Sunday, October 12 2008

The Seymour Herald — Seymour, TN

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Joe Karl

why do people move here

By Joe Karl
jkarl@theheraldnewspapers.com

published: February 20 2008 11:21 AM updated:: February 19 2008 12:43 PM

I was perusing the web this past weekend in the wee hours and came across a site that complained about Sevier County.

As this is my home, I immediately went to the site to read what they said.

I was not prepared to read the type of comments that were posted.

Here’s what one post said;

My home in MI is 1500 sq ft, 3 bed 2 1/2 bath, 1/3 acre. $120,000 in a great safe neighborhood with great schools. Here in Gatlinburg/Sevierville/Pigeon Forge, I can't touch that home for less than $175,000. We ended up renting in Seymour

Price of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables. Ooooohhh...that one really irks me. Why is it that a nice warm area has no Fruit Stands?

Milk prices. Anywhere from $3.25-$4.99 a gallon. Store brand, not name brand. Michigan prices: $2.79.

After all of my complaining, I have to say, I do like TN. Maybe I'm just in the wrong part of it. Knoxville would seem better for me and my family, but the drive to work would be over an hour and that's not happening. It is a bit of a culture shock as everything moves slower down here and the people are nonchalant about EVERYTHING.

This commenter ended with; I guess, you just take the bad with the good.

Another poster commented; I thought that was a huge mistake to move here from Florida. I've lived in tourist areas before, and I don't think it is ever a wise decision to move to one. Traffic, prices and a large proportion of transplants can make for big headaches.

I'm finding housing prices are not great, either. They are much better than a lot of the country, but theere are a LOT of people moving in and jacking up the prices. We are still renting, and quite frankly, I'm starting to panic a little.

And this is the saddest; I knew that Sevier County was not that educated, but am still surprised at how poor with money the locals are. And, how POOR they are! It’s sad to think that all these tourism dollars does nothing for the people born and raised here.

But we love it here.

This last comment reminded me of the millions of school funding that Sevier County recently lost as a result of the revised method of calculating county school funding.

When we have no control over our circumstances, we live at the pleasure of others.

That’s why it’s so important for Seymour to incorporate.

Many have posted comments on our website against my comments, based on uneducated guesses.

Unless you have been to http://www.city-data.com/county/Sevier_County-TN.html, you probably didn’t know that most of the people that moved to the Seymour/ Sevier County area came from Knox County.

The Knoxville city limits are a mere three miles from Seymour.

Incorporating Seymour before Knoxville steps in and annexes it, would be a smart move. Just look at the tax rates in Knoxville.

If you think Knoxville can’t incorporate because it’s in another county, let me remind you of Bristol with is in three states.

I am working on providing a clear picture of what it would cost each homeowner if Seymour was incorporated to squelch those naysayer that claim it would cost a fortune,

The current representation Seymour has in our county government is a shame. The comparison of Seymour’s attributes to the other communities in the county is very disparaging.

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User Comments

#1 TN native commented, on February 19, 2008 at 8:22 p.m.:

Bristol is in two states, Tennessee and Virginia, not three.

#2 TN native commented, on February 19, 2008 at 8:51 p.m.:

My family moved here over 30 years ago from Middle Tennessee. I have been very happy here, so happy in fact that I no longer claim the town I was born in as my hometown, even though I still have relatives there. I graduated from Seymour High School and have gone on to graduate from college; I have a job in Sevier County that not only permits me to live comfortably, but also makes me happy as a person. The education system here is not bad or backward. As compared to the area I moved from we have better schools and the crime rate is much lower here too. I have lived in Knoxville, the Tri-City area of Upper East Tennessee, and Atlanta; I could not wait to get back to Seymour after living in those places.
As in ANY area, there is always room for improvement. I learned a long time ago that things move at a slower pace here. Just because that is different from what you may be used to does not make it a bad thing. After you have lived in this area 30+ years you might grow to appreciate this area and the people here for the good folk that we are.
Joe, why did YOU move here? Because you come across as sooo unhappy and dissatisfied with the situation in Seymour and Sevier County, it makes me wonder why you picked this area to move to. Did you not do your research? Maybe you should go live in Knoxville or Atlanta for awhile...it will make you appreciate what we have here.

#3 weird commented, on February 19, 2008 at 9:15 p.m.:

I'm curious...How can this article be published on 2/20 (when it is the 19th), and updated on 2/19? Last time I looked 19 came before 20....where did you go to school? And ya'll complain about the school system here. Go figure.

#4 concerned in Seymour commented, on February 20, 2008 at 11:15 a.m.:

Joe, I have to agree with you. I don't believe anexation by Knoxville is an "IF" issue but more like a "When".Seymour is the fastest growing area of Sevier County by far. And if you will notice most of the new businesses are all Knox county based.You better believe the powers that be both in Sevier and Knox county are watching the available tax revenues.I believe the citizens of Seymour deserve a voice as to the change of our community.My wife and I both work in Sevier county and our children attend school in Seymour. I would hate for an outside government to decide what wil happen to the area.Also,I feel like our own county treats Seymour as the "Red headed step child".We seem to be at the bottom of the list for improvements.Case in point. Seymour Park.There is a retired english gentleman who took it upon himself to maintain the Park.I spoke with him a couple of times and was shocked to here that we have the only park in the county that the county will not support.If you have not visited the park you should go. It has a nice playground,soccer fields,baseball fields and a concession stand and Yes restrooms.All of this is maintained by one man for free.He had to bring his riding mower from home to keep the grass cut.There are also several more acres deeded to the park for expansion that are overgrown.The gentleman told me he had been to so many comission meetings trying to get help that he was about to give up.Bottom line,If it doesn't concern tourism it doesn't concern the county government.If, as has been reported we (Sevier County)is one of the richest counties in the state ie School system cuts etc.Why are the locals valued so little by our elected officials.If we want to keep Seymour a place we are proud of and comfortable living in I don't see an alternative but to incorperate.At least we will have a voice in the future of our community.

#5 LIZ IN KNOXVILLE commented, on February 20, 2008 at 11:38 a.m.:

WHY DON'T YOU GO BACK TO MI IF YOU ARE NOT WANTING TO BE AROUND NON EDUCATED PEOPLE.SEE YA!!!!

#6 A factual opinion commented, on February 20, 2008 at 10:45 p.m.:

Several years ago, the state required all municipalities in Tennessee to determine their "urban growth boundary" (UGB) meaning the land surrounding the municipalities that could eventually be annexed. Tennessee cities and towns are not allowed to annex anything that is not currently part of their urban growth boundary. A look at Knoxville's UGB does allow for possible future annexation to the Sevier/Blount County line (gap of the mountain). However the UGB does not extend into Seymour proper.

"Incorporating Seymour before Knoxville steps in and annexes it, would be a smart move." A quick study of this UGB will show that it is extremely, extremely unlikely to ever happen.

"If you think Knoxville can’t incorporate because it’s in another county, let me remind you of Bristol with is in three states." The city of Bristol came about many, many years ago - long before and UGB was ever considered.

Saying that Knoxville has it's eye on Seymour for possible future annexation is simply a scare tactic.

#7 A factual opinion #2 commented, on February 20, 2008 at 10:49 p.m.:

A simple search of http://www.city-data.com/ and www.kgis.org and www.cityofknoxville.org revealed all of this data. But, I'm no journalist..

#8 To a Factual Opinion commented, on February 21, 2008 at 6:57 a.m.:

Your right, you are no journalist. Had you been, you'd notice that the website http://www.city-data.com/ indicates Seymour is a city, plus the population is listed as 8850 which is about 16,000 to 20,000 short. What if this editorial is correct? Why would you state that it's a scare tactic? I think your comments sound more like a scare tactics. Look what happened from Sevierville all the way to I 40. They were gobbled up on both sides of Hwy 66 past I 40. Why couldn't that happen up Chapman?

#9 A factual opinion #3 commented, on February 21, 2008 at 10:14 a.m.:

I think that Sevierville's interest in Seymour is more likely than Knoxville's. However, at best that is extremely remote.

But, once again to suggest Knoxville has it's eye on Seymour for possible future annexation is simply a scare tactic.

#10 Cygnus X commented, on February 23, 2008 at 12:25 a.m.:

ahem, Knoxville being in Knox County cannot annex into another county without an act of the legislature. It won't happen, so why not make the claim for incorporation based on better services or representation rather than the fear factor of the Big Bad City coming in to 'change' things.

#11 Seymour Gal at Heart commented, on February 28, 2008 at 7:28 p.m.:

Can someone please explain what the benefits of incorporation would possibly be for Seymour residence? What would it take to make that happen?

#12 who knows? commented, on February 29, 2008 at 2:25 p.m.:

"Local" control, if you like the people you elect. A local Police Chief, Mayor, City Council, etc. The question is can Seymour elect quality people or are we back to the good ole boy or girl network?

#13 funny commented, on April 11, 2008 at 1:22 p.m.:

Oh let me see, I think Seymour would be in the same bag. Don't go thinking people in Seymour are saints. Most of the good ole boys come from Seymour so no we do not need anymore BS has we already have going on.

#14 rc richard commented, on May 13, 2008 at 2:17 p.m.:

Seymour is a beautiful area.
I was raised in this area, but have lived in TX, OH, and NC. I just wish Seymour was not so behind the time. People here are so closed minded and not willing to change anything. Some change is healthy. The other thing about this town is about 85% of everyone you see is lazy and overweight. Seymour! Wake up give the world something to actually see!

#15 seymour born n bred commented, on October 2, 2008 at 11:25 p.m.:

I HATE that PEOPLE ARE MOVEING here !!!! I HATE that we NOW have TRAFFIC !! & i hate when YANKEES are RUDE !! i missed the days when we had 1 red light in town & when nobody knew where seymour was even located. and by the way rc richard, i haved worked everyday since i was 16 yrs old, im NOT overweight , i'm a CHRISTIAN and dont want to be WORLDY ,or open mined to gay marrige, abortion, or whatever your implying that seymour people arent hip with. you obviously arent from here & dont see the extreme changes our community had had no choice but to endour. i DO miss the days & time when my community was very slow, friendly, honest & GOD fearing. those days are long gone it seems, and no im not old........im 33 yrs old & i still have OLD FASHIOND values & MORALS thaks to a Loveing family that raied me in this podunk town !