Meet the Mountains may return this summer with new organizer

JOHNSON CITY — A summer festival highlighting outdoor recreation in Johnson City could return this August with a new organization at the helm.The Johnson City Convention and Visitors Bureau board voted this week to hire an employee to oversee coordination of Meet the Mountains. The posting is contingent on the Northeast Tennessee Regional Economic Partnership transferring funds to support the additional staff member."I think there's a lot of energy behind that festival, and the goal is to make it the premier festival in Johnson City," said CVB Chair Andy Marquart.Brenda Whitson, the executive director of the convention and visitors bureau, said the organization hopes to host the festival this August if the NeTREP board approves funding. NeTREP CEO Mitch Miller said the festival started with his organization, and the city's visitors bureau has always been part of the planning committee. The event began with seed funding from NeTREP, he said, but it's primarily financed through sponsorships, fees to vendors and donations.Miller said NeTREP also dedicated a staff member to that festival, a position that also handled its outdoor development program.Now, NeTREP is looking at a different set of priorities, which will involve replacing that position, which is currently empty, with a new one dedicated to workforce development. The pandemic, Miller said, has highlighted the need for an enhanced focus on workforce issues."We just can't go develop sites anymore and expect somebody to come up here to buy a site and build a big factory," he said. "The dynamics have changed, and so we're going to have to get really more involved on the workforce side. I think that's why we have to pivot."Going forward, Miller said, NeTREP will still be involved in planning Meet the Mountains and assembling sponsorships and vendors."We'll still be doing everything that we have done," he said. "The only shift is ... we're not providing the direct staff. .... It's the (convention and visitors bureau) doing that now."Although he still needs to talk to the organization's board, Miller said he expects there will be support for covering the cost of a new bureau employee for at least two years.In 2020, organizers cancelled the festival due to concerns about COVID-19, and last year, Miller said, the biggest challenge in organizing Meet the Mountains came from determining whether the event could still occur safely during the pandemic. With a focus on ensuring the event wouldn't exacerbate the spread of COVID in the region, organizers ultimately opted to host the festival in 2021."We made that call and I still feel good about that call, and we tried to do everything we could to keep people safe," Miller said.Miller expects it will be possible to host the event in 2022."I feel very confident that it can happen, and we're going to do everything we can to work with the CVB to make sure that transition is seamless," he said.Meet the Mountains has ben held in downtown Johnson City since 2018, and Miller said it showcases recreational opportunities in Northeast Tennessee. It's also a good way to teach kids about activities like mountain biking or kayaking."I see the outdoors as a major part of our economy here," Miller said, adding that the festival helps expose new people to outdoor amenities and boosts the profile of local attractions.