Oak Ridge Today

Lake City to Rocky Top: Bill clears first hurdle

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Lake City Rocky Top Meeting

A standing-room-only crowd assembles to watch the Lake City Council vote 4-0 in November to recommend the town’s name be changed to Rocky Top.

Legislation that could clear the way for Lake City to be rechristened Rocky Top cleared its first hurdle on Tuesday as it was approved by the Tennessee House of Representatives’ Local Government Committee in Nashville.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. John Ragan of Oak Ridge, is a private act requested by Lake City officials as the first step toward developing Lake City and its two exits off I-75 into a tourist destination.

Developers say that without the name change, the project—which could include a theater, a restaurant, and other amenities—cannot move forward. [Read more…]

Lake City recommends Rocky Top name change, but receives copyright warning

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Lake City Council Approves Rocky Top Name Change

The Lake City Council votes 4-0 on Thursday to recommend changing the town’s name to Rocky Top, and Rep. John Ragan, right, said he has drafted legislation to approve the rechristening in the state legislature.

LAKE CITY—Just hours before a historic vote to change this town’s name for the second time in less than a century, Lake City Mayor Tim Sharp received a legal letter warning him that a proposal to build a Rocky Top theme park here could violate trademark rights and should be dropped.

But project supporters packed City Hall on Thursday, and the Lake City Council pressed on, voting 4-0 to recommend changing the name of this former coal mining town to Rocky Top. It’s the first step in a project to build a multi-million dollar theme park that could include an interactive Knotty Pine 3-D theater, water park, hotel, and restaurant.

The last-minute letter from an intellectual property attorney in Nashville could have Lake City officials and the park’s investors scrambling to answer legal questions. The notice was “very unexpected,” Sharp said. [Read more…]

Reminder: Lake City Council to vote on Rocky Top name change today

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Lake City Council will meet at 5 p.m. today (Thursday) to discuss and vote on the proposal to change the city’s name to Rocky Top as the first step toward turning the small town into a tourist destination.

Developers have proposed a $20 million first phase of the project that could include attractions like a theater, a water park, and a large restaurant. The name change is widely expected to be approved during today’s meeting.

If it is, the measure will be sent to the General Assembly in Nashville for its approval when the next legislative session begins in January. If state lawmakers sign off on the change, it will be sent back to the City Council for ratification. [Read more…]

More than 400 attend Rocky Top meeting in Lake City on Friday

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Information from WYSH Radio

More than 400 people attended Friday night’s bean and cornbread social and informational meeting on a proposal to change the name of Lake City to Rocky Top as the first step toward the creation of a massive Rocky Top theme park.

The event was held at Main Street Baptist Church and featured a presentation from the developers of the proposed tourist destination as well as from Anderson County Property Assessor Johnny Alley, who told the crowd that property taxes would not only not go up because of the project, but if all goes as planned, residents could actually see their property taxes decline as new revenue comes in. Lake City Mayor Tim Sharp told residents that the only cost to the town will be changing the name.

The park, as proposed, would be built on land owned by the city on Highway 441 between I-75 and Highway 25. The first phase of the development would be called the Rocky Top Pavilion and would feature a theater designed to attract musical acts like those found in Branson, Mo.; an indoor-outdoor water park; and a large restaurant. Developers also envision a sports hall of fame and museum. [Read more…]

Informational meeting Friday on changing Lake City’s name to Rocky Top

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Anyone interested in learning more about the proposal to change Lake City’s name to Rocky Top can attend an informational meeting and beans and corn bread social on Friday evening in Lake City.

The developers and partners of Rocky Top will be available to answer all questions concerning the project, locations, jobs, and the general impact on the community, said Stephanie Wells, executive director of the Anderson County Tourism Council.

The meeting starts at 6 p.m. Friday at Main Street Baptist Church, located at the corner of Fourth and Main Street in Lake City. [Read more…]

Lake City has Nov. 1 public meeting on changing name to Rocky Top

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Information from WYSH Radio

Lake City residents who want more information about a proposal to change their city’s name to Rocky Top as the first step toward the creation of an amusement destination with a water park, restaurant, and theaters tied together by the area’s coal mining history will get a chance to get that information and share their opinions during a public meeting scheduled for Friday, Nov. 1, at 6 p.m. in the Family Life Center of Main Street Baptist Church.

The Lake City Council will consider the name change on Thursday, Nov. 7. If approved, the change would have to be approved by the General Assembly. [Read more…]

Rocky Top theme park proposed in Lake City

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Information from WYSH Radio

A new theme park proposed for Lake City could prove to be an economic boon but before anything can happen, the developer wants the city to change its name.

Proposed is a $20 million project that includes a brewery and distillery, interactive kids’ theater, and an outdoor amphitheater, an indoor/outdoor water park and resort with a restaurant that looks like a shipwreck and seats 700, and a Rocky Top-themed sports museum, as well as a 100-bed lodge and several other attractions.

In addition to the theme park, they also want to change the name of the city to Rocky Top. [Read more…]

Town Hall meeting in Lake City to focus on proposed theme park

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Information from WYSH Radio

There will be a Town Hall meeting in Lake City at 3:30 p.m. today (Thursday), during which attendees will be able to see and hear a presentation from Knoxville Businessman Buddy Warren—owner of several companies including Rocky Top Beer and Rocky Top Moonshine as well as the right to the name “Rocky Top, Tennessee”—to discuss his proposal to build a Rocky Top theme park and relocate his bottling company, brewery, and distillery to the Lake City area.

The proposed park would include a Rocky Top sports museum, a coal miners’ theater for live music, an emporium, a restaurant, a 100-bed lodge, an Interactive 3D theater, an indoor water park, and several other amenities, including a new studio for our sister station Merle FM.

[Read more…]