Benchmarks 2016: Business & Industry (Section A)

Section A

Business & Industry The Greeneville Sun

Benchmarks — March 12, 2016

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www.greenevillesun.com

THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION Saturday, March 12, 2016

Scott Niswonger Purchased Several Downtown Properties In 2015 Purchases Kicked Off Plans For TIF And Downtown Redevelopment

BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU EDITOR

Work to redevelop several blighted properties in downtown Greeneville got underway in earnest last September when Greeneville businessman Scott Niswonger purchased five downtown properties from longtime merchant Charles Kyker.

Niswonger bought the five Depot Street properties for $225,000, according to documents filed at the office of Greene County Register of Deeds Joy Rader Nunnally.

Two of those properties have since been condemned and demolished.

The five properties Niswonger purchased are: • the former Droke’s shoe store building at 136 W. Depot St., where the nowclosed Kyker’s Boots & Shoes was later located for several years; • a former pool hall, wherea “Billiards” sign hung on the front door for years, located at 134 W. Depot St.; • a building at 130 W. Depot St., just east of the Leighton House office building, which is not owned by Kyker.

• the building at 121 W. Depot St. which for decades has been the home of Kyker’s, the dry goods store he has owned and operated; and • the building across the street from Kyker’s store, at 138 W. Depot St., where a small business, Old Timers Bottom Dollar, opened in April 2015.

Kyker has been in business on Depot Street since 1963.

Niswonger said per the sales contract, Kyker has an option to keep occupying the 121 W. Depot St. property — where his current store is — for up to two years after the purchase agreement was signed.

The other four buildings immediately transferred to Niswonger’s ownership.

SMN Investments Inc. is the entity through which Niswonger bought the properties.

SUN FILE PHOTO

An excavator tears through rubble at a condemned building at 134 W. Depot St. in January. The site, a former billiards hall, was condemned in late 2015 as more than 60 percent of its interior had collapsed. The building, previously owned by longtime merchant Charles Kyker, was among five sold to businessman Scott M. Niswonger last September.

DOWNTOWN REDEVELOPMENT Niswonger, who already owned several properties downtown and on Depot Street, said his main goal in buying the buildings was to accelerate revitalization of downtown Greeneville.

He envisions Depot Street being a hub for more stores and residential developments, including loft apartments and condominiums. “It could be a combinations of things like that,” he said. “We hope we can get started with that in the spring.”

He, Greeneville City Administrator Todd Smith and other officials have been working since then to develop a TIF district downtown to begin redevelopment there (see related story in the Government section of Benchmarks for more information).

A TIF, or tax increment financing, is a tool whereby governments or economic development agencies can issue bonds to pay for a redevelopment proj-

ect of public value. That debt is paid off over a set number of years by applying directly to the debt the additional (incremental) real estate taxes generated by the improved properties.

The Town of Greeneville, Greene County and the Greeneville Housing Authority in January closed a preexisting TIF used to develop the General Morgan Inn and conference center, first put into place in the 1990s.

That action clears the way for a new TIF project.

Since the General Morgan Inn project was started, Tennessee law has changed to allow for a whole district to be redeveloped using a TIF, Smith said.

The district must be contiguous and can include properties owned by multiple people or entities. So other property owners downtown could benefit from a new TIF if they choose to improve their properties using TIF funds.

“I think the benefits are going to

be there for a lot of property owners downtown,” Smith said.

The board of mayor and aldermen would also have to put a redevelopment plan together to establish the TIF district, according to Smith.

“It’s so dependent on getting this redevelopment plan put together,” Smith said. “This TIF gives us an opportunity. I think there’s a whole slew of other properties downtown that could benefit from these public enhancements and public improvements.”

Niswonger said in September 2015 he hopes some sort of TIF district is established by the time he’s ready to begin work downtown. “We want to see that get in place before we really begin to do anything,” he said. “It’s just important to have those properties that are adjacent to one another in tact.”

“It’s of primary importance that this TIF district be accelerated,” he continued.

Meanwhile, Niswonger said he would also like to see a permanent parking structure eventually built on Depot Street. The corridor will need more parking if more shops and residential structure are ever developed.

LONGTIME MERCHANT Kyker told the Sun in an April 2015 interview that he and his wife eventually plan to move back to Oneonta, Ala., where they own four houses and a farm.

“I can’t handle this any more,” he said in the April interview. “It’s too much for me.”

Kyker, a Newport native, also owns stores in Newport and Morristown and has been a business constant in downtown Greeneville for more than five decades.

He came to Greeneville in September 1963 to run a department store for the Ira A. Watson Company — better known as Watson’s He was working in Russellville, Ala., when he got the call that Watson’s was opening its Greeneville store, and he hurried here with his wife to open it.

He has flourished since branching out on his own in 1979, at his current West Depot Street location.

Worthington Industries In Midst Of Major Expansion

BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU EDITOR

W

orthington Industries $14.25 million Greenev ille expansion, announced in June 2015, is well underway.

W o r t h i n g t o n announced it would be expanding its engineered cabs facility in Greeneville by 140 employees, with $14.25 million in related capital investment.

Worthington Corporate Communications Director Sonya Higginbotham said at the time the company, which manufactures custom-engineered operator cabs for industrial mobile equipment, is bringing to Greeneville four new product lines.

In reality, five new product lines came to Greeneville: a John Deere commercial mower, plus a Caterpillar skid steerer, small wheel loader, a wheeled skidder and a wheeled feller buncher.

The action will bring Worthington’s total employee count in Greeneville to about 460 by the time the expansion is complete. As of early March, about 50 employees had been added, bringing total employment to about 370.

Higginbotham said in March that market conditions will determine how quickly the other employees are hired.

Worthington hopes the expansion to its building will be complete by summer 2016, she said.

SUN FILE PHOTO

Geoff Hurst prepares to work on a press break at Worthington Industries, which manufactures custom-engineered cabs for mobile industrial equipment.

The initial expansion announcement came via separate news releases from the Greene County Partnership and the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development.

APPRECIATION EXPRESSED “We want to thank Worthington Industries for expanding in Tennessee and for the new jobs they’re creating in Greenville and Greene County,” Gov. Bill Haslam said in the state’s release last year.

“Part of our Jobs4TN strategy places a focus on companies already located in Tennessee, and today’s announcement is another step toward our goal of becoming the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high-quality jobs.”

Those interested in applying for the new jobs can do so in person at Worthington’s Greeneville facility, located at 115 Terry Leonard Drive, from Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Worthington said it would hire new workers

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in all areas of operations including fabrication, welding, painting and assembly, according to the state’s news release.

“We are pleased to expand the facility and add to the workforce in Greeneville,” Worthington Industries Engineered Cabs President John Lamprinakos said in initial news releases.

“We appreciate the support of the Greene County Partnership, Tennessee Valley Authority and the State of Tennessee as we develop this facility into

“This project was coma fully-integrated lean then-Greene manufacturing operation petitive,” focused on safety, quality County Partnership President and CEO Tom Ferand delivery.” guson said in the Partnership news release.

‘A HUGE WIN FOR GREENE “The new welding proCOUNTY’ “The addition of more grams available through than 140 jobs is a huge the Greene Technology win for Greene County Center and Walters State College’s and will significantly Community help the county’s 7 per- Workforce Solutions Cencent unemployment rate ter gave Greeneville the while also boosting the advantage of a skilled county’s economy” Part- workforce, while the State nership Chairman Chris of Tennessee and Tennessee Valley Authority proMarsh said.

The expansion at Green- vided attractive incentive eville’s plant comes after packages.”

Higginbotham said Worthington announced in March 2015 that it was as much in April 2015, closing an engineered- after the IDB approved its cabs plant in Florence, incentive program, and before the company had S.C. At the time, compa- announced where it would ny officials declined to expand.

“The incentives are say if an expansion in Greeneville was immi- going to play a role in our nent. At least one other decision,” she said then.

“Worthington Indusplant, located in South Dakota, was competing for tries’ expansion in Greene the business freed up by County is the perfect the South Carolina plant’s example of what happens when we achieve workforce closure.

In April 2015, the Indus- alignment,” Tennessee trial Development Board Economic and Community of Greeneville and Greene Development CommissionCounty approved a pay- er Randy Boyd said in the ment-in-lieu-of-taxes pro- state’s news release.

“Programs at the Greene gram to offer to Worthington in the hope of wooing Technology Center and the company to expand Walters State Community College are training workhere. ers to develop the right kind of skills to fit into INCENTIVES, WORKFORCE today’s advanced manuTRAINING Incentives such as that facturing careers, and plus local efforts to train that in turn allows comthe Worthington work- panies like Worthington force for skilled positions Industries to quickly fill made Greeneville an attractive location for an expansion, according to PLEASE SEE EXPANSION | 3 local and state officials.

On The Cover An employee at Worthington Industries in Greeneville welds in June 2015, just after the company announced a $14 million expansion to the Greeneville facility. For more details, see the related story on this page.

Sun file photo by O.J. Early.

Cover design by Hala Watson.

www.greenevillesun.com

Saturday, March 12, 2016

THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION

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US Nitrogen: Plant Will Be Operational By Mid-2016 Velo is a graduate of the Naval Nuclear Power School, and holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, according to the release.

Freeark has provided ongoing engineering technical support to US Nitrogen and oversee integration of co-located facilities on the US Nitrogen campus, according to the release. He was named plant manager in 2012.

BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU EDITOR

US Nitrogen now anticipates its plant will be fully operational by mid-2016, according to a company spokeswoman.

The company has been in the midst of a phased startup process for months, but spokeswoman Amanda Shell Jennings said in early March the plant should be online by the middle of the year.

The Pottertown Road plant will produce liquid ammonium nitrate, or ANSOL, for parent company Austin Powder Inc., based in Cleveland, Ohio, which will use the liquid ammonium nitrate and other components to manufacture explosives for mining, construction, etc. When operational, nitric acid, produced on site, will be combined with anhydrous ammonia, also produced on site, to produce US Nitrogen employees work in the control room of liquid ammonium nitrate. by mid-2016, a company spokesperson said.

The phased startup has tion of the plant over the following weeks, included bringing online and testing each system of the plant residents may notice additional, similar separately. The first system to come sights and sounds.”

The company issued a news release in online was to be the nitric acid plant.

As of early March, about 80 full-time May 2015 warning that nearby residents staff members were on the 500-acre site at may see or hear a variety of sights and US Nitrogen, Jennings said, 85 percent of sounds associated with the plant’s startwhom are from Greene and surrounding up, including clouds of water vapor, an orange glow in the sky at night, and flares counties, she said.

Throughout construction, which has been atop some of the stacks on site. ongoing since 2012, an average of about 350 SHIFTING TIME FRAME, PERSONNEL CHANGE construction workers were on site.

At this time last year, US Nitrogen Construction contract workers have begun phasing down, though, as perma- officials were saying they hoped the plant nent employees have come on site in recent would be operational by the end of 2016.

When asked about delays in the startup months.

“Final phase construction, inspections and testing phases, Jennings said the and testing is expected to continue for sev- company is taking the time it thinks is necessary to ensure safe operations. eral more weeks,” Jennings said.

“The company is taking all necessary Social media sites have at times been abuzz over images of orange smoke and time to ensure a safe, seamless plant other sights near the US Nitrogen plant, startup,” she said. “During plant startbut Jennings said such sights were part of up, processes are being tested and verified to ensure that every detail has been the startup and testing process.

“These tests are a routine and necessary confirmed and necessary adjustments part of establishing the operating charac- have been made to optimize safety, enviteristics of our various systems and plant ronmental stewardship and efficiency.”

Even before some of the startup began components,” she said. “These planned, routine startup procedures during testing and in 2015, Jennings and then-Plant Mancalibration of our systems are safe and pose ager Justin Freeark said some of those startup and testing phases may take no health risk to the community.”

Neighbors within a two-mile radius longer than originally anticipated, of the plant have received letters and though.

In late November, the plant also got a materials detailing some of the startup new plant manager. details, according to Jennings.

Andy Velo, the Midway plant’s former con“While these processes are a normal part of startup, these sights and struction and maintenance manager, was sounds will not be an indication of US promoted to plant manager effective Nov. Nitrogen’s plant once fully operationally,” 30.

Former plant manager Justin Freeark she said. “During the startup of this por-

Expansion Starts on Page 2 open positions and continue expanding.

“I’m excited about their growth and these partnerships between industry and education.”

“TVA and Greeneville Light & Power System congratulate Worthington Industries on its plans to expand and add 140 new jobs in Greeneville,” TVA Senior Vice President of

Economic Development John Bradley said.

“We are pleased to be partners with the State of Tennessee, the Greene County Partnership and other local community leaders to facilitate existing business and industry growth.”

In March 2016, Higginbotham said the quality of Greene County’s workforce was a major factor in expanding the local plant.

PILOT PROGRAM The expansion is considerably larger than the one discussed during last

April’s IDB meeting.

The IDB’s payment-inlieu-of-taxes program, also known as a PILOT program, was approved after discussion of a $7.5 million expansion that included 28 new hires at Worthington.

The wage rate for those positions was to be about $17.61 per hour, according to a matrix that IDB members used in making their decision. The average county wage rate is $9.75 per hour, according to the matrix.

The matrix used in

PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION Perhaps the most controversial aspect of US Nitrogen’s project is the 12-mile double pipeline connecting the Pottertown Road plant with the Nolichucky River, near the historic Conway Bridge on the Greene/ Cocke county border.

Laying of the two pipelines along state right of way on Fish Hatchery and McDonald roads finished in early 2015, but not without much controPHOTO SPECIAL TO THE SUN the facility, which is slated to be fully operational versy and legal action.

The pipelines, along with water withdrawal and discharge structures located in was promoted to director of nitrogen engineering projects for parent company Austin the Nolichucky River’s bedrock, will allow US Nitrogen to withdraw as much Powder Company.

He has remained in Greene County, as 1.9 million gallons of water per day and pipe the water to its plant. The comthough.

“While serving as construction and pany has said it will use on average 1.5 maintenance manager at US Nitrogen, million gallons per day.

From there, the water will be used in Andy stood out for his exceptional leadership skills and attention to detail,” Aus- a filtration process, and about 500,000 tin Powder Chief Financial Officer Jim gallons per day will be piped back to the Boldt said in the release. “Under Andy’s river with the same sediments origileadership, US Nitrogen will continue nally pulled from the river, officials its laser focus on safety, as well as give have said.

The rest will be used as the plant’s back to the community as a good corpocooling water, which will cycle through rate citizen of Greene County.”

The company statement detailed Velo’s the cooling system 20-25 times, US Nitrogen officials have said. It will evenbackground.

He joined US Nitrogen in March 2015 tually be chemically treated and disas a construction and maintenance charged into nearby Lick Creek, along manager with more than 20 years of with the Town of Mosheim’s treated experience in facility operations and wastewater.

Several governmental agencies, management.

Prior to joining US Nitrogen, Velo including the Tennessee Department served as the lead for the corporate- of Environment and Conservation, the wide maintenance and reliability at Tennessee Department of TransportaRentech Nitrogen Partners. He began tion and the Tennessee Valley Authorworking with Rentech in 2006, and ity, have signed off on US Nitrogen’s served as the site general manager at plans.

But the pipelines, owned by the IndusRentech’s fertilizer facility in Pasadena, Texas, from 2012 to 2014, according to trial Development Board of Greeneville and Greene County, have been chalthe release.

Velo previously held various mainte- lenged in several lawsuits, as has the nance and reliability engineering roles process county leaders and Austin Powwith Archer Daniels Midland Company der officials undertook in bringing the plant to Greene County (see related and International Specialty Products.

Before entering the private sector, Velo story, page 4).

Jennings said early in March that the served as a nuclear submarine officer in the U.S. Navy and was an instructor at plant will begin using the pipelines to the Virginia Military Institute located pull water from the river “in subsequent startup phases.” in Lexington, Va. the IDB’s April calculations said expansion in Greeneville would include $500,000 spent by the company for “improvements to the property” at the current facility and $5 million spent for new equipment and machinery, plus $2 million for a laser used for welding.

The PILOT program would allow Worthington to avoid paying property taxes on the new equipment and any building expansion for seven years.

In exchange, the new equipment and the expanded

building would be deeded to the IDB, which would charge $1 rent per year to Worthington during the seven years of tax abatement.

Worthington would, however, continue to pay taxes on property and equipment that were in place prior to the expansion, IDB attorney Jerry Laughlin said in April.

ABOUT WORTHINGTON INDUSTRIES Worthington’s Greeneville facility, located in Hardin Industrial Park, was established in 1999

as Angus-Palm Industries and was acquired by Worthington Industries in 2012 The company is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, with 2014 fiscal year sales of $3.1 billion.

It employs more than 11,000 individuals worldwide, has 83 operations located in 11 countries and has been named one of the “Best Companies to Work For in America”

by Fortune magazine four times, according to the Greene County Partnership news release.

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THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION Saturday, March 12, 2016

US Nitrogen Project Challenged In Several Lawsuits er” of Old Knox to the IDB/US Nitrogen water system; • offer a first right of refusal to Old Knox for any other party wanting to connect to the IDB/US Nitrogen water system in the future, and Old Knox would have 60 days to decide whether it wanted to provide water to the potential customer. That stipulation does not apply to the two companies already planning to colocate on US Nitrogen’s property; • agree either to pay Old Knox $10,000 for potable water service fees each month or purchase at least that much water from Old Knox.

BY KEN LITTLE STAFF WRITER

As work on the US Nitrogen facility on Pottertown Road nears completion, several lawsuits filed by opponents of the plant await final resolution in court.

Other civil actions were disposed of in 2015.

US Nitrogen is owned

by Cleveland, Ohio-based Austin Powder Company. It will produce liquid ammonium nitrate, or ANSOL, at its Midway plant. Austin Powder uses the ANSOL in combination with other elements to manufacture explosives used in mining operations and similar work.

The facility is slated to begin production by mid2016 (see related story, page 3).

Lawsuits filed since US Nitrogen received approval in 2011 by the Greene County Commission to build in Greene County claimed unethical practices in attracting parent company Austin Powder to the county, violations of the state’s Open Meetings Law and issues concerning the construction of a double pipeline from the plant to the Nolichucky River.

SUN FILE PHOTO

Knoxville lawyer D. Scott Hurley speaks in 2015 to plaintiffs he represents in a lawsuit against US Nitrogen and the Industrial Development Board of Greeneville and Greene County. Hurley urged them not to “let up” in the pursuit of a suitable resolution to the issues involved.

authority and did not act fraudulently, arbitrarily or illegally,” the 2015 order by Jenkins said.

He wrote that the plaintiffs’ judicial review claims relating to the Feb. 8, 2011, meeting of the Greene County Regional Planning Commission were dismissed with prejudice, which means that the case canLAWSUIT ON APPEAL The first lawsuit, filed not be re-filed or brought in April 2011 after the back into court. project was approved, is on appeal in state Civil PENDING ACTION In May 2015, three Appellate Court.

An appeal to a ruling Mohawk landowners filed by 3rd Judicial District a civil lawsuit against the Chancellor Douglas T. Industrial Development Jenkins was initially Board of Greeneville and Greene County and US filed in July 2015.

The lawsuit was filed Nitrogen LLC. The lawsuit alleges

by Knoxville lawyer Herbert Moncier on behalf that the board and US of plaintiffs Bradley K. Nitrogen acted improperLowe, Randolph Lowe ly in connection with the and others belonging to installation of the double a group called the “Pub- pipeline for US Nitrogen’s lic Spirited Citizens of plant operations.

The lawsuit seeks $2.5 Greene County.”

The 2011 lawsuit million from the IDB and focuses on the role of the US Nitrogen, including Greene County Partner- $500,000 the plaintiffs ship and county govern- say was done in damages ment entities in bringing when construction crews US Nitrogen to Greene trespassed on their propCounty. It was dismissed erty and took dirt while in 2015 by Jenkins and installing the pipeline, is pending review by the and another $2 million in punitive damages. appellate court.

Outspoken US Nitrogen A question about the timeliness of the appeal critic Donahue Bible and was resolved, and the other citizens are listed case remains before the as plaintiffs in the complaint. appellate court.

The legal action puts The issues brought up in the original 2011 lawsuit into lawsuit form allewere essentially divided gations that Bible and Jack into two areas by the court, brother-in-law and Moncier’s appeals Renner made when construction crews workaddress each in turn.

The notice of appeal that ing on behalf of the IDB the higher court initially and US Nitrogen began ruled was not filed in a installing pipeline on timely fashion concerns Fish Hatchery Road in the dismissal of claims March 2015.

The Tennessee Departagainst the Greene County Partnership and allega- ment of Transportation tions about violations of the in 2014 granted the IDB permits to install 12 state Open Meetings law.

A second order entered miles of the double pipein July 2015 lists Greene line between US NitroCounty government enti- gen’s property in Midway and an intake/discharge ties as defendants.

The original lawsuit filed site on the Nolichucky in 2011 claims that the River.

The pipeline begins at Greene County Planning Commission and Greene the company site, extends County Commission acted along Fish Hatchery Road “unlawfully and uncon- and McDonald Road (Tenstitutionally” in Febru- nessee Rt. 348), and ends ary 2011 in recommend- at the intake/discharge ing and approving rezon- site, which is located ing of property for the US not far from Bible’s and Renner’s respective propNitrogen facility.

The lawsuit further erties. A third plaintiff alleged that any action lives on McDonald Road. taken by the Greene County Commission or OPEN MEETINGS ACT Jenkins also addressed Greene County “based on the prior void action” of issues pertaining to Tenthe county planning com- nessee’s Open Meetings Act at a January 2015 mission was also void.

“Defendant Greene hearing.

During a hearing in County Planning Commission did not act a Greene County ChanCourt lawsuit outside the scope of its cery

SUN FILE PHOTO

Environmental activist Park Overall urges the Industrial Development Board not to approve a settlement agreement involving US Nitrogen and the Old Knoxville Highway Utility District in September. which seeks to stop the Industrial Development Board of Greeneville and Greene County and US Nitrogen’s plans to use the Nolichucky River for the company’s water supply, Jenkins ruled that deliberations at public meetings covered by the Open Meetings Act must be audible in order to comply with the law.

Members of Save the Nolichucky, who are plaintiffs in the lawsuit, have said they were unable to hear deliberations at a July 18, 2014, IDB meeting, held in the G. Thomas Love Boardroom of the Greeneville Light and Power System headquarters.

Microphones were in the room but were not used for the meeting.

The defendants in the lawsuit — the IDB and US Nitrogen — assert that the meeting did not violate the Open Meetings Act or any other law.

Jenkins had earlier granted a Motion For Leave to Intervene in the case from the advocacy group Tennessee Coalition for Open Government and its lawyer, Richard L. Hollow, of Knoxville.

TDOT CASES A Nashville judge denied in April 2015 a motion for a temporary injunction and restraining order in another complaint filed against TDOT involving the US Nitrogen double pipeline.

Judge Ben H. Cantrell, a retired judge taking the case for a 20th Judicial District chancellor,

denied the motion after a hearing in Nashville.

The judge did approve the intervention of the Industrial Development Board of Greeneville and Greene County and US Nitrogen in the case — a decision that allowed those parties to file their own responses to the lawsuit.

Cantrell denied a motion from TDOT to stay the hearing altogether but did not hear its motion to dismiss the entire lawsuit.

A group of Greene, Cocke and Hamblen county landowners filed a petition in April 2015 against TDOT, asking the court to halt construction and use of the pipelines in the wake of right-ofway-related property disputes involving Bible, Renner and the construction crews installing the pipelines.

SIMILAR LAWSUITS The suit filed in April also asks for the court to review TDOT’s granting the IDB the right-ofway permits in the first place.

That lawsuit is similar to one filed in 2014 by several of the same plaintiffs, alleging that TDOT never should have issued the permits to the IDB. The judge who originally heard that case said the plaintiffs should go through TDOT’s administrative protocol for reexamining the validity of the permitting process, which would give TDOT several more weeks to respond.

Plaintiffs argue in both

lawsuits that since US Nitrogen and two other companies will use the pipelines to transport water from the Nolichucky River 12 miles to the US Nitrogen site on Pottertown Road, the pipelines will only benefit private companies.

State law stipulates that right-of-way permits such as the one granted to the IDB can’t be used solely for private companies’ benefit.

US Nitrogen plans to transfer ownership of the pipeline to the IDB, which has taken the position that other area companies could use the pipelines for non-potable water needs.

UTILITY LAWSUIT In September, the Old Knoxville Highway Utility District and the IDB agreed to settle out of court a lawsuit in which Old Knox challenged US Nitrogen and the IDB’s right to pipe water to the US Nitrogen plant from the Nolichucky River. Old Knox claimed that doing so infringed on the utility’s obligations to provide water to customers inside its district boundaries.

The settlement agreement stipulates that US Nitrogen: • pay Old Knox $50,000, half of which Old Knox would hold for future maintenance or upgrades for water infrastructure “at or around the US Nitrogen facility that directly benefit the US Nitrogen facility”; • agree not to knowingly connect any “past, current or future custom-

OTHER LAWSUITS Another lawsuit naming the IDB and Greene County as plaintiffs that was filed in October 2014 has been transferred to Greene County Circuit Court.

The civil lawsuit filed

by Brock Wampler, who owns property along the planned pipeline between US Nitrogen and the Nolichucky River, claims the company and another party trespassed on his land, causing damage that resulted in the death of a horse after the horse stepped on a metal pin left by a worker, injuring its foot, which eventually led to Wampler putting the horse down.

Wampler lives at 2400 Midway Road, along the route of the 12-mile pipeline, which has been disputed in other lawsuits filed against US Nitrogen, the IDB and Greene County. The entities are also defendants in the civil action, which seeks at least $500,000 in damages and demands a jury trial.

Wampler’s lawsuit claims that in December 2013, Wampler had 19 horses on his property, including a mare that produced a foal valued at $150,000. The mare “was due to deliver another foal in approximately three months,” the lawsuit said, and could have delivered several more over the course of its life.

No hearing date has been set in connection with the lawsuit.

GRAND JURY PANEL In November, Save the Nolichucky President Donahue Bible made a presentment to a threeperson panel of the Greene County Grand Jury claiming former Old Knoxville Highway Utility District President J.W. Douthat and former US Nitrogen Plant Manager Justin Freeark acted improperly. Douthat sold options on two tracts of land to US Nitrogen while still president of the utility district.

US Nitrogen eventually bought those tracts outright after Douthat left the Old Knox board but while he was still on the Industrial Development Board.

The presentment was never advanced to the full grand jury. District Attorney General Dan Armstrong also said he doesn’t think any laws were violated by the deal.

Douthat and US Nitrogen officials denied any wrongdoing.

Bible and attorney Scott Hurley raised questions about whether the land deals violated state conflict of interest and bribery laws.

Editor Michael S. Reneau contributed to this report.

New Industry Intends To Build At Hardin Complex

BY SARAH R. GREGORY STAFF WRITER

An industry that could generate up to 300 new jobs as a U.S. Defense Department contractor aims to begin development of a site in the Hardin Industrial Complex this year.

Greeneville officials are working with representatives of PNW East LLC on a lease agreement that would let the company move forward with development of a lot at Hardin Industrial Complex.

The company plans to build a manufacturing and packaging facility in

Hardin Industrial Complex, located off the Baileyton Road.

PNW East LLC has said its initial investment is projected to be $8 million.

It would employ between 100 and 300 people, dependent upon production and sales, with wages between $10 and $30 per hour.

If PNW East LLC begins operations, it will be the second industry to locate in Hardin Industrial Complex. The industrial park was established in the late 1990s through joint efforts of the Greeneville and Greene County governments and local business and industry officials.

Worthington Industries, formerly known as Angus-Palm, is the only company currently operating there. That company is expanding its operations in the industrial complex through a more than $14 million investment that will also add 140 employees.

In October 2015, the Greeneville Board of Mayor and Aldermen accepted a proposal from PNW East LLC, allowing negotiations of a lease agreement to move forward.

The company’s plans were submitted after the town publicly advertised a request for proposals for the site.

The request was made after town offi-

cials were approached by a West Coastbased development group to express interest in bringing a new manufacturing facility to the site.

The town’s parameters for proposals included a stipulation that a proposed facility’s payroll surpass average wages of $23 an hour.

PNW East LLC was the only company to submit a proposal, city officials have said.

The company has a local representative in its president, Paul McAfee, a PLEASE SEE HARDIN | 5

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Saturday, March 12, 2016

THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION

5

Greene County Partnership Still Seeking President/CEO

BY KRISTEN EARLY ASSOCIATE EDITOR

The search is still underway for new president and CEO of the Greene County Partnership months after the man who last held that title resigned from the post.

Former President and CEO Tom Ferguson announced in mid-2015 that he would resign effective Dec. 31.

The Partnership engaged Oxford, Miss.based Logan Development Group to facilitate the process of finding his successor.

The Partnership Board approved in December the nominating committee’s recommendations for officers and members of the executive committee. Officers will be: Chairman Chris Marsh, Chair-elect Bob Leonard, Secretary/ Treasurer Bob Cantler and Past Chair Bill Carroll.

The executive committee includes those officers, along with Greene County Mayor David Crum, Greeneville Mayor W.T. Daniels, Scott Crawford, Cal Doty, John Tweed and Ferguson’s unnamed successor.

Takoma Regional Hospital President and CEO Daniel Wolcott served as chair-elect in 2015 under Marsh, but announced later in that year a planned move to Roseville, Calif., where he assumed the position of president and CEO of Lodi Health, a 191-bed hospital. That move prompted Marsh to retain his post as chairman for another year.

Marsh said in December that four individuals have been interviewed for Ferguson’s replacement and another would be interviewed in January.

The Partnership has not held a board meeting since that time and unexpectedly postponed its annual meeting in late February for not-yet explained reasons.

Hardin Starts on Page 4 Greeneville businessman of more than 25 years.

McAfee also serves on the Greeneville Regional Planning Commission.

That board has not reviewed any plans related to the site.

According to the proposal submitted to the town by McAfee, PNW East LLC is a “general manufacturing and packaging” company.

Town officials have said that is a U.S. Department of Defense contractor.

Although details have been scant, its products are said to include medical-related supplies and protective components, like ballistic vests.

The company aims to develop a site adjacent to Worthington Industries,

Marsh said in an interview this month that the search for Ferguson’s replacement is still underway.

“We’ve looked at a lot of resumes,” he said. “We’re still interviewing. We’ve interviewed a few; we hope to get it wrapped up here pretty soon.”

However, he declined to give any estimated timeline of when someone might be named to the position.

The Logan Development Group, the search firm contracted by the Partnership, traveled to Greene County to conduct a site visit last year and to hold meetings with community and business leaders to determine the criteria for the position.

The firm completed a recruitment profile as a result of these meetings that it has since used to recruit candidates from all over the country.

The Logan Development Group advertised the position nationally and began reviewing applicants in the fall.

The company had planned to present qualified candidates to the search committee for review by the beginning of November, according to the release.

The search committee has been working with Logan Development Group on the formal candidate interview process as the search progresses.

“We are grateful for Tom’s leadership and wish him and his wife, Terry, the best in the next chapter of their life journey,” Marsh said in September.

“We need to make sure we hire the best person for this position. We owe it to our investors and community to find a leader that can build on our momentum and continue to grow our community and organization.”

Interested candidates can email Daniel Logan, CEO of the Logan Development Group, at daniel @logandevgroup. but work has not yet begun.

Mayor W.T. Daniels said he supports the company’s plans to begin operations in Greeneville.

“We’ve had that property for 25 years and have never generated a dime off of it. Now we have an opportunity,” he said.

“One hundred to 300 employees — to me, that’s substantial.”

Town officials have said they will work with officials in various state departments and agencies to determine if there are any incentives that can be offered to the company for setting up a new, local operation.

In recent weeks, City Administrator Todd Smith explained that the town has reviewed a draft of the proposed lease agreement.

However, he noted the parties have discussed a potential for purchase

SUN FILE PHOTO

Chair-elect Daniel Wolcott left for a new position at Tom Ferguson resigned from his position as president a hospital in California before taking on his role as and CEO of the Greene County Partnership in Decem- 2016 chairman for the Greene County Partnership’s ber 2015.

Board of Directors.

SUN FILE PHOTO

com to receive additional information or apply for the position.

The position was to be advertised on the International Economic Development Council’s website, as well as the Southern Economic Development Council’s career center.

The Logan Development Group has conducted economic development executive searches across the United States, according to the news release.

Daniel Logan has worked directly in economic development in the Southeast, including a stint as deputy director of Appalachian Development in Kentucky, before beginning his career in the executive search business in 2003.

He has conducted searches in more than 30 states and hundreds of communities, the release said.

“We are very excited to be working with the Greene County Partnership,” Logan said in the release.

“It means a lot to assist such a great community in a region that means so much to me personally.

“The Greene County Partnership has had great success in the past, and we think this position will be very attractive.” of the site rather than a lease.

Those details have not yet been finalized or acted upon, but negotiations are still underway, Smith said.

Greeneville aldermen have not acted on the arrangement since October.

The proposal approved by aldermen called for the company to lease the undeveloped site for $10,000 per year beginning in January 2016.

PNW East LLC initially proposed a lease option that would end in 2022.

Although an agreement has not yet been finalized, Smith said recently that the company still intends to begin developing the site this year.

Discussions about lease agreements have continued to focus on a five-year lease option, he added.

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THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION Saturday, March 12, 2016

Ingles, Food City Announce Expansions

BY KRISTEN EARLY ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Competition continues to be strong among Greeneville’s grocery stores.

A raze-and-rebuild announcement followed the 2013 addition of a new Food City on the East Andrew Johnson Highway, located directly beside long-residing competitor Ingles Markets.

In spring 2015, Ingles Markets announced plans to temporarily close its store on the East Andrew Johnson Highway in order to replace it with a larger facility at the same location.

Its May closure followed within a week of the announcement. It reopened in February to great acclaim within the community.

Meanwhile, another Greeneville Food City, located on the Asheville Highway, also joined the foray into expansion and improvement.

In January, the grocery store began that expansion, adding gas pumps to its Gas ‘n’ Go station and beginning expansion work within the storeroom area.

year to complete.

“During the temporary closure of the Greeneville store, all Ingles’ associates at the current store will be offered positions at nearby stores until the new store can be completed,” the release said.

The former Ingles store employed 77 people, all of whom the company said at the time of its closing would be offered positions at nearby stores until the new store opens. The new store, at more than 70,000 square feet, employs more people, but the new total employment was not released.

The new store, managed by Brad Rainwater, has also been repositioned so that it faces the East SUN FILE PHOTO Andrew Johnson Highway, Ingles District Manager Rusty Reed, left, and Ingles Store No. 70 Manager Brad and has additional landscaping.

Rainwater stand in front of the store in February for its grand re-opening.

store would be 50 percent larger than the former store and would be built on the same site.

According to plans approved by the Greeneville Regional Planning Commission in March 2015, the new store would have a footprint of approximately 78-79,000 square feet.

“While we are sorry to have to temporarily INGLES An Ingles company close the store, we are announcement released very excited to bring in May said that the new a new, larger Ingles to

our Greeneville customers as soon as we can,” Chief Financial Officer Ron Freeman told The Greeneville Sun in May. “Our customers there deserve our best, and building a new store was a much better option as opposed to remodeling or trying to expand the existing building.”

The new store also brought with it a Starbucks coffee shop, Asian bar and extensive deli.

“The new Greeneville

supermarket will include an Ingles Gas Express, pharmacy and expanded product offerings in most areas of the store,” the news release said.

“The company expects to offer expanded readyto-eat deli and bakery offerings as well as expanded meat and produce areas.”

The project, which included demolition of the former store before construction of the new facility, took less than a

FOOD CITY Meanwhile, Food City’s Asheville Highway-location assistant manager Jeff Kite said the grocery store’s first phase of renovations is well underway this month.

The first phase of the project, which includes relocation of a loading dock from the side to the rear of the building and expansion of the Gas ‘n’ Go gas station, was unanimously author ized by town

planners in November.

Final plans for the expansion, including phase II of the project, were approved by the Greeneville Regional Planning Commission in December.

Phase II includes an 11,000 square-foot expansion to the store’s sales floor and expansion of the parking lot.

Kite said that construction at the back of the store currently includes rebuilding the stock room. Four new gas pumps have already been added to the Gas ‘n’ Go, he added.

Customers will begin to see the construction underway soon, but the store will not have to close during the process, he said.

“Operations will remain the same in the meantime,” Kite noted. “It will be July before it’s finished, it sounds like.”

The finished project will feature two more freezer aisles, additional grocery aisles and an expansion to the meat and bakery departments.

The expansion will bring the total footprint from 38,000 square feet to just under 50,000 square feet, he said.

Construction is being completed by E. Luke Greene Company Inc., of Johnson City, Kite added.

Greeneville Publix To Be State’s 1st East Of Knoxville

BY KRISTEN EARLY ASSOCIATE EDITOR

T

here’s no word yet on when demolition will begin at the former Food Lion building slated as the location of a new Publix grocery store.

Several tenants of the Fairgrounds Shopping Center received notice in December that they had to vacate the building, which would be torn down to make way for a new facility built for the Publix store.

However, at least some of those offices may be left standing until new, additional retail space is added to the complex, tenants said in January.

James McKay, a leasing agent with JSI Realty Group LLC, confirmed then that two of the currently remaining tenants — Sun Loans and Franklin Financial — will most likely stay within a retail space on site throughout the course of the planned project.

In November, the Greene County Partnership and JSI Development announced plans for the location of a new Publix grocery store in the shopping center.

The closest Publix to Greeneville currently resides in Asheville, N.C.,

about 50 miles away.

There is also a Publix location in Knoxville.

The company’s mission statement says it aims to be the “premier quality food retailer in the world.”

The $9 million investment will add more than 100 jobs, according to the announcement. The store would feature a 45,000 square-foot, full service grocery scheduled to open before Thanksgiving 2016.

The current building that once housed Food Lion would be demolished, officials said.

Adjoining the former grocery building is a Family Dollar, which will remain intact, according to the announcement, and four other businesses, the future of which was not made clear at the time of the announcement.

One of those businesses, AT&T, an Internet, TV and telephone company, relocated on Jan. 8 to 104 Village Drive “after a 30-day notice to vacate the property was provided on Dec. 8, 2015,” according to Senior PR Manager Cathy Lewandowski. “This is only a temporary location for the AT&T authorized retailer store, as we are building a brand-new, stateof-the-art, 2,500 square-

foot store that will open mid-to-late summer next to Applebee’s at 2795 E. Andrew Johnson Highway.”

AT&T wasn’t the only businesses that received a 30-day notice. Staffmark Regional Director Tamera Ailor announced their reopening at their new address, 1134 Tusculum Blvd., on Monday, Jan. 18, after vacating Fairgrounds Shopping Center on Friday, Jan. 15.

“I do believe it will be a long-term location for us,” Ailor said. “It all worked out great, as far as we think. It was an initial shock, but in the longterm, it’s going to work out.

“The first additional shock of, ‘You need to be out in 30 days,’ was tough,” she added, explaining that the businesses were told the building would soon be demolished and an extension could not be granted.

Sun Loans Manager Mandy Hilemon said that her business, however, has a long-term lease for their location, and therefore should be able to stay on site throughout the course of the demolition and rebuilding.

“We’ve not heard anything yet,” Hilemon said.

“They could possibly be

SUN FILE PHOTO

A sign announces the coming placement of a Publix grocery store along the East Andrew Johnson Highway. letting this building, the part [Sun Loans and Franklin Financial] are in, stand until the other part is built. Once [additional retail space] is built, everybody will be moving to the other side of Family Dollar.

“Once they get those built on the other side of Family Dollar, they’re actually going to tear down the rest of this and build more office spaces,” she added.

Hilemon explained that

there is a possibility her business will be shuffled temporarily to the current Staffmark location to enable more demolition to take place at once.

“We know that at least Food Lion, from where Family Dollar ends through where AT&T ends, we know for sure that that is soon to be demolished,” she said in January.

McKay confirmed that the leases under which Franklin Financial and

Sun Loans are operating are longer-term leases than those that were held

by Staffmark and AT&T. The two former businesses have also been good tenants, he said.

“We’re working with them,” he said.

The developer, Johnson Small, has not replied to several inquiries concerning a timeline for the demolition and the number of storefronts that will be added to the complex.

Restaurant Scene Has Gains, Losses In 2015

BY KATHY KNIGHT ACCENT EDITOR

Greeneville has added a new food truck to the dining scene, three restaurants have closed, one restaurant has moved, and four restaurants have opened in the last year.

Ella Price has opened the Top Dog Gourmet Food Truck, normally open from late morning to mid afternoon most weekdays in the parking lot of Towne Square Package Store, located on the corner of West Summer and Irish streets.

She offers an ever-changing menu featuring items not typically found around Greeneville, but with items directly from Greeneville, including grass-fed beef and as much local produce as she’s able to offer.

So far some of the favorites include Ella’s fried green tomato pimento cheeseburger, her Cuban sandwiches, soup served in bread bowls, and her loaded skillet potatoes that include beer cheese, fried onions and bacon. Price laughs and says she takes it day by day and gives in to her creativity.

In the summer, the menu will feature a variety of salads with homemade dressings. Custom-

ers are already anticipating that the warmer months will bring out Ella’s strawberry shortcake.

The food truck also will alter any menu item to meet dietary needs, such as low-carbohydrate or vegetarian options.

Look on Facebook for information including daily menu offerings and more, Price said.

Location updates could also be featured in the future, as many customers are asking for the truck to occasionally locate on the eastern side of the county.

For more information about the Top Dog Gourmet Food Truck, its hours, menu or location, call 423-620-0180.

MOVED The Old Stage Restaurant moved from Snapps Ferry Road to 1240 E. Andrew Johnson Highway, next to Popcorn Video, in November 2015. Michael Helbert is the owner, and the restaurant offers a wide selection of country cooking.

In addition to meals, they also offer sandwiches, salads, appetizers and homemade desserts.

The Old Stage is open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Their

phone number is 639-5391.

NEW Smoke Stack Pizza & Deli is now open at 1105 W. Irish St. and is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 4 to 8 p.m. The Smoke Stack, named for the old Pet Milk smoke stack, opened in January 2016.

Their phone number is 6397822, and customers may call in and pick up orders. They hope to offer delivery soon.

The 30-seat restaurant offers pizza cooked on a custom-made, wood-fired oven, made by owner Steve Barger. They offer deli sandwiches using Boar’s Head meat. The Smoke Stack also offers some courtyard seating.

The Hungry Goat Fresh Market and Deli, located at 3524 Buckingham Road, (in the former location of the Glendale Store) opened on Feb. 1, 2016.

It was opened by Greeneville newcomers Jason and Kaitlyn Fletcher, from Charleston, S.C. Living in the country, they were trying to come up with some farm names and tossed around something like “Holy Cow,” but Kaitlyn Fletcher reflected upon the fact they have goats and suggested “The Hungry Goat.”

“It just stuck,” Jason Fletcher said.

The menu offers several types of hamburgers, including chilicheese, barbecue and more.

They offer daily specials such as a Philly club sandwich. Fresh made each day are homemade macaroni and cheese, potato salad and cole slaw. They offer baked French fries also.

The Hungry Goat has a kids menu, and the Fletchers also offer a variety of pizzas, fresh salads and different desserts.

Recently featured desserts were key lime pie and red velvet cake.

The Hungry Goat is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The phone number is 638-3524.

The Cook-Out restaurant opened in August 2015 at 3545 E. Andrew Johnson Highway in the former location of Montederrey restaurant.

The fast-food venue sports a menu of cooked-by-the-grill food: barbecue, hotdogs, hamburgers, chicken and fries.

Cook-Out offers more than three dozen milkshake flavors, from traditional chocolate and vanilla to peach cobbler and Heath toffee.

Old Friends Cafe, owned by Sherri Renner and Twyla Belt, opened at 205 Lonesome Pine

Trail on Dec. 3, 2015.

Renner said customer favorites continue to be homemade beef stew, cowboy soup, chicken and dumplings, and spaghetti and meatballs. She also mentioned that customers really enjoy the breakfast special that includes two eggs, choice of sausage or bacon, biscuits and gravy.

Old Friends Cafe is open from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday and 6 to 11 a.m. Saturday. Their phone number is 787-7736.

CLOSED The Scintillare restaurant, located on the Andrew Johnson Highway, and owned by Jan Charles, closed in 2015.

Opening at the same location is the Old Stage Restaurant, which moved from Snapps Ferry Road.

Krystal’s, at 2795 E. Andrew Johnson Highway, was torn down in August 2015 to make way for a new AT&T store.

Jimmy Jon’s, located on Bernard Avenue, has also closed, but owner Jamie Barrett has taken the favorite menu items and is currently serving them at The Lazy Rooster, located on Village Square Drive.

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Saturday, March 12, 2016

THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION

7

Retail Recruitment Now Underway After Paid Survey

BY KRISTEN EARLY ASSOCIATE EDITOR

The recruitment firm hired to bring Greene County more stores and restaurants says prospective businesses are eyeing the community thanks to their efforts.

“There have definitely been advances in the recruiting,” said Tiffany Kilpatrick, Retail Strategies portfolio director, in early March. “At this time, we don’t have any new retailers to announce, but we’ll have some soon, we hope.”

Retail Strategies played a part in conversations to bring Publix, which plans to locate on the East Andrew Johnson Highway, to the community.

“That was actually in the works prior to Retail Strategies being hired,” President Lacy Beasley said in a March telephone interview. The company “helped move the deal forward.”

She praised efforts by local governments to work to bring in Publix.

“They put a lot of time and effort into that,” she said.

Publix fits within a “gap” the company identif ied as a market for which many consumers leave Greene County to do their shopping. “ We have reached out to a lot of other retailers that we think are good possibilities,” Beasley added. “A lot of them do f it into (the identif ied gaps), and that ’s usua lly what our approach is — to look at where the leakage is.”

She indicated that about 40 percent of retailers that are expanding are in quick-service food.

“We have to really follow the national retails that are growing and expanding right now,” she said.

Bringing businesses to a community is a timeconsuming process that typically takes about three years, she said.

SUN FILE PHOTO

Lacy Beasley, left, and Laura Hudson, of Birmingham, Ala.-based Retail Strategies, speak to a crowd of officials and business leaders in the G. Thomas Love Boardroom at Greeneville Light & Power System headquarters in April 2015.

President and CEO Tom Ferguson.

SUN FILE PHOTO

Retail Strategies aims to bring new offerings to Greeneville. Many hope to see a steak house among those offerings.

The company will be pitching Greeneville at an upcoming trade show this month and again in May, she added.

In September 2014, the Greene County Partnership Board of Directors approved an $88,000 con-

tract with Birmingham, Ala.-based Retail Strategies. A $24,000 portion of that amount remains to be paid this year.

About $45,000 came from contributions from the Town of Greeneville and grants from Tennes-

see’s Three Star program and the Northeast Tennessee Valley Regional Industrial Development Agency, and another $43,000 was raised through local private-sector contributions, according to then-Partnership

FINDINGS T he c omp a ny announced their findings in April 2015. Beasley and Business Development and then-Client Manager Laura Hudson said months of statistical study pinpointed groups that help identify what types of consumers live in Greene County.

Retail Strategies narrowed consumers down to two “stereotypes,” Hudson said: “Midlife Constants” and “Rooted Rural.”

According to a marketing flyer the company produced, 22.3 percent of Greeneville residents fall into the “Midlife Constants” group: “seniors, at or approaching retirement, with below average labor force participation and above average net worth.”

They have lifestyles that are “more country than urban,” according to the flyer. “Attentive to price, but not at the expense of quality, they prefer to buy American and natural products.”

The other major seg-

ment is “Rooted Rural,” according to Hudson.

Those residents tend to spend lots of time outdoors, primarily hunting or fishing. They are married couples with few children at home and are thrifty shoppers with a “do-it-yourself” mentality, Hudson said.

Retail Strategies identified those two segments from a list of about 67 options. While not every resident falls into one of those categories, using those when making pitches to potential retailers and restaurants will help identify the customer base, Hudson said.

The company also performed a gap analysis, showing what consumers shop for outside of Greene County.

The largest such segment was supermarkets and grocery stores, Beasley said.

Rough projections based on that data suggest Greene Countians could spend another $24.4 million per year at supermarkets in Greene County if they shopped locally.

The next largest gap was family clothing stores, which could represent another $6.4 million if more stores locate in the county.

The next biggest gaps were limited-service restaurants (quick-dining, cafeteria-style establishments, such as Chipotle or Panera Bread) at $6.2 million in additional spending, hardware stores at $5.7 million and sporting good stores at $5.3 million.

Other key information pinpointed in the marketing flyer included 2014 drive-time populations in relation to Greeneville’s commercial hub: • 18,055 people lived within a 3-mile radius.

• 28,189 people lived within a 5-mile radius, • 10,780 people lived within a 5-minute drive time, • 25,291 people lived within a 10-minute drive time.

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The Greene County Partnership exists to provide community leadership, consensus-building and problem-solving through the cooperative efforts of business and government and to serve as a catalyst for positive improvement and change. We are committed to serving the needs of our members, industry, government, business and citizens by: • Providing a forum to identify common problems and develop solutions • Expanding and diversifying the Greene County economy • Providing and supporting initiatives that will enhance Greene County’s overall quality of life • Serving as a common denominator for governmental and community programs • Cooperating with regional programs of mutual interest 115 Academy Street, Greeneville, TN 37745 Phone: 423-638-4111 • FAX (423) 638-5345 www.GreeneCountyPartnership.com

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THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION Saturday, March 12, 2016

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THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION Saturday, March 12, 2016

Bachman-Bernard Sells Nissan Dealership

BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU EDITOR

The former Bachman-Bernard Chrysler-Jeep-DodgeRam-Nissan dealership officially began operating under new ownership in early 2015.

The store became Greeneville Nissan on Monday, Jan. 25, following a deal for Canton-Mich.-based Victory Automotive Group to purchase the dealership from longtime car dealers Phil Bachman and Myron Bernard.

Victory’s market area president, Corey Burgdorf, and newly named Greeneville Nissan General Manager Marc Niethammer said in an interview in early February that their first order of business has been to get more inventory on the lot, located at 300 Bachman Drive.

They doubled the pre-owned vehicle inventory to more than 100 vehicles and are more than doubling the Nissan inventory.

Meanwhile, the Chrysler

vehicle inventory is up 10 percent, they said then.

“We’ll have more variety,” Burgdorf said.

Victory Automotive Group already owns and operates Tri-Cities Nissan in Johnson City, Tri-Cities Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Kingsport and East Tennessee Nissan in Morristown. The fact that several other company dealerships are nearby means customers should have more choices in inventory, Burgdorf said.

The same day Victory took control of the dealership here, it also finalized a real estate purchase for a new dealership on the Andrew Johnson Highway, Burgdorf said. Victory purchased a lot on the East Andrew Johnson Highway for $1.4 million from Bachman-Bernard.

A new Greeneville Nissan facility will be built on a vacant lot on the Andrew Johnson Highway, nearly across the street from Bachman-Bernard’s Chevrolet-Buick-GMCCadillac dealership.

The new facility will include two separate showrooms: one for Nissan and another for Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge and Ram, and one shared service department.

Nissan is requiring major upgrades to the current dealership, and Burgdorf said it is more feasible to build a whole new facility.

Burgdorf said Greeneville Nissan has retained all staff members who were employed by BachmanBernard as of Jan. 25, but they plan to hire more sales staff.

Bachman, who still owns the property on which the current dealership sits, said in early February he isn’t sure what he wants to do with it once a new dealership is built.

“I don’t know how long they’re going to be there,” he said.

He has considered putting his private collection of about 100 cars — including 40 Ferraris — on the site, but said just using the site as storage

may be cost prohibitive.

He has even considered putting another car dealership on the property, he said.

Bachman, 78, opened a dealership on the property in 1972.

He began his automotive career in Greeneville in 1967 when he acquired the local Pontiac-Cadillac dealership.

Bernard, 63, said in January his age and that of Bachman were factors in the decision to sell. “Our ages has a big bearing on that,” he said.

The year 2017 will be Bachman’s 50th selling cars.

Bachman has sold off other dealerships in recent years as well. In the fall of 2013, he sold Honda of Morristown and Phil Bachman Honda in Kingsport to Hudson Automotive Group. He also later sold Phil Bachman Toyota in Johnson City.

Victory Automotive Group operates dealerships in California, Alabama, Tennessee, Florida, North Carolina, Indiana, Ohio and Michigan.

SUN FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU

General Manager Marc Niethammer, left, and Victory Automotive Group Area Market President Corey Burgdorf are now operating the former Bachman-Bernard Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram-Nissan dealership as Greeneville Nissan.

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Saturday, March 12, 2016

THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION

11

Sustainable Fuel Is Focus Of New Manufacturer

BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU EDITOR

Ted Hollinger and Pedro Blach think they have the solution to a problem that has plagued scientists around the world, and in 2015 they began producing that solution in Greeneville.

The two men were joined by co-workers, local business people and local governmental officials last October for a ribboncutting at Hollinger and Blach’s Greeneville plant, which will produce what they think is the world’s first closed-loop unit to produce no-emission, sustainable hydrogen fuel.

The fuel could be stored indefinitely to power engines small enough to drive bicycles, or run facilities such as classrooms, medical outposts and more, in remote corners of the world.

By using wind and solar energy and producing, storing and burning hydrogen as a fuel, Hollinger says the fuel system has virtually no emissions and can sustain itself.

The ribbon-cutting marked the first official demonstration of Hollinger and Blach’s new company, HEC-TINA, a merger of Hollinger’s Hydrogen Engine Center Inc. and Blach’s Madrid, Spain-based TINA Energy Systems. TINA is an acronym for There Is No Alternative.

HOW THE TECHNOLOGY WORKS HEC-TINA officials demonstrated the technology at the ribbon-cutting at their Industrial Road plant.

There, three rooms — a simulated classroom, a simulated medical facility and a simulated small office — were completely powered using the company’s multipurpose module, which they said represents how the technology could work in any location.

SUN FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU

HEC-TINA President and CEO Ted Hollinger, left, speaks during a ribbon-cutting ceremony in October at the company’s Industrial Road facility. Greene County Mayor David Crum, center, and Greeneville Mayor W.T. Daniels listen.

Solar panels and wind turbines affixed to the top of the demonstration building captured energy from the sun and wind, while engines in a separate room converted that energy to the electricity needed to power lights, computers and other technology there.

But at the same time, the company’s electrolyzer used that solar and wind energy to convert water into pure oxygen and hydrogen. The hydrogen was stored at high pressure. The remaining oxygen atoms from the water can also be used for medical purposes, officials explained.

When the sun goes down and the wind stops blowing, the stored hydrogen can then be used by other engines the company produces and converted to electricity to operate the lights, computers, etc.

The byproduct of the process is water, which is recirculated through the electrolyzer system to again be broken down into hydrogen and oxygen.

“We’re storing energy to use at a time when you have no energy [from the sun or wind],” Hollinger said in an interview after the event.

He said one of the distinguishing features of the new company’s technology is the fact that the hydrogen comes out of the electrolyzer already stored at high pressure; as a result, a bulky compressor that requires maintenance and more fuel isn’t needed.

OFFICIALS SPEAK “Probably most of you would not expect to see something like this in Greeneville, Tenn.,” then-Greene County Partnership President and CEO Tom Ferguson told local officials at the ribbon-cutting.

“Sustainability is what it’s all about,” Greenev ille Mayor W.T. Daniels said. “It’s something we should be proud of. To have it here in Greeneville — I’m pleased.”

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David Crum echoed Daniels’ statement.

Before both men spoke, a HEC-TINA employee demonstrated a bicycle running on a hydrogen engine. “ That would have made bike patrol a lot easier,” Crum, a former Greeneville police officer, joked.

A TALE OF TWO COMPANIES Hollinger’s Hydrogen Engine Center Inc. and Blach’s TINA Energy Systems merged earlier in 2015 after the two men began collaborating. But both had been working independently for years.

“This [technology] is not a surprise,” Hollinger said. “I’ve been working on this for 25 years.”

Hollinger, an engineer who has worked for years on hydrogen engines, including as former director of engineering for Ford Motor Company, had been producing engines that can run on hydrogen from a

plant he owns in Iowa.

He and his nowdeceased wife lived in Greene County in the 1990s before Hollinger took the job with Ford in 2000.

They then moved to Iowa in 2003 so Hollinger could produce hydrogen engines on his own.

He says that, while his own company made advances in hydrogen engines, finding the hydrogen to fuel them was the tricky part.

Meanwhile, though, Blach’s company was making advances in Spain in electrolyzer technology — the component that breaks down water molecules into pure oxygen and hydrogen.

Blach heard about Hollinger and his Iowa company and approached him about the merger. According to Hollinger, Blach wanted HEC to purchase TINA, because HEC was already a publicly-traded company, while TINA was not.

In January 2015, the merger was completed.

Hollinger says he and Blach own roughly onethird of the company each, while shareholders own the other third. The company’s common stock is traded under “Hydrogen Engine Center” (HYEG).

The module on display last October was the first unit the merged company had put together from the two companies’ respective technologies.

“It’s a result of years of work,” Hollinger said.

“The real question is: When will we build the 1,000th unit, not the first two.”

His wife died in 2005, Hollinger said.

He later remarried and bought a home in Greene County while still maintaining his plant in Iowa.

As merger talks started, Hollinger brought Blach to Greeneville for a visit

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Both men agreed to base the newly-formed company here.

MARKETS, USES According to Hollinger, the main market for HEC-TINA’s products will likely be countries that, for various reasons, have a hard time producing power, such as Third World countries with remote villages, or small island nations that lack infrastructure, natural resources and capital.

He said in October that officials at the World Bank and the World Health Organization have shown interest in helping poor governments finance HEC-TINA units.

Hollinger spoke repeatedly in October of how giving remote, off-thegrid communities access to electricity could transform functions in those locations such as schooling, medical treatment or even menial tasks such as gathering water.

HEC-TINA’s module also powers satellite hookups that provide Internet and telephone service, which can be utilized anywhere.

“All of a sudden, they have access to the world,” Hollinger said of people who could benefit from the product.

A particular unit could be outfitted to provide enough power to meet the specific needs of any customer, he said. Current technology allows for a unit to provide enough power for a small village.

The cost of such a unit could vary anywhere from $200,000 to upwards of a half-million dollars.

“Some of it is just the cost of getting it out there,” he said.

Hollinger thinks there’s already a fertile market for technology such as HEC-TINA’s. It was always the technology, not sales, that was the key, he points out.

“Sales are not any part of the problem,” he said.

12

www.greenevillesun.com

THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION Saturday, March 12, 2016

Eastman Credit Union Breaks Ground On G’ville Facility

BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU EDITOR

A company with an 80year history and thousands of Greene County customers finally broke ground in Greeneville last October.

Eastman Credit Union executives and local officials dug their shovels into the dirt on a plat near the Wal-Mart Supercenter on the Andrew Johnson Highway to officially start construction on the Eastman branch, now slated to open in summer 2016.

ECU President and CEO Olan O. Jones said members in Greene County have been lobbying for a branch to open here for years.

“We have a long history here,” he said. About 3,000 Eastman members live in Greene County, according to Jones.

“We’re certainly very excited to be in this market,” he said during the brief ceremony before the official groundbreaking.

T he Greenev ille branch will offer teller services, deposit account services, consumer lend-

ing, business lending and mortgage lending.

It will also offer safe deposit boxes, a night depository, drive-thru tellers and a drive-thru ATM. “Our purpose will be to provide the best possible services and rates to financial consumers in this market,” Jones said.

T he Greenev ille branch will be the nonprofit cooperative’s 25th.

Founded in 1934, Eastman Credit Union has more than $3.2 billion in assets and 160,000 members in all 50 states.

It employs 600 people.

“Certainly, this is the place we want to be,” Jones said.

A news release issued after the ceremony said that since 1998, ECU has returned about $70 million to its members via extraordinary dividends, which members receive for doing business with the credit union.

Greeneville Alderman Brian Bragdon, representing the Town of Greeneville, said ECU’s arrival is the latest of several positive econom-

ic developments at the time.

“We’re proud to have anyone come to Greeneville,” he said.

Greeneville’s economy is “turning the curve” following the Great Recession of 2008-09, he said.

“We want to thank [ECU] for trusting that Greeneville will bring more development to our community.”

Greene County Mayor David Crum also pointed out that many Greene Countians use ECU. “Welcome to Greene County,” he said. “We’re glad to have you here.”

Then-Greene County Partnership President and CEO Tom Ferguson said ECU has been a Partnership member for several years.

BOUGHT PROPERTY IN AUGUST ECU closed on the thenvacant property at 3578 E. Andrew Johnson Highway in August for $500,000, according to documents from the Greene County Register of Deeds office.

In July, the Greeneville Regional Planning Commission approved site

SUN FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU

Greene County Mayor David Crum speaks in October at the groundbreaking of an Eastman Credit Union branch in Greeneville. Town Alderman Brian Bragdon listens at left. plans for the development after a June recommendation to add green space to the facility and remove a parking area.

Town Planner Asong

Venard noted that the site would be required to have 21 spaces, while the plan originally called for 44 parking spaces.

The additional green

space, Venard said, would give an appearance similar to that of the Eastman Credit Union facility in Kingsport.

Numerous Local Business People Received Accolades

S

everal Greene County business leaders garnered awards, honors and recognition in 2015.

The Audiological Resource Association has announced that on April 14, 2015, it named Dr. Sarah A. Schumaier “Audiologist of the Year.”

This award recognizes exceptional achievements and service to Audiological Resource Association, the hearing impaired population and the profession of audiology, according to a news release.

Schumaier is in practice with Dr. Daniel R. Schumaier & Associates and see patients at both its locations in Johnson City and Greeneville.

The Greeneville office can be reached at 638-2721, and the Johnson City office can be reached at 423928-5771.

Audiological Resource Association was founded in 1975 as a small group of audiologists in private practice meeting to discuss common problems and needs, according to the release.

PRESIDENTIAL PIONEER IN HOSPITALITY AWARDS The Tourism Department of the Greene County Partnership celebrated National Tourism Week May 2-10, 2015, with several events, including the presentation of five Presidential Pioneer in Hospitality Awards.

For the 11th year in a row, the Tourism Department asked that individuals nominate workers who had gone far beyond the call of duty to make visitors and locals feel welcome and their business appreciated, according to a news release.

The winners for 2015 were: • Starsha Foshie, with McDonald’s at Interstate 81 Exit 23; • Tim Massey, a local re-enactor; • Linda Leach, with Ingles No. 70 on the U.S.11E Bypass; • Wilbur West, with the City Garage Car Museum, and; • Tammie Gass, with Fatz Café.

Foshie’s nominator said: “She has a wonderful personality. She is always kind and cheerful and has received many compliments from her customers that are traveling on Interstate 81 and making their way to Greeneville.”

A nomination for Leach said: “She is always going the extra mile, helping me with my elderly mother.”

The nominator for Gass said: “Tammie is and has always been a great ambassador for Greeneville, Tennessee. She is always very kind, courteous, polite, happy and makes any visitor to this community feel very welcome.”

The person nominating West said: “He has been a dedicated Car Museum volunteer since it opened in 2009. He is well informed and very enthusiastic about his role as a tour guide and facilitator at the museum.”

The nomination for Massey was for his hosting of the Tennessee Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans Reunion 2015, which brought in 150 attendees, and his help with the Tennessee Association of Museums annual meeting.

MARILYN-COLYER NEECE Marilyn Colyer-Neece, a representative for Modern Woodmen of America, is one of a small percentage of life insurance agents worldwide to achieve membership in the prestigious Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) in 2015, according to a news release.

Founded in 1927, MDRT, the Premier Association of Financial Professionals, is a global, independent association of more than 42,000 of the world’s leading life insurance and financial services professionals from more than 470 companies in 71 countries.

The local Modern Woodmen office is located in Greeneville.

Colyer-Neece can be contacted at 423-639-4691 for more information.

GREGG K. JONES In July, Greeneville Sun Co-Publisher Gregg K. Jones was one of two Tennessee newpaper executives honored with President’s Awards by outgoing Tennessee Press Association President Joel Washburn.

Washburn, editor of The McKenzie Banner, took the unusual step of presenting two President’s Awards: one to Jones and one to Victor Parkins, editor of The Mirror-Exchange, of Milan.

The awards are designed to honor a person or persons who have been especially helpful to the TPA president during his or her term, or especially helpful to the association in general.

Jones, the president of the TPA Foundation, was honored for leading a two-year project to dramatically modernize and digitize the Tennessee Newspaper Hall of Fame: a joint effort of the press association and the

PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE SUN

Northeast Tennessee Association of Realtors named Century 21 Legacy Realtor Gwen Lilley as Realtor of the Year for 2015.

University of Tennessee.

The award, according to Washburn, also reflected Jones’ work on the Sustainability Committee of the Tennessee Press Association, the TPA Foundation, and the Tennessee Press Service, the association’s business affiliate.

Parkins is president of the Tennessee Press Service, and vice president of the TPA Foundation.

Washburn honored him with a President’s Award for serving as his (Washburn’s) “go-to person for all things relating to the TPA presidency” as well as for his work with the Foundation and the TPA/TPAF/ TPS Sustainability Committee.

FOOD CITY ASSOCIATES In December Food City recognized three Greeneville associates for “outstanding volunteerism” through the Claude P. Varney Volunteer Recognition Program.

“As a company, we strive to maintain a high level of dedication to service, quality, value and community involvement, while providing a work environment that enables our associates to grow both personally and professionally as successful members of the team,” stated Steven C. Smith, Food City’s president and chief executive officer.

Following his attendance at a June 2002 White House meeting geared toward boosting national volunteerism through corporate support, Smith administered the creation of Food City’s recognition program, in memory of former president and board vice-chairman.

Committees review associate volunteer activities and select individual award recipients based on achievement. One overall winner is selected from each Food City location and corporate levels.

Local recipients were: • Chelsie Hensley, an associate at Food City’s Snapps Ferry Road location, who volunteers with the humane society, Upward Bound, at a nursing home and as an SRA tutor and a basketball coach; • Morgan McCamey, an associate at Food City’s Asheville Highway location, who volunteers at Chuckey-Doak High School, Walkertown Presbyterian Church and North Greene Ministries’ thrift store; • Rita Smith, an associate at Food City’s East Andrew Johnson Highway location, who volunteers with Hearts for Christ and Operation Christmas Child.

KRISTINA MILLER In December, Kristina Miller, site manager of Knollridge Apartments, received the Outstanding Site Manager Award for the territory of Tom Jordan at the Dec. 4 Partnership Property Management Annual Awards Banquet held in Asheville, N.C. This award is given to a site manager chosen from nominees that have shown continued professionalism, enthusiasm and dedication to their property, according to a recent news release.

Miller has worked with Partnership Property Management since 2014 and has been chosen for this prestigious award because of her efforts to provide JENNIFER SOLOMON quality living in Greeneville.

In September, Jennifer Solomon, regional vice Partnership Property Management employs over president for Life Care Centers of America’s Appala- 350 full and part-time employees, with the corporate chian Region, received the Tennessee Health Care office located in Greensboro, N.C., and branch offices Association’s 2015 Professional Service Award. in Florence, S.C., and Asheville, N.C. The award recognizes an owner, employee or consultant of a THCA member facility who displays exem- GWEN LILLEY plary leadership in caring for residents and ensuring In February 2016, Gwen Lilley was named Realtor the overall success of the facility while also fostering of the Year by the Northeast Tennessee Association a positive image of the long-term care industry in the of Realtors at the association’s February membership community, according to a THCA news release. meeting in Kingsport.

Solomon, who is based out of the Greeneville Life The award is presented each year to a Realtor who Care facility, oversees multiple facilities and created has performed exceptional work to advance their an interdisciplinary quality improvement tool called associations and the real estate industry, accordAppy Rising, which has led to improvement in qual- ing to a news release. According to the National ity measures, census, building aesthetics and finan- Association of Realtors, the recognition epitocial management and is now used by other facilities mizes what it means to be a Realtor, the release in the company. says.

She started her career as a social services assis“Lilley is a broker at Century 21 Legacy in tant 18 years ago, worked her way up to executive Greeneville and has invested so much of her time director and is now regional vice president. and energy to local and state real estate concerns (that) she has become somewhat of a fixture at SHELLIE HANKINS-BROWN professional meetings, seminars and events at Shellie Hankins-Brown was recognized as a top (the) local, state, and on a couple of occasions, the performer in a major annual charitable effort by the national level,” the release says.

Longaberger Company, which is famous for its home Lilley began her real estate career in 1999. decor and baskets.

Before that, she served in the U.S. Air Force for Hankins-Brown was recognized as a top contributor 11 years with duty stations in Colorado, North for Longaberger’s campaign to benefit the American Dakota, Iceland, Texas and Germany. Her varied Cancer Society. assignments included transportation, working at Longaberger President and CEO John Rochon Jr. a command post and repairing tail guns on B52 recognized Brown and other top performers during bombers, according to the release. a celebration earlier this month at the Longaberger She is a past president of NETAR, served on Homestead in Ohio. four NETAR committees and chaired one of them.

Hankins-Brown organized an event at the General Last year she worked as president of the state Morgan Inn on Aug. 29 for Longaberger’s Horizons of Certified Residential Specialist Chapter and is Hope campaign. now on the state networking team. She also has More than 200 people attended, she said, and more current commitments as a mentor for Tennessee than $6,000 was raised for the American Cancer Promise, the Tennessee Housing Development Society.

Agency advisory board and the Tennessee AssoLongaberger gift baskets and packages were pro- ciation of Realtors forms committee. She serves duced and purchased for the event, with all proceeds on her the Greene County Regional Planning going toward the American Cancer Society, along with Commission, is an Multiple Listing Service proxy additional donations from Longaberger, Hankins- holder and is active in other community events.

She holds the Accredited Buyer’s RepresentiBrown said.

This is the third year Hankins-Brown has been tive, Graduate Realtor Institute and CRS desigrecognized as the consultant bringing in the most nations, is an Realtor Political Action Committee attendees among the 20,000 Longaberger consultants, investor and a legislative liaison. she said.

www.greenevillesun.com

Saturday, March 12, 2016

THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION

13

Lots Of Local Companies Take Top Honors In Various Industries Numerous Greene County companies racked up awards and honors in 2015.

TEVET In July, TEVET LLC was named the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Region 4 Subcontractor of the Year. Companies from an eight-state region were in competition for the honor.

Owner Tracy Solomon and the company were recognized with the award at the Capitol Theatre, which Solomon now owns.

A year before, Solomon was named the SBA’s 2014 Small Business Person of the Year for Tennessee on the stage of the Capitol.

U.S. SBA Tennessee District Director Walter Perry said on stage that he knows of no other instance in which a business or owner has received such SBA awards in back-to-back years.

“This is so unique tonight,” he told a crowd gathered in the theater for the event. “It’s a remarkable story.”

“This award belongs to my home state and my hometown of Greeneville,” Solomon said in remarks to the crowd following the presentation of the award.

He also praised and thanked his team of employees at TEVET. TEVET is a reseller and distributor of electronic test and measurement equipment.

Its varied customers include government agencies such as the U.S. Department of Defense, and major corporations such as The Raytheon Company, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman Corporation.

TEVET was nominated for the award by defense contractor Raytheon, a Massachusettsbased company that did more than $23 billion in sales in 2014 and employs more than 63,000 people worldwide, according to earnings reports.

It provides state-of-the-art electronics components to the U.S. military in areas such as missile defense and electronic warfare.

TAKOMA REGIONAL HOSPITAL In April, Becker’s Hospital Review named Adventist Health System (AHS), which manages Takoma Regional Hospital, as one of 150 “Great Places To Work In Healthcare,” according to a Takoma news release.

The honorees were selected by Becker’s editorial team based on workforce-centric awards received, benefits offered, wellness initiatives and efforts to improve personal development, work-life balance and sense of unity among employees, among other things, according to the release.

In honoring AHS and Takoma, Becker’s noted that “the system offers a tuition reimbursement program, employee wellness programs, company-paid flu shots on campus, cafes with healthy menu options, among other benefits.”

In May, Adventist Health System received the prestigious 2015 Gallup Great Workplace Award for the fifth consecutive year.

“This international award recognizes organizations that create an engaged workplace that, in turn, drives business outcomes,” Jack Lister, Takoma’s human resources director, said in a news release announcing the award.

The Gallup organization compares companies across a workplace research database comprised of work teams in more than 100 countries.

Gallup honored 40 organizations, including Adventist Health System, a faith-based health care organization headquartered in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

SUN FILE PHOTO BY O.J. EARLY

TEVET LLC President and CEO Tracy Solomon, center, accepts an award from the U.S. Small Business Administration after TEVET was named the organization’s Subcontractor of the Year for the Southeast Region. Presenting Solomon the award in July were, from left, Jo Anne Arvizu and Benita Fortner, of defense contractor and TEVET nominator Raytheon, and Gina Holman and Walter Perry, of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

LANDAIR For the third consecutive year, Landair was presented in April with a Platinum safety award from The Great West Casualty National Safety Awards Program.

Platinum, the highest award level in the Great West Safety Program, was achieved by only10 percent of the 750 participants from across the country, according to a Landair news release.

Great West, a liability insurance provider, recognizes carriers in similar operations with safety awards based on their year-end preventable accident results, which are based on crash data collected per million miles.

In June, Landair was recognized as a 2015 Top 50 Warehousing Firm and Dedicated Contract Carrier by Transport Topics, a leading industry publication.

“This award is the result of the hard work and dedication of all Landair employees, and it is my pleasure to accept it on their behalf,” Landair President and CEO John Tweed said in a news release.

“Transport Topics” is the leading publication in the logistics field, with a readership of over 129,000 industry professionals per week, according to the release.

Founded in Greeneville in 1981, Landair is a privately owned truckload carrier and non-asset-based logistics company that provides customized logistics solutions to its diverse customer base.

Landair’s services include dedicated contract carriage, warehouse management, freight management, transportation management and truckload service.

JD METALS Braddock Holdings LLC, doing in business as JD Metals, announced in June that it earned The Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program Award (SHARP).

JD Metals, located in Chuckey, was awarded the SHARP Certification for the company’s advancements in safety throughout the 2013-14 calendar year, according to a news release from the company.

The SHARP award is presented to employers that operate an exemplary safety and health management system facility, according to the release, and acceptance into SHARP by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) qualifies JD Metals as a model

sioner Burns Phillips announced in August that John Deere Power Products in Greeneville for the third time has been chosen to receive the Commissioner’s Award of Excellence for Workplace Safety.

“John Deere Power Products has demonstrated strong commitment to maintaining a safe and healthy workplace,” said Steve Hawkins, TOSHA Administrator, who presented the Commissioner’s Award of Excellence to the company.

“We are once again pleased and honored to receive this award,"John Deere Power ProdDTR TENNESSEE ucts Plant Manager Jeff Hollett DTR Tennessee Inc. received said in a news release. the top Honda Supplier Award on June 24.

DONALDSON COMPANY The manufacturer was one of Donaldson Company Inc. a five suppliers to receive the top leading worldwide manufacHonda award, according to a turer of filtration systems and news release. Honda has more parts, presented its manufacturthan 650 suppliers. ing facility in Greeneville with The award is presented for per- the Company’s Chairman’s Cup formance in quality, delivery and Award in October. excellence in value during 2014, A Donaldson news release according to the release. explained that every quarter, DonDTR Tennessee Inc. supplies aldson Company reviews the 19 automotive anti-vibration and manufacturing plants and distrihose products to all of Honda’s bution centers in its North Amerimanufacturing locations in the can Operations.

United States, Canada and MexPerformance is measured in six ico. key areas: employee safety, cusTom Lake, vice president of tomer quality, customer delivery, Honda Purchasing, and Don inventory management, producOkura, general manager of tivity and budget management.

Honda Purchasing, presented Based on these critically the award to DTR Industries important metrics, a single President Akira Kikuta and operation is presented with the DTR Tennessee President Randy award to recognize the best Rumbley at a ceremony in Bluff- performance. ton, Ohio.

Greeneville Plant Manager In August, DTR Tennesseewas Everett Haynie and his team chosen to receive the the Ten- won the Cup in Donaldson’s nessee Department of Labor & fourth quarter (May-July) of fisWorkforce Development Commis- cal year 2015, the news release sioner’s Award of Excellence for announced.

Workplace Safety and Health.

The 95,000 square-foot Commissioner Burns Phillips Greeneville facility manufactures made the announcement in a air oil separators, air cleaners and news release. filters for engine and industrial “DTR Tennessee has demon- equipment. The Donaldson operastrated strong commitment to tion started in 1999 and currently maintaining a safe and healthy employs 155 people. workplace,” said Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health LMR PLASTICS Administrator Steve Hawkins.

LMR Plastics celebrated two The Commissioner’s Award awards in November, with Presiof Excellence honors Tennessee dent Bob Leonard crediting employers and employees who employees’ hard work and efforts meet a required number of hours in safety and customer satisfacwithout workplace injuries seri- tion. ous enough to cause an employee LMR exceeded 1 million hours to miss a day of work. worked without a lost-time It was the seventh year in a injury, earning the company row DTR earned the award. the Commissioner’s Award for Excellence for Workplace Safety, JOHN DEERE POWER PRODUCTS according to a news release.

Tennessee Department TenThe Commissioner’s Award nessee Department of Labor & honors Tennessee employers and Workforce Development Commis- their employees who together among its peers for work site safety and health.

JD Metals is one of 17 companies in Tennessee that currently hold OSHA SHARP Certification. the release states.

Established in 1997, JD Metals produces metal roofing, metal roofing accessories, and post frame buildings in the Greeneville, Johnson City, Kingsport and Bristol areas.

The company has two locations: Chuckey and Piney Flats.

It also services North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, eastern Georgia and Kentucky.

have achieved a required number of hours worked without experiencing a lost workday.

In addition, the LMR team earned recognition as a 2014 recipient of the Partner-level Supplier Award and was inducted into the Supplier Hall of Fame for 10 consecutive years as a Partner-level supplier in the John Deere Achieving Excellence Program.

The Partner-level status is Deere & Company’s highest supplier rating, according to the release.

The Greeneville-based company was selected for the honor in recognition of its dedication to providing products and service of outstanding quality, as well as its commitment to continuous improvement, the release says.

Company employees accepted the recognition during formal ceremonies held earlier this year in Moline, Ill. LMR Plastics is a supplier of plastic injection molded components to John Deere’s operations in Greeneville, Tenn.; Horicon, Wis.; Augusta, Ga.; and FuquaVarina, N.C. A privately owned company, LMR Plastics was founded in 1973, and has operated under the current family ownership of the Leonard family since September 1996.

MECO Greeneville’s MECO Corporation is seeking a whole new path toward innovation that has already found enough success to land an invitation to the White House.

IN late 2015, President Mark Proffitt attended a forum at the White House, brought about by the U.S. Department of Energy in order to “facilitate the flow of knowledge” from national labs for commercialization, Proffitt said.

MECO was invited to the White House for the “Forum on Connecting Regional Innovation Ecosystems to Federal and National Labs.” Guests included lab directors, university leaders, agency administrators and other business executives, who were able to share their experiences, perspectives and ideas about how federal labs can add to regional economies.

MECO received the invitation after being awarded a $125,000 voucher for innovation and product development as part of a new program, RevV!.

RevV! was created by the State of Tennessee in partnership with the University of Tennessee and the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). The state-funded, $2.5 million pilot program assists Tennessee manufacturers by providing access to ORNL researchers and facilities, with the ultimate goal of producing jobs in Tennessee, according to a recent news release.

MECO’s project was one of just 13 selected in the first year and the only project selected from Greene County, Proffitt said.

The proposal will allow the company to enter into a long-term research and development partnership with ORNL. In December, during Lowe’s 2015 Merchandising Vendor Forum, MECO received the Seasonal Living Merchandising, 2015 Difference Maker Award, according to a news release.

“The award was in recognition of MECO’s outstanding service and responsiveness to help Lowes’s Customers’ ‘Love Where They Live,’” according to the release.

Meco, a division of Unaka Corporation, has been designing, manufacturing and marketing consumer and industrial products for more than 50 years.

Auto Dealership Changes Names The ownership at 3305 E. Andrew Johnson Highway reamined the same, and the focus is still completely automotive.

But in September a lot changed at that address on the eastern edge of Greeneville.

For a number of years, the location and its building have been home to two automotive businesses: CarSmart Auto Center, established in 2005, and Lawson Collision Repair Center, established in 2009.

Both businesses are owned

by Lennie Lawson.

Lawson is also the owner and dealer at Gateway Ford Lincoln Mazda, at 1055 W. Andrew Johnson Highway.

In September he dropped both the name CarSmart Auto Sales and the name Lawson Collison Repair Center, and re-named the

the Greeneville location have also been made at CarSmart in Jonesborough, which is also owned

by Lawson.

There, too, the former name has been dropped and replaced with the name Gateway Auto Center, and the main focus of the business has been shifted from sales of low-end used vehicles to sales of all makes, models, and price ranges of used vehicle.

In a reflection of the individuality of the two separate automotive markets, however, Lawson said, the Greeneville location will emphasize trucks and SUVs while the Jonesborough location will emphasize crossovers and passenger cars.

The inventory of vehicles JONESBOROUGH LOCATION at the two locations will The changes made at also be marketed online at consolidated operation Gateway Auto Center.

The most important change, though, has been in the business focus of what was formerly CarSmart.

Lawson explained that, while CarSmart had emphasized sales of previously-owned vehicles at the lower end of the price scale, the new Gateway Auto Center will be selling and financing previously-owned cars, trucks and SUVs of all makes and models, and in all price ranges.

In addition, Lawson said, the inventory of vehicles offered for sale will be much larger than in the CarSmart years.

The telephone number of Gateway Auto Center of Greeneville is 787-9696.

gatewayusedcars.com MANAGEMENT TEAM The grand opening at both locations was in September.

On-scene management will come from Jason Weems, Max Lawson III and Debra Duncan Weems, previously general manager of Car Smart in both Greeneville and Jonesborough, became overall general manager of the new Gateway Auto Centers in both towns.

Max Lawson III, previously assistant service manager at Gateway Ford Lincoln Mazda, became sales and finance manager at Gateway Auto Center of Greeneville.

Debrah Duncan became sales manager of Gateway Auto Center of Jonesborough.

SUN FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL S. RENEAU

Owner Lennie Lawson and Sales and Finance Manager Max Lawson III stand in front of the Gateway Auto Center on East Andrew Johnson Highway in Greeneville. The two businesses there were formerly named CarSmart Auto Center of Greeneville and Lawson Collision Repair Center but changed in September.

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THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION

www.greenevillesun.com

Saturday, March 12, 2016

Employment by Industry g Agricultural, Forestry, Fishing g Construction g Manufacturing g Transportation and Communications g Wholesale Trade g Retail Trade g Finance, Insurance and Real Estate g Services g Public Administration g Unclassified

Midway, Tennessee

Quality American Manufacturing In God We Trust Greeneville, Tennessee www.amsee.us www.amsee.org

395 T. Elmer Cox Drive Greeneville, TN 37743 www.huf-group.com 415 employees Huf develops and manufactures complete solutions for Car Access Security and Immobilization (CASIM) for the automotive industry and has grown from the tradition of a family business to become a leading partner in the industry with locations worldwide. Our aim is to be the market leader and ensure that we always keep to our corporate vision‌the intelligent touch to cars.

P.O. Box 1388 Greeneville, TN 37744 120 T. Elmer Cox Drive Greeneville, TN 37743

Phone: (423) 787-7711 Fax: (423) 787-7771

Largest Greene County Employers Employer Greene County School System Laughlin Memorial Hospital Walmart Logistics DTR Tennessee, Inc. Takoma Regional Hospital Greene Valley Developmental Center East Tennessee Homes American Greetings Worthington Industries Huf North America Parker Hannifin Greeneville City Schools Walmart Stores, Inc.

Product/Service Employees School System 943 Hospital 800 General/Hardlines Distribution 776 Automotive Parts 700 Hospital 598 Mentally Disabled Care 570 Mentally Disabled In-Home Care 247 Cards & Gift Wrap 461 Cabs/Rollover Systems 410 Automotive Locks 415 Hydraulic Motor Division 400 School System 375 Retail 360

Employer Jarden Zinc Products TI Automotive OldCastleBuildingEnvelope Crown Tonka Walk-Ins Donaldson Company Holston United Methodist Home Packaging Services, Inc. LMR Plastics C&C Millwright Maintenance Ceradyne 3M Company.

Premium Waters MECO

Product/Service Zinc Casting Automotive Parts Wall Systems Walk-In Coolers Air Filtration Systems Home for Children Corrugated Packaging Injection Molding General Contractors Fused Silica Sand Bottled Water Metal Products

Employees 252 245 250 220 157 151 146 128 107 115 89 84

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Saturday, March 12, 2016

THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION

15

Greene County Unemployment Rate 1999-2014

Source: State of Tennessee Labor Force Estimates 2014 Summary

NO NEED TO Search... we have it all right here!

AVAILABLE SERVICES INCLUDE:

INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX 1915 SNAPPS FERRY RD. GREENEVILLE, TENNESSEE WAREHOUSING • LOGISTICS PROPERTY LEASING

423-620-7800 www.chasantn.com

• • • • • • • • • • • •

Warehousing & manufacturing space leasing Full service warehousing Flatbed and box trucking services Food grade storage Rail spur siding Cross docking Trailer & container drop lot Repackaging services Freight consolidation LIFO/FIFO inventory control Pallet wrapping Product assembly

TENNESSEE, INC. 199 Pottertown Rd. Midway, TN 37809

175 Holder Rd. Afton, TN 37616

C.N.C. Production Specialists

Phone 423-638-9000 • Fax 423-638-9033 www.precisionmw.com BOB CUTSHALL Cell: (423) 620-5377 TIM CUTSHALL Cell: (423) 620-5378 ROBYN CUTSHALL MURRAY Cell: (423) 620-5379

President timpmw@embarqmail.com robynpmw@embarqmail.com

... where our people are one of our competitive advantages.

455 T. Elmer Cox Drive Greeneville, TN 37743

423-636-3300 www.tiautomotive.com # of Greeneville employees = 245

The Industries of Greene County are proud to be the Economic Engine driving our County’s economy.

16 THE GREENEVILLE SUN BENCHMARKS EDITION Saturday, March 12, 2016

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