Low Lake Levels Keep Observation Knob Boat Ramp Closed
By Andre Teague/Bristol Herald Courier
Low water levels have kept Observation Knob Park’s boat ramp closed for the past two months.
BLOUNTVILLE, Tenn. – The boat ramp at Observation Knob Park has been closed for the past two months because of low lake levels, and fixing it will require a special permit from the Tennessee Valley Authority.
According to TVA’s Web site, South Holston Lake was at 1696.5 feet above sea level at noon on Wednesday, which is about 32 feet short of the lake’s prescribed summer-time level.
TVA officials have blamed the extremely low water levels this summer and last on the ongoing drought.
The park is owned by Sullivan County. Park Superintendent Dan Helton said on Wednesday that he had to close the boat ramp on July 26 because it no longer reached the water’s edge. He told members of the County Commission’s Observation Knob Park Committee that the ramp would have to be extended by 50 feet if it is to be used through the park’s season, which runs from mid-April to Nov. 1.
Building the extension would cost $5,000, Helton said, but park staff would first have to remove two islands that sit where the new ramp would end.
“Those islands would not let the boats get in,” Helton said. “If you extend [the ramp] 50 feet it’s just going to be an absolute waste.”
But moving the islands would require a permit from the TVA, which owns and operates South Holston and a number of other lakes in the area.
The permit would cost $500 and take at least six months to get. Committee members told Helton to go ahead and apply for the permit, despite the wait.
The committee also talked briefly about installing new playground equipment and refurbishing the park’s bathroom, but took no action.
“We’ve got to have something that we can offer these people,” County Commissioner Buddy King of Bristol, chairman of the committee, said of campground customers.
King said the park’s services must be improved so it can draw more renters. But he and the other committee members also said the park would have to bring in more money before any of this work could take place.
Observation Knob is set to get $71,000 – or about 40 percent of its total funding – from the county’s general fund in this year’s budget.
Helton said one way to increase the park’s revenue would be to reduce its rates for seasonal campers. The park, he said, only rented 27 of its 100 seasonal sites this year and as a result only brought in $32,000 from one of its biggest income sources.
Assistant Park Superintendent John Hall said a number of park guests have told him the seasonal rates should be lowered from $200 a month to $150 per month. He said the $150 rate is more in line with what is charged by other campgrounds on the lake.
“We’ve got to get that rate down to where people can live with it or else you might as well shut that campground down,” Hall said, adding that a number of park guests told him they wouldn’t be back next season without a rate reduction.
Committee members agreed and approved the rate reduction.
They also approved plans to let renters pay on a month-to-month basis if they sign a contract to stay for the full season.
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Reader Reactions
How funny that the commission is now seeing what someone who once worked for the county tried to tell them. In order to attract business you have to rovide a good product. I believe they were told to invest in playground equipment during a strategic planning session held about two years ago.
Mr. King and Mr. Godsey, you were the very ones that insisted $150 was to little a price for a campsite on lake frontage. So what are you going to do raise rents on those that are paying when the water level goes back up? Mr. King and Mr. Godsey, you cant have it both ways! This is just another reason we need better leadership in our government! Ignorance in numbers in Sullivan County
The TVA claims that South Holston Lake is down so much due to lack of rain the previous two years,Im sure some of that is true BUT If you take a look at the surrounding lakes, such as Boone and Watauga, you will see that they arent having those problems.I have heard people who work within the TVA say that they take water from South Holston and feed Boone Lake due to many reasons that most of us know about.Its unfair to the 1,000 of boat owners who enjoy South Holston who have had problems finding boat ramps, boat docks on land and all this happening by july…it just doesnt add up does it.They could at least help us out some esp when Boone is completely full… Now as far as observation knob, they made the decision to throw the faithful campers out who had been there for years.I believe they had over 200 spots rented out and a long waiting list…guaranteed money each year and now they are wandering why their profit has went down so much???It doesnt take a genius to wander why nobody wants to come back to ob knob to stay when so many got done the way they did 3 years ago. Not many campers as ob knob is seeing will pay that high price esp when they dont even have sewer hook ups and then have to move in & out each year.If you ask me they made a BAD buisness move when they kicked everyone out 3 years ago…Just look at the profit loss. If the TVA is going to keep pulling water out of South Holston to make money and keep Boone full then many of us will have to add on to boat ramps, extend boat docks further into the water. In which the TVA wants money from us for permits from them.It just doesnt add up does it guys???just doesnt add up!!!
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