BRISTOL, Va. (WJHL) – The mayors of Bristol, Tennessee and Bristol, Virginia painted a rosy picture of their cities during the annual “State of the Cities” event Wednesday.
“The state of the City of Bristol, Tennessee is great and the future is bright,” said Mayor Vince Turner.
Turner read a laundry list of success stories, including the town’s takeover of the Bristol State Liners venue and a new power station.
All the more impressive, said Turner, “all of this was accomplished with no increases to the city’s taxes or fees for services.”
Bristol, Virginia Mayor Neal Osborne focused on the future, including the upcoming Hard Rock Hotel opening and the opening of a new intermediate school.
“Bristol, Virginia is on the precipice of a renaissance, and I’m so excited for our city and its future,” said Osborne.
Both state and federal legislators in attendance highlighted the importance of cross-border collaboration, especially as they work towards the potential reopening of passenger rail service in Bristol.
“The only way it works for Bristol is to have both a line from Washington to Roanoke to Bristol and a line from Bristol to Chattanooga and then other areas,” said Congressman Morgan Griffith told News Channel 11.
Tennessee State Representative John Crawford concurred.
“This is the first time in history that Tennessee has ever put any money for rail,” Crawford said during a panel discussion. “That’s basically because the leadership of Virginia, and what they have done, it’s shamed Tennessee and we realized we’d better get on the ball here.”
Passengers will still have to wait a few years to be able to board a train from Bristol, said Griffith.
