Cunningham gives 'State of County' address

By Joel Davis
of The Daily Times Staff

Blount County is on its way to better financial health. That’s one of the messages that came out of Blount County Mayor Jerry Cunningham’s “State of the County” address at the end of Thursday’s Blount County Commission meeting.

In September 2006, the county’s undedicated fund balance, its equivalent of a savings account, had dipped to just about $800,000 because of the spending of previous commissions.

“That was frightening,” Cunningham said. “We were in precarious financial shape as related to our rainy-day fund.”

Because of spending restraint and other measures, the fund balance now stands at about $3.2 million and is expected to reach about $6 million next fiscal year, Cunningham said.

“We’re moving in the right direction,” he said. “We need to continue building this fund (to about $9 million). I’m asking your help in doing that.”

The county’s Standard & Poor’s debt rating is actually better than that of Alcoa and Maryville, Cunningham said.

“It seems we’re always looked at as something of a red-headed stepchild,” he said. “We’re doing things the right way.”

Cunningham also talked about some of the challenges facing the county. According to figures provided by Cunningham, the Maryville Planning Commission and the Louisville Planning Commission approved 471 subdivision lots in areas that the county is required to service with infrastructure, outside of Maryville’s growth boundary. Children in those areas go to county schools.

“They are our expense to educate,” Cunningham said. “It appears a lot of the overcrowding problems in the schools were created by the cities.”

The importance to the county of the tourism industry was also a topic.

“On an average day, tourists in Blount County spend $201,000 in restaurants, $181,000 on transportation, $107,000 on lodging, $74,000 in retail purchases and $68,000 on arts ... and entertainment,” Cunningham said.