Why Do Young Professionals Love Blount County?

Blount County young professionals enjoy excellent job opportunities, great resources, deep connections (and the mountains, of course!)

By Laura Hill on January 4, 2024

Jeff Adkins

After college in Chattanooga, Alexa Johns looked around for a place to settle that offered career opportunities, an easy-going, affordable quality of life and a place to one day perhaps raise a family. She found that special place right where she grew up, in the Blount County city of Maryville, TN. 

Today, Johns leads Blount County Young Professionals, a thriving, diverse group of like-minded under-45s who are finding they can explore exciting career pathways while enjoying weekends on a Smoky Mountain trail or the patio of a downtown brewery. 

Moving Up 

“One big reason I moved here is that there are opportunities to move up in your career, especially compared to bigger cities,” she says. “Employers here know that young people are the future and so they are willing to invest in young professionals. There’s a strong belief by the older generation in the younger generations.” 

Jobs, Johns says, are plentiful and offer a variety of opportunities, whether you are looking for employment with a company or are an entrepreneur or a gig-economy worker. “If you want to find a job here, you will find one,” Johns says. “There is always something that fits you.” 

For Javon Crane, a financial adviser with Northwestern Mutual, employment began while he was still a student (and basketball standout) at Maryville College. He, too, found Blount County a great place to build a career that has now taken him to Northwestern’s offices in Knoxville, though he still serves clients in Maryville and Townsend. 

DENSO Tennessee

Making Connections 

“What made me stay here in Blount County was the feeling of connectedness, of connected relationships and community,” Crane says. “I feel welcome. 

You get out of anything what you put in, but here you can network and meet the people you need to know.” 

Both Johns and Crane are excited by the area’s out-of-the-office array of things to enjoy, starting with accessibility to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most-visited in the country, where hiking, mountain biking and some of the country’s most awe-inspiring landscapes are right next door. Johns suggests tubing on the Little River, while the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center is perennially popular, as is the Apple Valley Mountain Village. 

While Knoxville is close enough for a taste of bigger-city amenities (and University of Tennessee football), Blount County boasts its own downtowns – two of them. Maryville offers historic charm and a host of retail and dining options. Newly built Springbrook Farm in Alcoa is also developing another city center, with modern living spaces, popular restaurants and specialty shops. 

Both are known for the craft beverage scene – check out Blackberry Farm Brewery, Tri-Hop Brewery or Swä’ra Brewing Co. The foodie scene is bustling, too, as young chefs find their home here, manning the kitchens at places like the legendary Dancing Bear Lodge. And for nightlife, check out Diamondjack, Brackins, Two Doors Down, The Shed and Bluetick Tavern. 

Raising a Family 

Young professionals with families are finding Blount County the perfect place to raise kids, with affordable housing, good schools, safe neighborhoods and great recreational opportunities. 

“People who went to UT or Maryville College may have left Blount County after graduation, but as soon as they had a family they moved right back,” Crane says. 

“I would definitely want my own kids to be raised in the kind of environment I was raised in in Maryville,” Johns says. “It’s so community oriented. On a Friday night, you can guarantee that everyone’s out supporting their high school football team. It’s a family kind of place.” 

Groups like BCYP help foster that sense of community by welcoming newcomers and connecting a diverse group of talented up-and-comers who will shape the area’s future. 

“Every person is looking for something different,” Johns says. “We help them find a community within our community, which allows people to really put their feet down here.”