town calendar
• As part of the Town’s project in evaluating potential uses for Farragut’s historic Campbell Station Inn, two public open houses will be held this week at the Inn to solicit additional input.
The Inn, located at the corner of Kingston Pike and North Campbell Station Road, will be open for self-guided tours from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday, Jan. 27, and again from 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, Jan. 28.
Possible uses for each room or space on the main and upper floors will be open to anonymous survey responses during the open houses.
The working group — comprised of Town staff and members of the community, and lead by Assistant to the Town Administrator Trevor Hobbs — has met three times to discuss proposed purposes for the Inn, which has been structurally stabilized since being purchased by the Town a decade ago.
Specific uses suggested so far by citizens include a gift shop, office space, historic display, classroom space and possible event rental space.
Among considerations during the last working group meeting Tuesday, Jan. 10, Town Parks and Recreation director Sue Stuhl said the group should be careful about possible duplication of services.
She also said staffing would need to be a consideration, too.
“Most historic sites have regular volunteers they can count on,” said Patrick Hollis, executive director and public historian for Mabry Hazen House.
“But there might be some things that couldn’t be delegated to volunteers, and might instead need to be accomplished by staff,” Hobbs said.
“I also think what we are looking at is a collection of ideas that might not be a reality for a while,” he added. “At first, we may just offer a class, instead of several.”
Group member Cathy Briscoe, whose grandfather was a descendant of the Russell family and a prolific painter, said she is hoping some portion of the building will be used for local artwork displays, including that of her late grandfather.
“We could display it and also offer it for sale,” she said. “We could do that for a lot of artists.”
Input received during this weekend’s public meetings will be considered prior to the working group making a formal recommendation to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen.
Hobbs said anyone unable to attend this weekend’s meetings could contact him at thobbs@townoffarragut.org to make arrangements to collect a survey response.
“I will find a way to make it happen,” he said, as he updated the Town’s Tourism Advisory Committee about the project Jan. 17.
• Farragut Quilt Show application deadline has been extended to Friday, Jan. 27. The show itself will be Saturday, Feb. 18 and Sunday, Feb. 19 in Farragut Community Center.
For more information, or to download the application, visit https://www.farragutparksandrec.org/quilt-show.
Applications may be picked up at Farragut Community Center.
• Town of Farragut will begin accepting applications for community grants for fiscal year 2024 (from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024) on Wednesday, Feb. 1. Applications must be received at Town Hall by 4 p.m., Friday, March 17, to be considered for inclusion in the Town’s FY2024 budget.
Information regarding the community grant application process, including eligibility requirements, can be found at townoffarragut.org/grants. Submit applications at Farragut Town Hall, 11408 Municipal Center Drive, by fax (865-675-2096, attention: Farragut community grants) or by e-mail to jhatmaker@townoffarragut.org.
