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Local News

  • Harriman charter changes to be up for discussion Tues.

    Whenever Harriman officials start talking about changing the city’s charter, even minor tweaks can spark debate.

    Harriman City Council is supposed to tackle the charter change discussion once again this Tuesday at its 7 p.m. meeting.

    Councilman Buddy Holley will present changes he’s made to a draft of the charter for the rest of council to consider.

    Likely to be discussed is making city treasurer and city attorney appointed posts. Both are presently elected.

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  • County zoning request responses mixed

    Several zoning resolutions were on the agenda at last month’s Roane County Commission meeting.

    J. Baker Hamilton owns 162 acres of woodland along Roane State Hwy. across from Roane County Park. He wants to market the property as commercial and requested that it be rezoned from low-density residential to highway commercial.

    The planning commission approved the request in December. The commission approved it at the January meeting.

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  • Sampson: Pain pill addiction problem almost ‘epidemic’

    Methamphetamine labs are one of the hot topics right now, but prescription pill abuse is one of the biggest drug problems in the state.

    “In fact, prescription and over-the-counter drugs are, after marijuana (and alcohol), the most commonly abused substances by Americans 14 and older,” according to the website www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/prescription-drugs.

    Harriman Councilman J.D. Sampson wants to meet in a council workshop with state legislators and District Attorney Russell Johnson on how to curb the abuse.

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  • Lowe’s worker charged with identity theft

    Harriman police charged a Lowe’s employee with identify theft last month.

    Ali Nelson is accused of attempting to open a Lowe’s credit card account in her ex-husband’s name.

    According to the arrest warrant, Michael Court contacted Harriman police about the matter on Jan. 9.

    “The victim said he recently received a notice from credit reporting agency Experian that someone attempted to open a credit card in his name at Lowe’s in Harriman, but the account was denied,” the warrant said.

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  • Election 2014: Candidates and potential hopefuls

    Qualifying petitions FILED for candidacy in the Aug. 7 Roane County General Election or state primary:

    BOARD OF EDUCATION
    District 1 (1 seat)
    • Sam Doughty¶
    District 5/6 (1 seat)
    • Vic King*

    CIRCUIT COURT CLERK
    • Randy Ellis

    CIRCUIT COURT JUDGE
    • Kim R. Nelson¶

    COUNTY ATTORNEY
    • Greg Leffew¶

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  • Bingo for Books

    B-14 ...

    “Do I have it?” Cade Harrison asks his father.

    I-28 ...

    “Do I have it?” the 4-year-old again asks.

    G-48 ...

    “Do I have it?”

    Matt Harrison replies to his son’s question the same as the first two times — with the shake of his head.

    The father and son were among those participating in Dyllis Springs Elementary School’s Bingo for Books night.

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  • Snowstorm sneaks up on community

    We were ready for the cold.

    It was the snow that slipped up on us — and on forecasters in East Tennessee.

    “It really developed in the 24 hours leading up to when we started getting snowfall,” said Derek Eisentrout, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Morristown on Wednesday.

    He explained that a front was moving into the Southern Appalachians and a “portion hung up in the mountains and did not move.”

    Initially forecasters believed the front would move through and not cause precipitation.

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  • School funding formula gets look

    Local officials were happy to hear that Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam has formed a task force to study the state’s Basic Education Program.

    “I think it’s a good idea,” Roane County Director of Schools Gary Aytes said. “It certainly has some flaws.”

    The Basic Education Program, or BEP, is the state’s funding formula for public schools.

    “You got the urban systems who are upset,” Aytes said. “You got the rural systems who are upset.”

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  • Schools found out about snow the morning of

    Tuesday’s snowy weather caught Roane County school officials off guard.

    “We checked the forecast the night before and they were calling for nothing,” Director of Schools Gary Aytes said. “I actually checked it at 6:30 or 7 that morning, and they were still calling for nothing.”

    Things changed just after 8 a.m.

    “The National Weather Service contacted us about 8:15 and told us this mess was coming in,” Aytes said.

    Aytes said that alert from the weather service was a big help.

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  • “Love Letters’ free at Princess

    Roane State Community College’s Karen Brunner and Bruce Borin will star in “Love Letters,” a unique two-person play Feb 6-7 at the historic Princess Theatre in downtown Harriman. Admission is free.

    The show begins at 7 p.m.

    Written by A.R. Gurney, “Love Letters” traces the lifelong correspondence of the dutiful lawyer Andrew Makepeace Ladd III and the lively, unstable artist Melissa Gardner.

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