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There was plenty of “why” at the first of the countywide green infrastructure workshops held Monday night at Middlesettlements Elementary School. The “how” will have to wait until the new year.

That’s when policy makers will decide how to use citizen input about what areas in the county are suitable for conservation, preservation, protection or as the location of parks and trails, County Planning Director John Lamb told the small group of local residents who attended the meeting.

“Anything we do will have to be up to the planning commissions, city councils and the county commission,” he said. “It could take zoning. It could take the purchase of development rights.”

Protecting areas through zoning would not be the first option used, though, Lamb said.

“That is probably the last thing we’d be doing on a large scale,” he said.
The Blount County Policies Plan calls for the development of a green infrastructure plan — including aspects such as preserved farms, open space and parks and greenways — for the county. People attending the workshop identified priorities for green infrastructure on maps.

“You are identifying areas to conserve, setting priorities and explaining reasons for selecting them,” said Karen Tominey, a local planner employed by the state. She advises Louisville on planning issues.

The Blount County Planning Department, the Alcoa and Maryville Planning Department and the staff of the Local Planning Assistance Office are collaborating on the workshops.

“What we’re doing — where is it going?” asked local resident Jim Brown.
“The information will actually be fed to the planning commissions,” Lamb said.

‘Topside Road gone’

Kathy Lovingood, who owns Lovingood Farm in Louisville, had several priorities.
“I’m very much opposed to moving commercial down U.S. 411 because Greenback is definitely our richest farming area,” she said. “I want to see greater density in Alcoa and Maryville.”

When it came to the area around Louisville, she advocated protecting beyond the intersection of Louisville and Topside Roads toward the lake.

“If you want tourism, tourists aren’t going to come where at every little road you’ve got subdivisions, subdivisions, subdivisions,” Lovingood said.

Brown said that Louisville doesn’t need more commercial development.

“We can be in (the Alcoa) Walmart in five minutes,” he said. “... We don’t need it in Louisville.”

It’s already too late for some areas, Brown said.

“Topside Road is gone,” he said. “We can’t preserve anything now. It’s pretty much all commercial.”

Even though some development has occurred throughout most areas of the county, what’s left still need to be protected, Brown said.

“That’s all you can do — try to save what’s left,” he said. “I’ve been trying to do that for years.”

Network defined

According to information provided by the Blount County Planning Department, green infrastructure is an interconnected network of natural areas and other open spaces.
I
t can includes natural areas and features, public and private conservation lands, working lands with conservation value, and other protected open spaces. A green infrastructure network consists of hubs, links and sites.

— Hubs are large areas, including the national park, large conservation areas, private working lands, and regional parks.

— Links are the connections that tie the system together. They allow for the movement of people, wildlife and water. Examples include buffers along streams, greenways and bike paths.

—Sites are smaller than hubs and may not be attached to larger, interconnected community and regional conservation systems. They might include wetlands, critical habitat, and special recreational and cultural resources.

“What we’re trying to do is link the communities together in a way,” said Jim Scully,

Blount County Planning Commission chairman, who attended the workshop.
Roger Holbert asked if property owners could be notified about the importance of their property to wildlife or for open space.

“Some people don’t realize what they have sometimes,” he said. “... You have a place that could be considered a wildlife area and next thing it’s sold and they develop it and it is gone forever.”

The next workshop will be held tonight at Heritage High School.