Crossville native Rob Harrison has announced his candidacy for
Crossville City Council and is asking for your vote in the upcoming
November election.
Harrison ran for City Council as he saw old school politics and
dysfunction holding the City back. “I’ll always remember driving
the Playhouse float in the Christmas Parade one year and seeing
the whole route lined with eager young people.” It struck him that
there weren’t many staying around during their middle years
because there weren’t enough good opportunities to make it
worth their while to stay here. He made up his mind to try to
create a culture of stability in City Hall which had a long history of
a revolving door for city managers, and to create conditions to
expand existing businesses and to try to bring in new ones.
Through his efforts and the efforts of the Mayor, Council, Chamber
and others working together, we have brought in, or at least tried
to help all we could, Rural King, Chick Fil A, Buc-cees, TSM Metals Company, Whisper Aero, Flat Rock
Motorsports Park USA, , and many other existing local companies and entrepreneurial startups. We also
had what he believes to be the longest serving City Manager in the history of Crossville. Having that
stability allowed us to find and hire a great Manager, our very own Valerie Hale who had been the
Assistant City Clerk, then City Clerk for a total of 14 years.
Harrison grew up in Crossville and graduated from CCHS in 1974. He went on to attend Vanderbilt
University earning a bachelor’s degree with a major in Economics and a minor in History. In 1982, he
graduated from the Owen Business School at Vanderbilt with his Master’s in Business Administration.
After graduation, he went to work at Price Waterhouse accounting/small business consulting firm in
Nashville. While there he worked with many businesses and learned how they worked from the inside
out. He later owned a small business in Nashville.

In 1996, Rob and his wife, Lisa, and their young daughter moved back to Crossville to work at his family’s
business, Plateau Properties, and to take care of his mother who was in declining health.
Harrison believes in stewardship and being careful with other people’s money as a bedrock principal in
all he does. He runs Plateau Properties on Main Street. A third generation family business which has
been in the real estate business on the Plateau for over 100 years. He answers to 30 cousins involved in
the family business. He is a long time member of Crossville First Methodist Church where he serves as

Chairman of the Finance Committee for the second time. He agreed to take on this role last year
because he sees the Church as a force for good in the community, among other things, through its work
supporting Martin Elementary School. He is the Secretary of the Crossville Regional Planning
Commission. He is former Chairman of the Cumberland County Playhouse, one of the largest rural
regional theaters in the country.
He serves as Chairman of the Cumberland Medical Center Board of Advisors. Prior to that, he created
and was Chairman of the hospital’s Audit Committee when CMC was a standalone hospital with
revenues of about $200 million/year and 1000 employees at the time. He pointed out that, by
comparison, the City is about $38.7 million/year with 180 employees.
He went on to say “The City Council has been very careful and conservative with your money and has
built up a very strong balance sheet with about $24-$25 million in savings. This would allow us to
operate the General Fund for almost a year with no property or sales tax revenue at all! Because of this
strong financial position, at his urging, the City is applying to Standard and Poors for a higher credit
rating which could save the City millions of dollars in interest expenses. He said, “We can handle the rec
center and also do other projects (new fire stations, First Baptist rec facilities, etc.), even in a severe
economic downturn, based on 36 years of steady growth in population and sales taxes, even with ups
and downs, and I’ll be happy to show my numbers to anyone who is interested.” He went on to point
out that property tax is explicitly excluded for the Rec Center/YMCA by State Law. And he said, “I’ve
been surprised, astonished really, that very few people including my opponents have asked to see my
numbers and yet are quick to say this is reckless!”

Harrison said “My main reason for supporting the Rec Center/YMCA is to support economic
development for Crossville. Whisper Aero, now in the old Trade-A-Plane (TAP) Building, is considering
expanding to 300 high tech employees for example and they will need and want more to do downtown.
Also, after 25 years of trying to get more doctors here, I know how important having amenities like a
YMCA with all that it offers is to a doctor’s family in deciding whether to move here or not. And then
there are the stories I hear of mid-level executives, doctors and dentists who choose not to live here
because their families refuse to live here and instead make their spouse commute here every day.”
Harrison then addressed the subject of the Cumberland Plateau Water Authority. He said “I would be
hesitant for the City to transfer its water and sewer assets to the authority but like any decision, I’d want
to see all the facts and what’s in it for the City. Our engineers estimate 30-40 years of water supply, and
some informed estimates put it at 60-80 years. If the regulators would guarantee a new 5000 acre
drinking water lake in this area that would help all of Cumberland County, and in turn help Crossville,
then I would have to think about it. I don’t think it’s very likely, but I try to get all the facts and keep an
open mind about everything, and even then there would have to be a referendum just like I pushed for
for the YMCA”.

Harrison said, “I first ran for office because I want to see economic development so our community can
grow and thrive. I’m asking for your vote. I’m for good, open, transparent government. I have a solemn fiduciary duty to you, the Citizens of Crossville, not to the old school way of thinking, and I will continue
to make sure your tax money is used wisely and carefully for your benefit and the benefit of your
families. Hopefully, getting better job opportunities will achieve that.”
Harrison has been on City Council since 2018 and is currently the Mayor “Pro Tem” (Vice Mayor) of
Crossville. Feel free to contact him at his office, 931/484-5948, or mobile phone, 931/265-5767, or at
his city email at [email protected].
Your voice and your vote matter for this great democracy of ours! He would appreciate your vote this
fall. Early voting starts October 16 th ; Election Day is Nov. 5 th .