United States Government Now Open
One day after the State of Tennessee stepped up and temporarily reopened the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the United States Senate and House have reached an agreement that will open the government and stall reaching the debt ceiling until early 2014. With a Senate vote of 81 to 18 and a House vote of […]
National Park Service Announces Agreement to Reopen Smokies
The National Park Service announced that it has entered into an agreement with the State of Tennessee that will allow Great Smoky Mountains National Park to temporarily reopen on Wednesday, October 16, after being closed for 15 days due to the partial government shutdown. The park will begin opening facilities at 8:00 a.m. The state […]
Audit Catches TWRA Misuse of Funds
The Tennessee Comptroller of Treasury recently conducted a performance audit of activities and selected programs of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. The Comptroller of Treasury had several alarming findings. Among the findings, they found the agency did not maintain proper controls over state credit cards. In addition, TWRA did not report lost or stolen equipment […]
Oak Grove Community Puts Out Plea For Controlled Growth
Concern has arisen in the Oak Grove Community, near exit 424 in Dandridge, regarding an extension of the Dandridge growth boundary lines to include their community. The Town of Dandridge has expressed interest in expanding their growth boundaries in that direction for several years and, recently, the Urban Growth Committee for Jefferson County approved the […]
Mayor Palmieri Interview – Fed Shutdown, Employee Benefits, Commission Size Reduction
Jefferson County Mayor Alan Palmieri gave a video interview last week to answer reader questions that have been presented to the Post over the last several weeks. The format of the interview was a question and answer session with the Post and reader questions were not vetted by the Mayor or his staff. Reader questions […]
Fate of Jefferson County’s Body Farm Uncertain
A Cadaver Research Project, which has been dubbed Jefferson County’s Body Farm, has lost backing from Carson-Newman University. The project has been the source of some controversy, as neighbors of the proposed location raised concerns regarding environmental safety and property value decrease in the surrounding area. Art Bohanan, a renowned investigator, donated the use of […]
Jefferson County Board of School Commissioners Meeting
The Jefferson County School Board met for a Called Meeting and Work Session on Thursday, October 10, 2013, at the Patriot Academy. The Meeting was Called to Order by Chairman of the Board Potts. All Board Members were present for Roll Call. Under New Business, the Board Approved, with a Motion from Board Member Bradley […]
Fraud Alert! Bogus Emails Claiming Need For Monetary Help
Overnight and early today fraudulent emails started showing up in inboxes in the East Tennessee Region. These emails claim to be from various people, however all making the same desperate request for monetary help. The emails claim that the person is in temporary need of help after being stuck in London, Ukraine, etc… and unable […]
MTSU researchers dig for ginseng in East Tennessee
State Rep. Jeremy Faison, with a team of researchers and administrators from MTSU in tow, set out in the woods of Cocke County Friday morning to dig for Appalachian gold. He was with scientists from the Tennessee Center for Botanical Medicine Research, based at MTSU, who sought his help to collect samples of the East Tennessee-grown ginseng […]
Big Benefit or Big Business? – Student Standardized Testing
Education has changed drastically in Tennessee over the last 30 years and the recent move to the Common Core Curriculum has been deemed the new direction of public education in more than four dozen States across the Nation. With the change in curriculum has come another change in student testing. Students across the Tennessee will […]
Autumn Dodson, Crowned Jefferson County High School Homecoming Queen
Jefferson County High School had its homecoming on Friday, October 3rd. The homecoming celebration coincided with the breast cancer awareness movement, and the homecoming events kicked off at the football game’s coin toss, where cancer survivors from the area and student body, both past and present, were honored. Many students and groups supported the awareness […]
Park Remains Closed During the Government Shutdown
Great Smoky Mountains National Park remains closed following the shutdown of the federal government. The Smokies, along with all 401 National Park Service units, closed visitor facilities on October 1, 2013. All visitor centers, picnic areas, campgrounds, trails, and roads are closed except for Newfound Gap Road (Hwy 441), the Spur, and the Gatlinburg Bypass. […]
Roach Announces Candidacy for General Sessions Judge
Dennis “Will” Roach II, son of long-time State Representative Dennis “Coach” Roach, has announced his candidacy for Jefferson County General Sessions Judge in the May 6, 2014, Republican primary. Roach is seeking to fill the position to be created by the retirement of General Sessions Judge Ben Strand. “Having watched my father serve the citizens […]
I-40 Crash in Jefferson County
An afternoon crash at I-40 mile marker 423 has left multiple fatalities and injuries. According to information from the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, a chartered bus was traveling eastbound on I-40 when it suffered a blown left front tire, causing the bus to cross the median and clip a westbound Tahoe before […]
Officials and TN Representatives Weigh In On Government Shutdown
East Tennessee is feeling the impact of the recent federal government shutdown, particularly in areas that are tied economically to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As of October 1, 2013, a government shutdown of non essential service areas was enacted, furloughing more than 800,000 government employees nationally. Locally, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park […]
Government Shutdown Forces Closure of Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Because of the shutdown of the federal government caused by the lapse in appropriations, the National Park Service (NPS) has closed all 401 national parks, including Great Smoky Mountains National Park. All visitor facilities including visitor centers, picnic areas, campgrounds, trails, and roads – except for Newfound Gap Road, (Hwy 441) including the Spur and […]
