Comment on Kingsport considers establishing product creation center

KINGSPORT — From its modern day inception, Kingsport has been a city of creative people. From the engineers and chemists at Eastman, to the volunteer carvers of the carousel, to business incubators and small business owners, the people of the Model City are eager to create, share ideas and help other entrepreneurs achieve their dreams. One way city officials are hoping to promote that vision is through the establishment of a product creation center — a facility that would serve as maker space for artisans, tinkers, and entrepreneurs who could use specialized machinery and collaborate with like-minded people. When the One Kingsport Advisory Commission presented its top five “big ideas” to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen last week, one of those ideas recommended was the creation of a product creation center. Tom Gattis, the director at Aether Global Learning (a Columbus, Ohio, educational think tank), worked with One Kingsport volunteers on drafting a concept for a product creation center here and educating them and city leaders about what such a facility would provide. What is a product creation center? Gattis: “In essence, it’s a community-driven, creative space to allow people to realize their dreams.