Goodpaster thinks big, recruits helpers

Sandra ClarkOur Town Leaders, Powell

Steven Goodpaster finished his tenure as chair of Enhance Powell this week. It’s been a five-year stint of volunteerism that has created visible, long-term improvements in the community.

At Tuesday’s meeting of the Powell Business & Professional Association, Goodpasture discussed this year’s awesome Powell Station Celebration and turned in his accumulated stuff.

Steven Goodpaster

“I’ve handed off the laptop, screen, projector and hard files to PBPA president Jeff Bagwell and have shared with him my thoughts as to the committee’s future organizational structure,” he said afterwards.

Later this month, he will begin preparation for his next big volunteer task – president of the Tennessee Chapter of the Appraisal Institute. The state group has 400-plus members. It works to advance “professionalism and ethics, global standards, methodologies, and practices through the professional development of property economics worldwide.”

Before we list the recent accomplishments of Enhance Powell, let’s reflect on Steven’s leadership style.

First, he’s extremely well-organized. He works full-time as a commercial real estate appraiser at Woodford & Associates. He and wife Jennifer are active in the Powell Elementary School PTA. Their kids, Grady and Emery, are active in sports like rugby and track. They’ve adopted two rescue dogs.

Second, he’s a big-tent guy. Why do one or two events if you can do 12? Why handle everything yourself if you can recruit 12 folks to handle a piece of the event? Steven has expanded Enhance Powell to include groups like the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, which gave a grant toward building the new kayak put-in behind Powell High School.

Third, he’s all about technology. With support from Dwight Disney at Vaughn Pharmacy, he purchased a laptop on which he loaded all of the plans, maps and photos that show where we’ve been and where we’re going. He makes meetings fun by showing real estate tracts from every angle, including the top.

Steven revitalized the Broadacres Homeowners Association, and then handed it off. After his stint with the state appraisers, what will he tackle next? Developer? Candidate for public office? Raiser of funds for a non-profit? Whatever he tackles, odds are good that he will spark growth. He’s sure got a cadre of true-believers in Powell.

Here’s how he sums up his tenure as the leader of Enhance Powell.

  • Facilitated community planning through engagement of the East Tennessee Community Design Center
  • Participated in and facilitated community cleanups
  • Assisted in the development of The Landing at Powell High School – a permanent boat launch and park area
  • Contracted and funded Powell greenway enhancements – cleaning and painting of park benches
  • Served as designated recipient for two Eagle Scout projects
  • Funded specialized lighting for service of the Landing area (on the PHS baseball scoreboard)
  • Facilitated the Powell Station Celebration – a multifaceted community event/fundraiser with car show, flotilla, disc golf tournament, skate event, history presentation and so much more!
  • Grew the Enhance Powell Committee Facebook Page to 3,000 followers
  • Established formal connectivity of EPC Facebook with I Love Powell, I Love Karns! and What’s Up in Halls pages
  • Managed the EPC Email Liststerv with 140+ addresses
  • Developed internal email, document, photo and other file systems using Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.
  • Assisted in development of the PBPA website – PowellTN.org
  • Engaged with the government, public, individuals, etc. in support of The Knox County Water Trail and expansion of Powell Station Park
  • Facilitated media engagement with KnoxTNToday.com, the Powell Shopper and various television outlets
  • and more

Sandra Clark is editor/CEO of Knox TN Today. She was the founding chair of Enhance Powell and served as co-chair with Justin Bailey before Steven Goodpaster’s tenure.

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