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More Knoxville Magazine - June/July 2009

• From the editor: June issue of Knoxville Magazine
• UT football coach Lane Kiffin and his family get settled in Knoxville
• Luxury Inn Blackberry Farm gets back to its roots

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The most spirited debate among Knoxvillians is trying to put a finger on what the single "it" is that Halls has. One trip to Riverdale, in East Knox County off the French Broad River reveals a mile long "it" list beginning with the French Broad River, since that is the source of Riverdale's awe-inspiring beauty and utilitarian functionality.

The French Broad is the anchor of Seven Island Wildlife Refuge, which opens up a myriad of recreational opportunities that outdoor mogul Ed McCalister plans to showcase in the future.

The river is also a source of prime farmland. Twenty-five percent of the French Broad River Corridor is covered in prime farmland. Prime farmland can practically farm itself. The soil and environment surrounding it make it highly sustainable to produce economically viable crops.

Nestled in this rich agricultural backdrop is a prize-winning dairy farm, a winery, organic and traditional farms, an exotic animal farm, bee hives that produce some of the county's best honey, Native American burial grounds, James White's original homestead, and breathtaking scenic views.

What makes these landscapes so special are the sprawling countrysides, crystal blue water, and vast green landscapes. Things that once paved, are gone forever. Far different from a failed industrial site that can be turned into an office park and then renovated into a trendy mixed-use development.

Once farmland is gone, it is gone forever. There are no "do-overs."

The 8th District Preservation Association and The French Broad Preservation Association are protesting a seemingly disjointed proposal by the Knoxville Chamber to use the property at the I-40 Midway Road exit for an industrial park.

The community prefers to develop the property so it connects to the area's rural heritage.

A cast of Riverdale characters tells the story of a place that contributes more to the character, vitality and tradition of a Knox County community than any industrial park ever has.

Earl Cruze - In the heart of East Knox County is the Cruze Family Dairy Farm, which helps provide economic success to some of Knoxville's famous eateries, including Magpies, Tomato Head, and Blackberry Farm.

Imagine a Knoxville robbed of these tasty treats. Or imagine the Cruze's Jersey cattle looking onto a subdivision, mooing neighbors to sleep and perfuming the midnight country air.

Earl Cruze credits neighbors Elaine Clark and Tim Robinson for holding off the MPC from changing the zoning from agricultural to residential. This allowed Earl to purchase the property, expand his farm and keep his more than 400 acres a "forever farm."

Working together with Knox County and the Tennessee Land Trust, the Cruzes tapped into the USDA Farm and Ranchland Protection Program 5 years ago to place a conservation easement on the property. This means the Cruze Dairy Farm will always remain a farm no matter who owns the land hundreds of years from now.

"The Cruze Dairy Farm is such a unique piece of property," notes Emily Parish of the Tennessee Land Trust. "It is very special to have a working dairy farm so close to an urban environment. We felt it was important to protect the land and carry the legacy of the Cruze's passion for dairy farming forward."

The Cruze Farm is the first farm in Tennessee to be granted funding from a very competitive USDA program. Since then, the Tennessee Land Trust has helped two other farms, in Polk County and Clarksville, receive "forever farm" conservation easements.

Land conservation is critical component to the local economy, particularly with so many efforts building steam to promote local buying in order to support local workers and services and pay local taxes.

In fact, the "buy local" movement has allowed the Cruzes to further expand their business. They now deliver milk to Chattanooga and Asheville and will soon be opening a farm store on Frazier Lane off Kodak Road.

"Whole milk and buttermilk are the best products we have," says Earl Cruze.

"I grew up milking cows, and I don't want to stop," he adds.

Bob Deck - Bob Deck is a city boy from Detroit with farming in his DNA. Four years ago he moved from Old North Knoxville to Riverdale to pursue his love of organic farming.

"I have an enthusiasm for farming and an appreciation for the unbelievable amount of labor that goes into running a small family farm," says Bob.

Bob purchased the farm from Connie and Wayne Whitehead who moved from the farm to live in the old Riverdale School. The Whiteheads organically farmed the property for 20 years, and Bob wanted to carry on that tradition.

"We wanted our daughter to understand where food came from and have some space," he says.

On 10 beautifully landscaped acres, the Decks have two organic gardens: one for their own use and a market garden. The Decks harvest blueberries, spinach, strawberries, asparagus, apples, peaches and figs to sell at farmers' markets, The Glowing Bowl and Tomato Head.

Harry Pickle - In 1895 Harry Pickle's H&H Service Mart was THE place to buy everything, from ice cream to snuff to canned oysters. It still is 114 years later. "We haven't closed yet," Harry says. The French Broad Preservation Association holds its summer tailgate market at Harry's store every Saturday in June and July where they sell locally grown produce.

Approaching 94-years old, Harry is one of Riverdale's patriarchs. He can tell you where everyone in the community used to live by reading through the store's leather-bound hand-written ledger dating back to 1895.

The H&H Service Mart hit celebrity status in 1983 when Jane Fonda came to town to film The Doll House. Harry had his picture made with Jane, but as Harry tells it, "It was just like any other picture."

Ruby Drinnen - Ruby Drinnen taught 3rd and 4th grade at the historic Riverdale School from 1958 until it closed in 1985.

"The school was the hub of our community," says Ruby. "The Thorngrove Pike area is such a peaceful, wonderful place." A place that inspired her, along with other residents Nancy Jones and Joyce Rasar, to collect over 400 photographs that document 74 years of history at the school. Ruby exhibits the photos in the historic school at the annual country fair every September.

Deb Taylor and Mark Burch - Deb and her husband Mark farm 18 acres of prime farmland on the banks of the French Broad. They've been in business 25 years and moved to Knoxville to buy their very own farm instead of renting land in Lake City.

Gourmet Nutrition grows a wide variety of sprouts and edible flowers in addition to growing and distributing fresh herbs to Knoxville, Nashville, Chattanooga and Atlanta.

"We distribute 400 pounds of fresh basil a week," says Deb.

Their property also houses 18 greenhouses full of peppers, heirloom tomatoes, house plants and the like. The sense of community and its agricultural traditions are very helpful to their business. One example is contracting work out to neighbors instead of going outside to look for help.

"It is important to maintain the agricultural base of the river corridor because the soil is irreplaceable," says Deb. A Wal-Mart can go anywhere, but this Class I agricultural soil is a valuable commodity that you can't get back once it's destroyed."

A Development Perspective - West Knox County has been the hub of development over the past decade. That boom is now pushing development to North and East Knox County - where potential profit margins are larger, developvable land is more accessible and fast-paced population growth in Jefferson and Sevier Counties is putting pressure on Knox County for more residential and business development.

"Because there is less development history in East Knox County, it tells developers that the opportunity for a higher profit margin exists, and it is logical for development interests to grow there," says Doug Berry with Blue Ridge Development. He is also on the joint City-County Task Force of Ridge, Slope, and Hillside Development and Protection.

Berry is quick to point out that this is not the only place to cultivate development interests. The I-275 corridor, Westview Redevelopment Area and the center city around the old H.T. Hackney site are viable options as well.

It costs less for a developer to develop farmland than to redevelop an existing piece of property. However, this trade off is partly a product of politics.

One argument developers use to justify building high-density subdivisions on prime farmland is Knox County's expected growth over the next decade and the anticipated need of 10,000 houses to meet growth demands.

"According to MPC, there is plenty of land available in the current urban growth plan without taking any land that is currently zoned agriculture or rural," says Riverdale resident Tim Robinson.

Redevelopment - even new development - requires a municipality to identify those areas and take the initiative to acquire the property, resolve any environmental issues or infrastructure challenges, and then resell the property to private interests.

"I always thought the city needed an internal sales and marketing team [to market redevelopable properties]," notes Berry.

Doug Berry admits to being a part of the planning process that identified the Strawberry Plains Pike exit and Midway Road exits off I-40 as logical areas for future industrial growth.

"[The key] is allowing the community to build consensus about the type of business they want to have and how to transition [the development] outward to preserve the rural traditions," he adds.

The Knox County Development Corporation and Knoxville Chamber need to listen to the community's consensus, according to Berry, instead of forcing a "one size fits all," industrial development plan.

Berry also feels "land use policies should be put in place, and enforced, along the French Broad River Corridor to preserve its rural character." He points to Vermont and New Hampshire as examples where policies passed in the mid 1980s to protect land outside the city limits from being subdivided into less than 10 acres.

"I hope not to see the French Broad River banks lined with high-density development," says Berry. "I think five acre [residential] lots with a preserved corridor along the river would be more appropriate for the area."

Riverdale's Future - Riverdale is a community of strong, passionate and savvy individuals who work tirelessly to preserve the area.

The undiscovered areas of East Knox County seem to be undervalued because of no urban style commercial developments.

It seems the true value of the Riverdale community gets lost because pumpkins, green beans, sunflowers, okra and dairy products aren't as hot a commodity.

The Tennessee tourism industry employs over 177,000 people. This is a viable industry to cultivate too. So is the "buy local" movement.

People visit and live in East Tennessee because of its beautiful scenic views, endless stretches of rivers and rolling farm landscapes.

These components are what make communities like Riverdale unique and viable.

For now, however, the debate remains over the vision and future of east Knox County. Market forces, politics, conservation easements and the tireless efforts of preservation groups will forge ahead and collectively determine the fate of east Knox County.

Cortney Piper owns Cortney Piper Communications, an affiliate of SRW & Associates public affairs consulting.