? The business license permit application, it asks for names of the business and the type of operation. Right.

So when they came to you, Um, before they went to the, um, board of zoning appeals, what was the question before city staff before the, before they took your, your opinion and then had to go to the board of zoning appeals and then got turned down by them because the board of zoning appealed agreed with your all's opinion. What was your opinion concerning?

It was due to the fact of the legal non-conforming use that had been taking place on that property. Obviously, there's been an established time there for many years. And so just a little word on the legal non-conforming use portion of that. With the commercial use like that was in place, there's a 30-month window from the time that that commercial use ceases to exist and operate. And so from what staff found and could research, the similarly concrete plant had ceased to exist and went out of business somewhere around the late 2020 timeframe. And so when they tried to begin operations, that 30-month window had passed. And that was the reason for the administrative appeal to the BZA about staff's decision.

So the former owners were there operating in a grandfathered situation. For many years, yes. And then after they ceased operations, it had to start back up within 30 months. Or it was totally out of compliance with the zoning. Is that correct?

Correct, yes. And that 30-month window had passed when turnkey had tried to restart. And that was the reason for the administrative appeal of staff's interpretation. And the Board of Zoning Appeals backed you all up on that? Correct, yes. They upheld staff's interpretation. Anything else?

I have a question for Mrs. Smith. Mrs. Smith, on their business license, do you know what type of business they were?

I do not. I don't handle the business licenses directly. Okay.

All right.

Any further questions?

Is there a motion to approve Ordinance 26-9? I'll make a motion to approve Ordinance 26-9. Second. We have a motion and a second. Any further discussion?

Well, it's a Solomon situation, isn't it? We've got a situation here where we've got a business that went out in 2020, and we have a business that has been operating legally in non-conforming status. We have allowed 30 months. If we, and I understand that the site has been there since 1940, here's my frustration in all of this. If we don't adhere to our own rules, policies, ordinances, how can we expect our rules, policy, and ordinances to be administered or adhered to properly? If in the 30 months, uh, 30 months is two and a half years to come into compliance and to conform. And we have, I sit on the planning commission and we, we, we ponder these things and we hammer these things out trying to be fair, but two and a half years is quite some time to not be conforming. And in that time, if I understood correctly, um, there had been had there been communication with, uh, the, uh, Minton family as to not the non conforming status.

So the property had been bought and sold actually There's an owner between turnkey and the sim release and so When when turnkey purchased the property and then tried to begin that's when that 30-month window had had expired by that time and so the M2 request that they had made back In August of 2025. Obviously, there was some things discussed there about the rezoning to M2, but I'm not sure as far as the timeline of the legal non-conferring use and the 30-month window. I can't speak to the exact conversations we had at that moment at that time.

Well, if the CIM release stopped production in 2020, then by mid-year of 2022. The non-conforming, the 30 months had expired. So I'm just curious, did the Mittens buy the property and it was already non-conforming and out of that 30 month window? So they bought, when did the Mittens purchase the property?

I don't have the exact dates in front of me at the moment. I know around the time that they purchased the property, it was getting close to that 30-month window, but I don't have the exact dates in front of me to say exactly. But I know that time frame was really close.

Councilwoman Powers, it was July of 2024.

It was purchased in July of 2024.

By the turnkey.

By turnkey. So it was already out of the 30-month window of nonconforming.

That would be the city's position, yes.

I mean, we have policies, we have ordinances, we had 30 months. I mean, it's not up for me to ask if it was appropriately disclosed to turnkey, but you said 2024?

That's when they purchased it. The 30 months would have been when the Simmerleys purchased it. So it was right on that of the 30 months from when they purchased in... 2024 you're saying it's right on the the time frame so but was the other company that owned it prior the company that bought it from the similarly's was it in operation and so if it was in operation if they the similarly's and then they were in operation would it not that 30 days of the fact of start over if the previous before the mittens purchased this product property and they were actually within the 30 days and they were operating with that not continue the 30 months 30 months i'm not 30 days 30 months

So based on the letter that staff sent to turnkey foundations back in November of 2025, um, the similarly concrete products ceased to exist in late 2020. And we do not believe that there was similar concrete production taking place after late 2020. Um, and then, so the 30 months would run, you know, at the latest, it would be over by July 1st of 2023. if you assume it started at the beginning of 2021, that's your 30-month period. So it's not who owns it, it's whether production's actually happening, whether the activity is actually occurring.

But do we know that 100%?

That's based on the investigation that staff undertook, and that was what was in the letter that went out to Turnkey, and that was the subject of the BCA appeal.

Well, I think that of... It was in operation for all that time of not zoned properly, improper zoning. You also have split zoning. You also have of going back to what we have done in the past. We're looking at staff's recommendation and what the future land use is on this piece of property. And the future land use coincides with the B3 of what we have looked at on As long as I've been on this council of numerous rezoning that has come before us, what is one of the first things that we do? We go and we look at the future land use that has been used within this whenever it was last updated of this. You've got a piece of property that it's one parcel, but it's split zoned. So if they could build a metal building on the other portion of it, of doing that and it's still in the same spot of where it is just doesn't make a lot of sense to me. I don't like the fact that it's been that long and hasn't, um, been reason. And the thing I would say is that also of once again, if there's not something in there that is Producing something the building is going to sit there and talk about of deteriorating and the grass growing up Then it's going to continue to be like that and then we're going to have another building kind of like the I guess the Pat Mitchell Powers building over off of Cedar Street that you know caught on fire and You know and so have Homeless living in it so that's I understand the fact of what, of, I think that this is, well, this is a mess. Um, and, um, I feel like that with it being there, as long as it has been there with the future land use. And that's kind of what I'm going. And also from staff, because it came from staff as a recommendation. if I'm not mistaking staff recommended to be three correct staff that you took to the planning commission was a recommendation from staff to be three.

Correct. Yes.

And so I guess of how I've looked at these rezoning of looking at what staff and the work that they have done, looking at the future land use and taking it to, um, the planning, I believe it was split in planning and, um, so that's where I am. Anyway, I don't have, is there any other comments?

Something I'd like to point out now, I understand it's a mess. I also know that if somebody is purchasing a piece of property, they need to do their due diligence. And it is not the city's responsibility to pull their chestnuts out of the fire. If they didn't do the work they should have done to find out that they had lost their grandfather, to find out the zoning wasn't correct, they should not have bought the property. So I cannot see the city needs to straighten out something they should have done. And the other thing is, and it's not getting mentioned, is the fact that the B3 zone allows so many things above and beyond what they're talking about doing. And they can sell it to somebody else, or they can quit operation, and all of the things in a B3 could then go in there. And I don't think it's appropriate for that neighborhood.

Well, I guess they can right now anyway on that other piece of property. That small little piece, yes. As long as they put a building in there, I guess they could, you know,

But if they get this rezoned, they then would have enough property to do a convenience store, to do a bunch of other things that would not work in that neighborhood.

Well, if you look on the backside of that neighborhood on Tween Hills, you've got the strip mall, which is what? That's probably maybe 1,000 feet from the parking lot of, you can see it in the, you can see the parking lot up there of where the, I guess, Dollar General is and the Family Dollar, what is there. Right here, and there's their property line. So ever how from the parking lot across the street and then whatever that lot is is how far it is from this, property line, which I think goes hand in hand with what the future land map was looking at. What's interesting is the part that is on B3 is not included in the future land map for B3, that small section. So I don't know. I just find it.

Well, I hate on my first night being a negative on something. Yeah. but however, on the planning commission, I voted no because I didn't think it was appropriate then, and I still don't.

Okay, any further discussion?

I have a question for Ross. Ross, here's the situation. If we vote to let it go, what does that mean? That means that The zoning follows the property, it doesn't. Once it's rezoned, it is, as Mr. Graham said. Anything in B3 could be allowed. If we vote no. To protect those that have. Made their positions known. What happens to that property then? I mean. There's not, there's not a. What are your thoughts?

If it were to remain R2, then any any permitted use in R2 could take place there.

What are some of those other uses?

Well, R2 is our single family duplex zone. Um, and so, um, obviously a structure like that, I mean, I think it was mentioned earlier, it would obviously be a little challenging to turn into a single family home, obviously. Um, and so we do have a couple other avenues that, that, uh, that planning commission and council on the special adaptive reuse section of the zoning ordinance. that would have some components there. If you recall working on that a few years ago where we were looking at some like former church and school and commercial sites like that. And so of course that would be available, but it's a very small condensed list of items that you can do besides single family or duplex residential.

All right, any further discussion? Mary Lee?

Graham?

I'm sorry, that has already passed. We had that during the public comment section. Okay. So, Mary Lee?

Yes, sir. Graham?

No.

Powers? No. No. Aker? Yes. Turner?

Yes. Okay. Motion fails for lack of. Next, we have Ordinance 26-11, an ordinance to abandon a portion of an alley located between Hill Street and Wilson Avenue. This will also be presented by Mr. Peters.

Yes, the ordinance before you on the second reading is the abandonment of that portion of the alleyway that is highlighted there in red, in hatched in red there on the map. The property owner that made the request is Stephen Schumacher. He is the property owner of both parcels that lie on the north side and the south side of this alleyway. and just to give the boundaries that is between Hill Street and Wilson Avenue there. Back in June at the PC meeting, Planning Commission voted to send a favorable recommendation to council, and at the July 7th, 2026 meeting, council approved this ordinance on the first reading.

Okay.

Do I have a motion to approve ordinance 26-11? Motion to approve.

Motion to approve.

Second. We have a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Mary Lee?

Graham?

Yes.

Powers? Yes. Baker? Yes. Turner?

Yes. Thanks to the ordinance 26-12, an ordinance extending the temporary moratorium on the establishment of permanent campgrounds, this item was presented by Mr. Peters in the public hearing section of the agenda. Are there any other questions for Mr. Peters on this matter? Is there a motion to approve Ordinance 26-12? Motion to approve. We have a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Mary Lee?

Graham?

Yes.

Powers? Yes. Akers? Yes. Turner?

Yes. Next, we have Ordinance 26-13, an ordinance to amend the zoning ordinance to regulate recreational substance retail uses within the City of Bristol, Tennessee. This item was also presented by Mr. Peters during public hearing section. Is there any questions for Mr. Peters on this matter? I have one. Have we figured out yet of the fact of I know there's in there of the 25 percent that. Who's going to police that of in these establishments, the 25% of the total product sales or 15% more of the establishments total display space of.

That would fall on, on community development planning and our codes division. Yes.

How many do we have right now? that would fall under this. I know that the ones that we have are grandfathered and this is what we're doing is making sure that we don't have 15 side beside going up the street and moving 1500 ft from each one and each one that is there now are grandfathered and there's no effect to them. But I would assume of moving forward

we would have to have are we going to check in the will we be going to check these now the current the current ones the current ones off would be become legal non-conforming if they are in one of the uh... zoning designations that have been removed for this time uh... moving moving forward uh... we'll be establishing some mapping to help us establish that 1500 foot buffer if you will preliminary staff has found somewhere around 15 16 establishments that that will most likely fall into this definition and so we will work on that buffering mapping if you will to to help us navigate in the future with any future businesses that want to open under this definition.

I didn't understand the 15. Does that mean the ones that are on the Tennessee side and the Virginia side? No, sir.

So that's approximately 15 businesses on the Tennessee side right now. So we have mapped the businesses that are on the Virginia side that would extend out the 1,500 to help create that buffer. But that number, the 15 or 16, does not include those. Those are just included just to help us establish that buffer area.

So you haven't determined how many additional stores could actually come into play?

From our estimate, it does leave some areas along, like the volunteer parkway, Highway 11E, the extent of West State on the west side, and Highway 394. It does leave some areas along those main corridors that would allow for a recreational substance retail.

Any further questions? Is there a motion to approve 26-13? Second. I have a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Mary Lee?

Graham? Yes. Powers? Yes. Aker? Yes. Turner?

Yes. Okay, we have three resolutions under consideration this evening. Resolution 26-117, authorizing entry into an agreement with Pillar Designs for the skate park design services. This will be presented by Mr. Mike Maines, Director of Park and Recreation.

Thank you, mayor Turner members of city council, uh, tonight before you something we're excited about. We continue to want to serve our entire population, uh, especially our kids and youth. And it's, uh, been quite a long time since, uh, the city of Bristol has had a skate park. And so with this resolution, if adopted tonight, we'll be able to move forward with the next phase, which is basically more design construction documents, permitting, bidding assistance, construction, administration, project oversight, through the completion. Pillar Design, to give you a little bit of background, came to us last year. We created a master plan for the skate park. We have all the confidence in the world that they can get the job done and do so in a great way for Bristol. I also want to add as well as the Escape Bristol is a group that have been highly active and making all this happen as well. They have a great volunteer base, great leadership. George Link, as many of you know, has spent a lot of time on this project. And so when you look down the road at maintenance needs that we have, they have a tremendous volunteer base that will assist the city with a lot of needs we have. So tonight I come before you with this. It's the A&E services that we're looking at is about 135,000. Again, the state of Tennessee gave us a million dollars for the project. The city will make a contribution, and also George Link and his group are looking for additional grant funding in various ways.

Any questions for Mr. Mains? Do I have a motion to approve 26-117? Motion to approve.

I have a motion to approve.

Second? Second. I have a motion and a second. Any further discussion?

I will say that the proposed renderings that we have seen work very nicely with the middle school, and I think it will be an enhancement to that whole area.

Yes, ma'am. It's certainly a good location, and we're going to be working with the school system to discuss things even more.

All right. Mary Lee.

Graham.

Yes.

Powers? Yes. Aker? Yes. Turner?

Yes. Next, we have Resolution 26-118, a resolution entering into an agreement with Clarks, Nexen, to obtain an economic impact study on recreation and aquatics facilities.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. If approved, this resolution would allow the city to move forward with an economic impact study for the proposed aquatic center and recreation center. Right now, currently, Clark Nixon has been working closely with our city leaders and staff and also looking at, down the road, the impact it will have on the city of Bristol. Again, we go back to recreational needs for a community. We want to be the best we can be and offer a variety of recreational resources. And in this case, we do want to be different than the local aquatic centers in our area. And that's the goal that we have to obtain. And in doing that too, the difference is acquiring a lot of donor funding. So when we look at this plan, we want to make sure, though, that the economic impact that when we build this facility that the city of Bristol will have, it will be great for all, and especially our taxpayers. So this particular study will look at expected attendance, operating revenues and expenses, financial stability, regional visitors and tournaments, visitor spending, job creation, tax revenue impacts, overall economic impact. The cost for the study is $44,000, $40,000 to be paid to Victus Advisors, and $4,000 will be given to Clark Nixon for their services. Again, that's all donated funding, so the city taxpayers will not have to have a burden on that. Any questions?

A question I have for Ms. Smith is this will – This is why it's important that the 501c6? C3. C3. Would you mention that by name one more time?

We have contemplated forming a nonprofit organization that we've titled Better Bristol, for lack of a more creative name, that staff would see that being an entity that could handle the flow of funds for projects like this.

And so when we were talking about the animal shelter that would flow through the Better Bristol, the skate park donations that the community group would flow through to Better Bristol, the aquatic center would flow through to Better Bristol, and on and on we go. And this is a new concept for Bristol, and we're very fortunate that we have angels out there that want to contribute to the city's growth and development. I think it's always important, as we work through all these things, to mention the 501c3 to better Bristol and to be sure that our public understands its significance. Thank you.

Do I have a motion to approve Resolution 26-118? Motion to approve 26-118. Second have a motion and a second any further discussion. I will just say that of Mr. Gentry is still here of you know when we're talking about of building an aquatic center and what we're doing with a lot of I believe with Katie's playground You know there these are true. This is funds that are coming from Outside that this is not coming from taxpayer dollars. This are funds that are being donated to outside and with Katie's playground, there's money built into that for future maintenance. And so I think there's a difference in the fact when you're looking at a aquatic center, you're looking at a skate park, you're looking at different things. This is a different situation that we have here. And I think it needs to be clear that.

Mayor, I would agree with you. having been in recreation for a long time, the story will come out at some point, and we're going to love to tell the story. But this is a unique opportunity that the city of Bristol has. When we look at building costs, we're looking at that, but we're looking at operational expenses too. You've got to in order to be successful, and we're seeking help with that, you know, privately. Absolutely. Thank you.

Mary Lee?

Graham?

Yes. Yes.

Powers? Yes. Aker? Yes. Turner?

Yes. Next, we have Resolution 26-119, a resolution approving the Zadie Property Project Tax Increment Financing Amendment for the Willie Boone Redevelopment District. This will be presented by Mr. Tom Anderson, Director of Economic Development.

thank you mayor good evening council members and city manager slagle welcome this is actually going to be kind of a group activity this evening the willie boom redevelopment district is just one of the more recent districts that were identified the plan the redevelopment plan actually was adopted back in 2005 and it's been amended through through the last two and a half decades to include areas that were targeted for redevelopment Willie Boom being one of these. Willie Boom did, the Housing Authority approved it back in August of 24. City Council approved it in September of 2024. Moving forward, we had a project come in, and that was the Zadie TIF project, the Zadie Housing Project, that's 445 homes. There was a public hearing for the TIF amendment, On July 15th, there was no public comment whatsoever. On the 28th, this was presented to you. And we do have the presentation that was when Mr. Malinay, he was out of town at the time, and he presented the project. We do have that teed up if you all have questions for it. So on the 28th, it was presented to you all. On the 29th, the Housing Authority considered the amendment, and then they adopted it unanimously. So now it's in front of you all to take action this evening. We have Joel Konkin somewhere back here in case you have questions on the mechanics of the TIF. We also have Jerome Mallonet with Arden Development Group. And Regina Edwards is here as Executive Director of the Housing Authority. The resolution in front of you anticipates not to exceed $9.3 million in this TIF. It's an 85% TIF, meaning there will be 15% holdback, which will show growth for the city. uh... this will be done in phases uh... three phases should take about six years to complete starting in twenty twenty seven being oversimplified it's first phase of the two years then four years be the second phase and then six years be the third phase uh... i don't know what all questions you have or if you would like to have some questions on the project itself like this that mister balance here is presentations here if you need uh... more details

Any questions for Mr. Anderson on this item? Do I have a motion to approve Resolution 26-119?

I'll make a motion to approve the resolution.

I have a motion. Do I have a second? Second. I have a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? Mary Lee?

Graham?

Yes.

Powers? Yes. Aker? Yes. Turner?

Yes. Thank you. All right, next we have the, thank you, Mr. Uh, next we have the consent agenda. Mr. Slagle.

Thank you mayor. Um, minutes from the July 7th, 2026 council meeting minutes from July 28th, 26 city council work session minutes from July 28th city council special called meeting of resolution 26, one 20, which is a resolution approving interlocal cooperation agreement with the emergency communications district city of Bristol. 26-121 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of two mini excavators with buckets from Stowers Machinery. 26-122 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of one Chevrolet Silverado 3500 from Carl Black in Nashville under Tennessee State Contract. 26-123 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of a forklift from Burwell Material Handling under the Sourcewell Cooperative Contract. 26-124 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of a 2026 Ford TA-55S bucket truck from Alltech Industries. 26-125 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of one 2026 Ford F-150 pickup from Ford of Murfreesboro. 26-126 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of two Skag Tiger turf mowers from Mead Tractor. 26-127 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of one brush chipper from Mayor Heartland under the Sourcewell Cooperative Contract. 26128 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of a rapid all-terrain tower mobile surveillance system from Critical Tech Solutions. 26129 is a resolution authorizing the acceptance of federal transit administration grant towards Tennessee 26025, the corresponding Tennessee Department of Transportation match awards and required local match. 26130 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of two ADA accessible cutaway style transit revenue vehicles from Central States Bus Sales. 26131 is a resolution authorizing the acceptance of Federal Transit Administration grant award, corresponding Tennessee Department of Transportation match awards, and the required local match. 26132 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of six bus shelters from Superior Recreational Products through by-board cooperative purchasing contract. And 26133 is a resolution authorizing the purchase of a clean span fabric salt storage structure from clear span fabric structures under the source well cooperative contract.

Thank you. Would any member of council like an item removed from the consent agenda? Do I have a motion to approve the consent agenda?

Motion to approve.

Do I have a motion? A second?

Second.

I have a motion and a second. Mary Lee?

Graham?

Yes.

Powers? Yes. Aker? Yes. Turner?

Yes.

All right, next we have the city manager's report. Thank you, Mayor. Day two here as city manager, so we'll figure out some things. But Mayor, Vice Mayor, members of council, first I'd like to thank Mr. Brian Ramsey for serving as the interim city manager instead. He's done a great job, as well as staff, in supporting him. Generally, I just want to say thank you for the confidence that you've placed in me to serve as Bristol's next city manager. It's truly an honor to serve the city and the community that I've always called my lifelong home. Over the coming weeks, my focus will be simple, listen, learn, build relationships with our employees, elected officials, businesses, and residents. I believe our employees are our greatest asset and I look forward to working alongside them and this council to continue moving Bristol forward with transparency, accountability, and a commitment to excellent public service. Uh, so some of the upcoming events Saturday, August 8th, uh, as Dr. Tudor mentioned, we've got national night out the Bristol, Tennessee police department, Tennessee middle school. Friday, August 14th, this one's really cool. I appreciate the partnership with Bristol-Tennessee City Schools for this one. It's Bristol Big Screen Night in partnership, as I said, Bristol-Tennessee City Schools and Bristol Parks and Rec. Activities will begin at 5.15 with Vikings player introductions, followed by a Tennessee high scrimmage with Gate City. After the game, there will be a Vikings meet and greet and movie Little Giants will begin at 9 p.m. Bristol Parks and Rec will also provide some games and giveaways throughout the evening. It should be a really nice event. And then we're in the final month of Sounds of Summer concert series, every Tuesday and Thursday throughout August. Thursday the 20th, we're going to enjoy Departure. It's a Journey tribute band. Should be high turnout for that. Tennessee Arts Commission also on August the 20th, the Grants Workshop with Executive Director Ann Pope at Paramount. And August 21st, Bristol Sessions Nights, Mountain Songs, and the Bristol Listening Room, the former L.C. King building. Awesome. A lot of fun things coming up here in the city, a lot of work city staff has done to put this out for our residents and good things for us to take advantage of. Again, I just want to thank you all for your confidence you've placed in me. Our family's had a lot of tough decisions in the past three to six months, and I thank God for providing a vision for us and support and direction. Our job is not simply to manage the city of Bristol. That's not our job. Our job is to make it stronger than we found it, and that's what we'll do.

Sounds great. Thank you and welcome. Thank you. City Council comments.

I'll second that. Thank you and welcome. Thank you for being here. Thank you for accepting this role. Bristol has a lot of wind at its back right now. We've got a lot of great projects, whether it's through Parks and Rec or whether it's through Public Works. We're on point with our economic development as well as our Department of Community Engagement. We have outstanding projects. Efforts being made through our safety, fire and police, our infrastructure, utilities are outstanding and our legal counsel, our human resources and our financial groups. If I've left anybody out, I apologize. We are on the move and having our new city manager will help us to move forward even more succinctly than we have in the past. The BCM will be sponsoring Rhythm and Roots again this year, 11th, 12th, and 13th of September. If you don't have your tickets, please get them. The raffle tickets are for sale as well. Last week you heard the announcement about Merry and Bright. It's actually both cities working with Explore Bristol and Believe in Bristol. There will be over 100 Christmas trees sold, ranging from 9-foot, 12-foot, 9 to 20 feet, and in Anderson and Cumberland Park. There'll be a tremendous compliment to our efforts in making Bristol, Tennessee and Virginia a destination for Christmas travel. As we move on through the fall, we've got many events, both music, we'd be remiss to not mention the race. We would also be remiss to not mention our school system. Back to school is a tough time. I was there for many years and it's a tough time, but it's a great time. And so we want to compliment all of our educators as well. Bristol really is in so many different directions moving in the right direction and the directions that perhaps need to be improved. We believe we've got the right people in place to do it. So I encourage everyone to be positive as we move through this together.

Any further comments? Oh, all right. Please.

I would just like to say just the Brown family has really been my thoughts and prayers. Blaine lost his wife suddenly, Jenny, and their three young children, Bella, Gloria, and Quentin. I talked to Dr. Scott today, and there'll be lots of opportunity to support them now with meal trains, with gift cards. And then later, months from now, when things side down, They'll rev up again and more information will follow on how to support them if anyone is interested. And I'd also like to say I really hate when the state park supporters get a negative rap. And I would just like to say in my time on council that they have been an absolute joy to work with and to get to know. And I think some people just need to open their minds a little bit and give them a chance because they are just truly wonderful people and big supporters of our community, and we're lucky to have them.

That's all. Mr. Mayor, I want to thank you all for showing some confidence in me and letting me work with you for the next little bit. I look forward to helping you all. I know you've got a lot of things that are getting ready to happen. I've been able to see some of the things that you all were talking about that's going to be happening in Bristol. It's great. We've got a lot of great things going on in Bristol, a lot of great things going to happen in the future. Our city manager, right person for the job. I'll do anything I can during this time I'm on here to help you, and just happy to be here.

Thank you. Fantastic. All right.