Louise Mandrell bids farewell to Pigeon Forge

After an eight-year run in the theater that bears her name, entertainer Louise Mandrell announced in April she was selling the theater and leaving the county, citing her husband's debilitating illness. Mandrell, the last of the big-name entertainers to headline a theater here, closed out her run with two New Year's Eve performances.

Many in the community will miss her charity work, as she was a supporter of United Way, Friends of the Smokies, Boy Scouts, March of Dimes and the Dr. Robert Thomas Foundation at the hospital. After some time off back in Nashville, she's expected to star in a Broadway musical by next summer.

Business Booming at Interstates

Both development directors at Knox County and Sevier County are hoping to come up with a large parcel of land at the juncture of both counties for use as a draw for industrial development.

"We're about out of industrial property at the interstate," said Allen Newton, executive director of the Sevier County Economic Development Council. "It's one of those things when you're looking for property, you need a lot."

Officials have been working together for about a year to find property for a joint industrial park near Interstate 40.

Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters said Tuesday that whatever industry the proposed park attracts, it would provide a lot of jobs for both neighboring counties.

"We think that could be a win-win situation," he said.

Knox County officials also believe such a partnership helps everybody involved.

"I think we have to look at things from a regional perspective," said Todd Napier, director of development for the Development Corporation of Knox County. "As less developable land becomes available in each of our counties, we have to look for land elsewhere."

Though a joint industrial park with another county would be a first for Sevier, local officials have already made significant progress over the past few years in promoting industrial land on their own. Three speculative buildings have been sold to diverse smaller-sized industries in the John L. Marshall Technology Park on Pittman Center Road.

While that program has been successful, "our future is going to be focused on the interstate," Waters said.

Competition with other areas for large industry is depending more on interstate accessibility, which Sevier and Knox counties share, according to Waters.

Bass Pro Shop Opening Wildly Successful

It may have been the most anticipated business opening in Sevier County since Tanger Five Oaks. For months people driving the interstate saw this massive retail store go up across from Smokies baseball stadium. Not only did shoppers want to get inside, city of Sevierville officials couldn't wait either. The store is the cornerstone of the city's Central Business Improvement District (CBID), a state-backed commercial area that should mean millions for the city's coffers.

The store's opening day Nov. 29 attracted an estimated 12,000 people - record numbers for the chain. More than 23,000 visited the store on the ensuing Saturday. The store has a waterfall, a Starbucks and, soon, a seafood restaurant.