The Greene County Budget and Finance Committee went through allocations of hotel/motel tax revenues during a nearly four hour meeting Wednesday morning. The committee recommended making new allocations to organizations that usually do not receive funding, and recommended cutting funding to a couple organizations that had received funding for the past few years. The committee also recommended allocating some funding for upgrades to Kinser Park.
Revenues generated through the hotel/motel tax are required by Tennessee law to be allocated toward efforts or entities that promote tourism, the arts, or recreation.
The committee recommended allocating $58,000 in funding for improvements to Kinser Park. Planned improvements include creating a new disc golf course, and possibly a new fishing and canoe dock. A new walking trail is also be explored for the county-operated park.
GREENEVILLE PARKS AND REC, BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB FUNDING CUT
The committee voted unanimously to recommend completely cutting funding for the Greeneville Parks and Recreation Department, and the Ladies Classic basketball tournament due to what county officials said was an ongoing investigation into the department by the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office.
Greeneville Mayor Cal Doty provided no comment Wednesday when asked if the Comptroller’s Office was investigating the Parks and Recreation Department.
Members of the committee said they wanted to be sure that the Parks and Recreation Department had its finances in order before providing further funding, and would revisit the matter in next year’s budget cycle.
Mayor Kevin Morrison, Commissioner Robin Quillen, Budget Director Danny Lowery
Greene County Mayor Kevin Morrison compared the matter to when the county withheld funds from two volunteer fire departments in Greene County in 2024 until financial auditing concerns were addressed.
The Town of Greeneville Parks and Recreation Department had received $40,000 from the county for the past few fiscal years. Another $3,000 had been allocated the past few fiscal years for the Ladies Classic.
The committee also recommended cutting funding for the Boys and Girls Club of Greeneville and Greene County. The organization had received a $15,000 allocation from the county in recent fiscal years.
Greene County Director of Accounts of Budgets Danny Lowery said the club did good work but noted that he was not sure if the Boys and Girls Club fit into the category of hotel/motel tax revenue funding, which he said was supposed to be used to promote tourism, the arts, and recreation. Commissioner Tim Smithson noted that the Boys and Girls Club did not provide an audit report to the committee, which is required for the county to provide funding to a nonprofit.
The Town of Greeneville cut their allocation to the Boys and Girls Club when passing their budget Tuesday. County committee members said Wednesday that they recommended cutting funding to the organization since the town had cut funding to the club the day before.
Boys and Girls Club Director Scott Burlington declined to comment on the matter Wednesday afternoon.
NEW REQUESTS GET INITIAL OK, OTHERS TO BE PUT TO RESOLUTION
The committee endorsed allocating funding to organizations that it previously had not funded.
The committee recommended a one-time allocation of $10,000 to Tusculum University to repair the rigging and fly system that is in disrepair in the Marilyn duBrisk Theater in the Annie Hogan Byrd Performing Arts Center.
It also recommended allocating $3,000 to Main Street: Greeneville to help fund Halloween Happenings, Christmas Downtown, and Lyrics on the Lawn.
The committee moved to take two requests, one from the Blue Springs Historical Association and one from Earnest Family Fort House Inc., to the Greene County Commission in the form of resolutions for one-time funding consideration.
The Blue Springs Historical Association requested $30,000 to restore the interior of the historic Blue Springs Lutheran Church in Mosheim and repair the driveway area around the church. The committee recommended that a resolution be taken to the County Commission for a vote to provide up to $15,000 in one-time funding to the association, pending a matching amount of funding from the Town of Mosheim. The resolution would state that the county would match each dollar that the Town of Mosheim chooses to allocate to the project.
The committee also recommended taking a separate resolution to the County Commission that would provide $20,000 in one-time funding to Earnest Family Fort House Inc. for the replacement of the Earnest Fort House’s roof. The building is one of the oldest in Greene County.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR OTHER ORGANIZATIONS
The Dickson-Williams Mansion Historical Association requested $10,000 as its annual allocation, which is the same as the previous fiscal year. However, the association also requested $13,000 to pay for the insurance on the historic Dickson-Williams Mansion. The property is owned by the Greene County government, and the association members serve as stewards of the property through a 99 year lease created in 1987. The association also requested $30,000 in one-time funding for repairs to the home caused by water damage over the past several years. The association is in the process of upgrading the guttering on the house and working to fix the roof of the porch, according to association president Rich Boyd.
The committee recommended that the $10,000 annual allocation be fulfilled, and that the $30,000 one-time contribution also be made to address water damage to the building.
However, the committee members said they would like to explore adding the mansion to the county’s insurance policy since the facility is a county-owned building. County Attorney Roger Woolsey said he felt that would be possible and that the cost to the county would be much lower than $13,000.
Niswonger Performing Arts Center requested $50,000, up from $45,000 the year prior. The committee recommended granting the full request.
In other allocations, the committee recommended allocating $5,000 to the Special Olympics in Greene County, $3,000 to Central Ballet Theatre, $10,000 to the Greeneville-Greene County History Museum, and $11,000 to the Greene County Partnership for the organization to use to recruit a college golf tournament.
