A Brief History
In April of 1995 the Smoke Rise Garden Club held a community-wide meeting at the Smoke Rise United Methodist Church to see if there was any interest in forming a homeowner’s association. It was very well attended and a committee was formed to investigate all aspects involving such an association. In May a second meeting was held. A steering committee was established with Hugh McConnell as chairman. The responsibilities of this committee included developing by-laws and general guidance in moving forward with establishing the association. At the third general meeting in June the by-laws were adopted and Directors were elected by sector. Each sector was to have two Directors; from these Directors the officers were elected. The first set of officers were President, Hugh McConnell, sector 5; Vice President, Bob Humphrey, sector 1; Secretary, Enid Thompson, sector 6; Treasurer, Barbara Johnson, sector 4; and Historian, Dolores Fort, sector 1. The Annual Meeting for the election of new Directors occurs in April of every year. New Directors are elected for a two-year term.
Since the inception of the Association, many accomplishments have occurred. There are now three entrance signs into Smoke Rise: (1) corner of White Oak Trail and Smoke Rise Trail, entrance to sector 1; (2) corner of Valley Trail and Highway 31, entrance to sector 5; and (3) corner of Millcreek and Highway 31, entrance to sector 6. We are hoping to get permission to establish signs into sector 1 on the corner of Smoke Rise Trail and Highway 160, and into sector 10 on the corner of Country Road and Highway 31.
For many years money had been earmarked within the county budget for repaving the roads throughout Smoke Rise. That money, and new roads, never seemed to materialize within our community. Through constant contact and unified effort by the Homeowners, many miles of new roads appeared beginning in 1996-1997. Since the election of David Cochran, more road miles have been added. He has provided our Association with a long-range plan for further road miles over a period of years, as funds become available. Our Association has become known within the political circles of this county. The more members we have, the more influence we can have.
Over the years, the Garden Club of Smoke Rise attempted a valiant effort of keeping the community’s street signs current. Unfortunately, it seemed like a lost cause. When 911 became a reality, signs were provided by the county and were put in by county workers. These also were taken by vandals, some along with their posts. Through the efforts of the Homeowners, and in particular Randy and Yvonne Whisonant, we now have new street signs on all intersections within the community, at a cost of over $14,000.
Years ago a new water authority was formed (Blount County Water Authority), which was a unification of two water boards – West Blount and Northwest Blount. The Articles of Incorporation of this Authority requires that two members on the board come from the old West Blount Water Authority service area and two members from the old Northwest-Blountsville Water Authority service area, and one at-large member. The first water board had Tom Robertson and Neil Campbell from the old West Blount Water Authority. Unfortunately, Tom Robertson passed away and left a very large hole to be filled. All members of the new Water Authority then came from the Blountsville or Hog Mountain area. For years after Tom’s death, West Blount had no representation on the new Authority, until Bobby Mann was finally appointed by the Blount County Commission. Even with Bobby’s appointment, West Blount still was not fully represented on the new Authority. After repeated attempts, through proper channels, to have the County Commission make the proper appointment, Smoke Rise Homeowners Association filed a lawsuit against the Blount County Commission for violation of the Articles of Incorporation by not having the proper number of members from West Blount County. Grateful thanks goes to Larry Waites who gave untold hours of his time to make sure this was done in a proper manner. We were taken seriously, and with the help of David Cochran (once again), Norma Robertson was appointed to fill the vacancy of the other representative from West Blount. (Please see attached a copy of the Resolution that was presented to David Cochran for his unselfish help and concern for our community.)
Dues for the Homeowners Association is a very modest $40 per year (which equates to less than $1 per week). Currently, there are over 700 houses in our community, with more being built all the time. However, with this small amount of dues, we have accomplished many things. A few have already been mentioned. Others include donations (one for $1000) to the West Blount Fire Department to help with the establishment of the Station in Smoke Rise. We have also made donations to both of the churches in Smoke Rise for the use of their facilities, as well as several donations made to the new Hayden High School for help with their phone system and equipment for the new science labs. After years of strong efforts and prodding by the Association and some of its members, the new West Blount Courthouse Annex was opened at the old high school in Hayden. Currently the Association is working with other residents of West Blount County to see that our area reaches its full potential. We have residents of our community on the West Blount Development Committee, which was formed to make our area one of good economy and beauty, and provide positive growth. There are also those involved with the Performing Arts Center, working tirelessly to establish a community based establishment for use by our schools and organizations within the community.
There are members of the Association who have donated many hours to make sure that our community becomes an even better place to live than what it already is. Considering the small amount of money that has been collected over the years, the accomplishments of this Association are many. Since the beginning of this Association in 1995, forty-two different people have served as Sector Directors. There are twelve sectors in Smoke Rise, which means that there should be twenty-four Directors on each Board. Currently, there are five Sectors that have no representation and one Sector needing one more Director. Forty-two different people over a period of twelve years trying to do what is right for twelve sectors means a lot of time and effort by a few for the many. Some of these people have been actively involved from the very beginning.
We, as a community, are being taken more seriously by our County Commission. We have had several of our government officials at our General Meetings answering many difficult questions. Your input and participation will add to the belief that Smoke Rise is a united community. If you are not already a member, please consider joining and lending your assistance to those who have already gotten their feet wet and paved the way. Please contact any officer, if you are interested in membership, to become involved in your community. The more we have working together, the more we can accomplish