Oh the shame: Sign targets a local doctor

Every morning I drive by the fancy sign on the left. And chuckle.

I think it's for the superintendent, but I'm not positive.

OK, that's a lie. I'm pretty sure it is for him. Heh.

Anyhoo, this morning, I got out and took a few pictures. Man, that's got to pi-, er, upset, the good doctor. I mean, it's posted right there in front of the A.J. Building.

Heh. He can't miss it.

In addition to the sign, is the spin brochure that the two union folks who sit in front of the sign pass out to folks who want to take pictures of it. It says: "Shame on Dr. McIntyre for Desecration of the American Way of Life."

It then goes on to talk about some kind of East Tennessee Carpenters union. Or something. I got bored reading it. (I initially thought they were protesting the proposal to outsource custodial services. But, no, it's about carpet.)

The brochure also has a picture of a rat eating the American flag, which is pretty funny. (Not the flag getting eatin', but the rat.)

I asked county Mayor Tim Burchett about the sign. Cause I was stuck in traffic and bored and figured he'd be at work.

He wants one, too.

"McIntyre has been here three years and I've been here 47 and I've yet to get something like that," the mayor said, laughing. "And he's not even sure how he got it."

Burchett added: I've been ticking people off for at least 40 of my 47 years. Who does he think he is? All I get are headlines in the newspaper. If I got a sign like that, I'd make it my Facebook profile picture."

Yeah. I don't think that's at the top of the superintendent's list right now.

Hammond plans school tour (good stuff)

Was sitting around, wondering when I'd get my next spin release. And then, like manna from heaven, baby, one magically appears in my email in box.

The county commission's top dog – Chairman Mike Hammond – didn't let me down.

Apparently, Hammond is about to tour all of the county's schools. Following in the foot steps of county Mayor Tim Burchett (Hammond swears he's not doing this as a bid for his own run at the county's top dog seat), the chairman will meet with underpaid teachers, richer-than-heck administrators and whiny, snot middle-school students who don't care about learning.

(He'll also meet with elementary kids and high school students.)

Hammond said he got the idea after meeting with schools Superintendent “Slim” Jim McIntyre and School Board Chairman Thomas “Deak” Deakins” about the “budget situation.” (The budget situation by the way kind of sucks, considering the school system is facing a $7 million shortfall next year.)

“We really need to address education in Knox County and the best way to find out what the real needs are is to get out there in the schools,” Hammond said. “My sense is that the needs in south Knoxville are different from the needs in west Knoxville and those needs are different from east Knoxville.”

He said that although the school system is looking at a long-range funding plan, he felt the county commission should, too. You know, cause that's who actually allocates the coin to the school people.

Oh yeah, almost forgot. As I said earlier in my mental patient-like ramblings, Hammond sent me a press release. It's pretty boring, so I didn't post it here. (Man, I can't wait for Big Sexy Michael Grider to get back from his junket, so I can get some fun spin releases.)

But, since Hammond is a good guy, I'll provide a link to it. You can get that by clicking right smack here.

Dean Rice sues county, BOE. Sort of

By now you might have heard that Dean Rice has sued the county. Or that someone sued Dean Rice and the county.

Or whatever. (The rumor/story changes every five minutes.)

Well, it's true. But, we're not talking about the kinder, gentler emperor – the administration's chief of staff - Dean Rice.

No, it's 16-year-old Dean Rice, a student at Bearden High School, who is suing the county. (Or his mom is, anyway.)

So, for all the folks talking about it over at the Deathstar, you can stop now. It isn't your Dean.

For those interested in what happened, then read on.

Apparently, the young Rice was playing soccer last October at the school. Actually, he was on the sideline. The coach asked him to get in the game, and as he was pulling his jersey over his head (and as he was walking onto the field), another student creamed him.

I mean, this kid got messed up. Broken leg, busted arm, probably a busted head. So, his family is now suing the county and the board of education.

The lawsuit accuses the coach of all sorts of negligence, including “violating laws of the game of Soccer as established by the U.S. Soccer Federation as authorized by the International Football Association Board” . . . . blah, blah.

(Subliminal message: Soccer sucks by the way. Up there with there cricket, lacrosse and golf.)

Anyhoo, I'm not making light of the situation. Personally, I hope the county antes up, and pays for the medical bills. And, I hope the kid is OK.

In the meantime, you can click right smack here for an article about the real Dean Rice. If you see him, call Crimestoppers.

Heh.

IDB signs off on Carter school proposal

It's not as fun posting the county administration's spin notices when Michael “Big Sexy” Grider is out of town. Hard to make fun of the silliness when it's not him sending them out.

Anyhoo, as expected the Industrial Development Board signed off on the Carter Elementary School proposal. From what I understand, the developer could break ground late this month or in early November.

Heather Simpson is sitting in for Big Sexy this week. Here's the spin release (no doubt written by Dean “The Emperor” Rice):

Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett’s proposed method for funding and building a new Carter Elementary School cleared its final legal hurdle today after the Industrial Development Board voted to approve the legal documents associated with the proposal.

After the vote, Mayor Burchett released the following statement:

“Finally, after years of waiting, a new elementary school is going to be built in the Carter community. I am honored to have been a part of this unique opportunity to see that this longtime promise to this community’s children, families and teachers is fulfilled.

“As we prepare for work to begin at the site of the new school, it is important that we remember that this success was a joint effort on behalf of the Carter community, my administration, the Knox County Schools, the Board of Education, the Knox County Commission, the Industrial Development Board and Partners Development. We would not have made it this far without all of us working together. Many people deserve to be singled out for their hard work, but School Board member Mike McMillan and Commissioner Dave Wright should especially be commended. Their support of a new Carter Elementary School never faltered.”

Congrats to Mark Padgett. (Just this once.)

For all the crap I give Knoxville mayoral candidate Mark Padgett, I think it's only fair to congratulate him on the birth of his son.

According to his spinstress Laura "I once worked for Arnold" Braden, Katie Padgett gave birth Friday to William Pierce. The little bugger weighs 7 pounds 14 ounces and is 21 inches long. Apparently, the Padgett family (going back many generations and way before Mark got his idea to start an online company by snagging it from his former boss) has a tradition to name the first boy William.

Of course, at Screams From Da Porch, we honor no traditions. So, his new Delta Tau Chi name is: BILLY!

In all seriousness, congratulations, Mark. (And good thing he wasn't born on a Wednesday, cause that would give your opponent some ammunition. Heh.)

Harmon to Rogero: Say you're sorry

There’s quite a bit of energy and feistiness getting poured into this Knoxville mayoral campaign. Certainly, a lot more than you’d normally see in an election where only about four people are expected to vote.

Heh.

Anyhoo, on Wednesday, Mark “Da Plan” Padgett called a spin conference to announce some endorsements. Later, opponent “Battlin’” Madeline Rogero – again playing the defensive role – called her own spin deal.

She also issued a spin release which you can find right smack here.

Truth be told, I didn’t read the thing. They’re all the same, but the names change. I just skim these things to make there’s no cuss words in them. Cause this is a family blog. And we don’t cuss, talk about beer or throw in sexual innuendos that my editors haven’t caught yet.

But, I digress.

Since I do read the comments here (entertaining stuff, particularly the things about Toby and Rikki kicking ass and drinking beer) I learned that Rogero threw out some Black Wednesday references.

So, this morning, “Metal Shed Hater” Brian Hornback sent me some spin from Ivan “Darn Straight I’m a Republican” Harmon, a former mayoral candidate.

You can find the note by clicking right smack here.

(Normally, I'd just reprint it here, but I'm having formatting troubles this morning and too lazy to work through them.)

Yeah, this is going to be a good race.

Heh.

County, NRRT to sign another contract?

I’ll have a story in tomorrow’s paper about a proposal that could lead to the county signing a new contract with Natural Resources Recovery of Tennessee. (Click right smack here for the bad boy online version.)

Although, the folks that operate NRRT aren’t calling it NRRT.

They’re calling it Nature’s Best Organics. Or something like that.

But, I don’t blame them. You know, after all the controversy and all.

That, and it could get past the Knox County Commission. Not that, that’s what they wanted to do or anything. But, a number of commissioners I talked to about the contract said they didn’t realize it was NRRT.

(The proposal before the county also asks the commission approve a contract with another green-waste intake operator as well.)

The county administration told me it hoped a bunch of companies would bid on the contract. Only two did.

And you can check out their scores by clicking right smack here.

I was curious, however, about one thing, and it didn’t make the article.

I included the following in a story I wrote back in July when the county auctioned off the Solway plant and NRRT was the highest bidder:

Interim Public Works and Engineering Director Dwight Van de Vate said Wednesday he expects any brush the county collects on its own to be taken to a 15-acre Forks of the River site, which the county owns, and "three or four times a year have a contract grinder come out and grind it." He said the materials will then be used on public facilities.

Obviously, that's probably not going to happen.

(And I didn't remember to ask Dwight about this until after I filed the story.)

So, here's his response:

We originally planned on this approach, but quickly concluded that any savings we might achieve using our own facility for green waste drop off would be offset by the time and distance issues created by using a single location, as well as the expenses involved in managing the material. It’s essentially the same reason we want the ability to use multiple vendors and multiple locations for drop off. The less time we spend transporting waste material, the more we reduce our fuel and personnel costs. Obviously that will vary depending on price, size of the load and so forth, but the more options we have, the more efficiently we operate.

Also, by using the new contract as proposed, once we drop off the material, we are done with it. This alleviates the need for us to store, grind and manage green waste. There are a whole host of issues associated with green waste storage, including risk of fire, management of runoff, and various environmental considerations. We will let the private sector deal with those, and for a price significantly less than we were previously paying (Our most recent price per ton under the old contract was $27.46).

Regardless of the reasons, some folks are going to take a PR hit for this one.

Carter school plan clears another hurdle

Just got a spin release from Michael "Big Sexy" Grider, letting me know the obvious: County Mayor Tim Burchett has once again fist bumped Dean “The Emperor” Rice as the two celebrated another victory in their efforts to build the Carter community a new elementary school.

In a prepared statement, the mayor said:

“Now is the time to build a new elementary school for the children of Carter and their teachers, and we are closer than ever to seeing that it happens. I appreciate the Knox County Board of Education’s willingness to work with my administration to see that this project continues to move forward.

“One more step remains in this process before construction on the new school begins and the longtime promise of a new Carter Elementary becomes a reality. Next week, the IDB will vote on the legal documents associated with the development of a new Carter Elementary School. If the documents are approved, the Partners Development team could begin construction as early as next month.”

Expect a rubber stamp from the IDB.

And another fist bump.

Knoxville's Battlin' Madeline strikes back

Knoxville mayoral candidate Madeline "Mad Dog" Rogero has a press conference today at 3 p.m.

(it's probably going on about right now.)

She sent the Media a spin release, which she asked folks to embargo.

Until now.

So, here's Battlin' Madelin's prepared thoughts on the losing mayoral candidates endorsing her opponent Mark "Da' Plan" Padgett:

A few years ago, over at our County courthouse, a small group of political insiders tried to stage a coup, on a day we all know as “Black Wednesday.”

Earlier today, standing next to many of those same “Black Wednesday” insiders, my opponent put on a show that perfectly illustrates the contrast between us. He lined up a group of politicians and job-seekers on the steps of the County courthouse. Their appearance with him has almost nothing to do with who is the best choice for city mayor, and everything to do with the old-style insider politics of the County courthouse.

Sadly, my opponent’s stunt today has shown us that he is, in the end, a child of those same courthouse politics. But, Mark, let’s be clear: Though today is a Wednesday, there will never be a “Black Wednesday” here in our city.

We reject those politics. Our Knoxville conducts business in the open. His Knoxville makes deals in the back room. Our Knoxville takes humble pride in what all of us accomplish together. His Knoxville will arrogantly reserve power to the few. Our Knoxville looks forward to a bright future. His Knoxville wants to move backward to a dim past.

That Knoxville is over. Our Knoxville has already begun. Behind me is a great example of what enlightened and experienced leadership can accomplish.

For 30 years, the Three Rivers Market (TRM) operated out of a much smaller building on Broadway with limited parking as its sales revenue continued to grow, even during this recent recession. They desperately needed a larger location.

I proudly served as Bill Haslam’s Director of Community Development. Our department, working with the Partnership for Neighborhood Improvement, created the city’s business expansion revolving loan program that provided critical gap financing in the form of a business expansion loan. Working together, TRM was able to purchase this property and construct this beautiful building, making a $2.5 million investment in this community.

The result? Increased sales, and sales taxes, and a workforce that’s going to double.

My community development team also managed the city’s commercial façade improvement loan program. Look up and down Central Avenue and you will also see millions of dollars of new investment spurred by our public-private partnership.

In fact, this program alone has invested $3.5 million in Knoxville, resulting in $11.9 million in private sector investment, 260 new jobs, and over 400 construction jobs.

The TRM success story is one we can repeat all over Knoxville in the next four years, one we will repeat. Because our Knoxville knows that a productive partnership between business and government is already woven into the city. In Mark’s Knoxville, it’s just being discovered.

Effective economic development with a solid return on investment has been happening here, and will keep happening here. It takes a Mayor with experience to make it work, and I’ve been working on it for over 25 years. He’s been reading about it for maybe nine months. Business-government cooperation is not something Knoxville needs to be schooled on by Mark Padgett.

I think the choice between us is clear.

I intend to continue what we were so successful at during Mayor Haslam’s administration: making Knoxville greater. We listened, and together with neighborhoods and businesses we created the Downtown North Redevelopment Plan that is transforming this area.

I have the experience. Together we put together the vision. And the results are right in front of you.

As Mayor, I will never stop working to build our city, help bring good jobs and businesses here, strengthen our neighborhoods and improve our quality of life. That is my promise to the people of our city.

Ex-candidates, sheriff endorse Padgett

To the surprise of no one, the three Knoxville mayoral candidates who are not in the race anymore endorsed Mark Padgett. Also, thrown in the bunch was Sheriff Jimmy "The Man with the Badge" Jones.

The spin release is pretty funny. Actually, I'd like to say it's full of BS, but I don't know if I can. Oops.

And, no, I'm not reprinting the whole silliness here, but I'll let slide a few excerpts.

Ivan Harmon for example:

“I’m proud to endorse Mark’s candidacy to be Knoxville’s next city mayor,” said Ivan Harmon, former mayoral candidate, city councilman and county commissioner. “Mark is pro-business and pro-neighborhood. He has the heart and passion to serve our community, and he’s a fiscal conservative who understands how to create jobs and grow our economy.”

Funny. Immediately after the election, Ivan was complaining about the Republicans not voting for him. Oh well, it's politics. And it's all ridiculous. The fact is, Mark's dad - Mike - got Ivan into politics. (Ivan told me this the other day. I think he helped get him on the old city school board.)

Anyhoo, Ivan and Mark cut a deal. Just say it. Jeez.

And my boy Bo said:

“After getting to know Mark and his character, I'm supporting his candidacy because I believe he will serve all of Knoxville with a servants heart,” said Bo Bennett, 911 operator and former mayoral candidate. “Like me, Mark is not a career politician, and I think that's what we need to help bring our communities together and grow Knoxville.”

Uh, yeah, no kidding he's not a career politician. YET.

Now, the head scratcher is J.J.

He said:

“Mark has the leadership qualities needed to be a great mayor,” Knox County Sheriff Jimmy “J.J.” Jones said. “He understands that an involved community is a safe community and will be a great partner in making our neighborhoods stronger and safer.”

The Sheriff's Office has to work with the city. Say, for example, it needs something - and Madeline Rogero wins the election - she might take her time dealing with it.

Personally, I would have stayed out of it. But, J.J. carries a gun, so I'll leave it be.

The election is Nov. 8.

Make sure your write in my name.

Off by a day: Padgett yap for Wednesday

OK, I was close. Last night I posted this bad boy - yes, click right smack here - saying that Mark "The 28-Page Lack of a Plan Man" Padgett was calling a conference today to announce some endorsements.

Oops. It's set for tomorrow, according to the latest lack of spin release sent out.

All it says is the campaign will "announce campaign endorsements" at 1 p.m. on the county courthouse steps. (Hey, I was right about that courthouse.)

Anyhoo, I'm not sure why the courthouse. Personally, I'd get out in the community and do this thing. Some of the city folks who live in, let's say, Bearden don't really care about the whole downtown thing.

But, whatever.

The (lack of) spin release also said the players will be on hand for media interviews.

No word on what the "Battling Mad" Madeline Rogero camp is doing. Of course, they don't send out a spin release every time she sneezes, watches a UT game or gets a pet.

Heh.

But, they should. Cause it would be fun to make fun of them. Cause I'm mature that way.

UPDATE: I've gotten this from a number of people, but the only thing I can say - that was given to me on the record - is that it's going to be a few candidates and a county official who endorse Padgett. I can't say the names. Didn't get that part on the record unfortunately, but, uh, if you keep your ear to the ground, you'll hear them whispered. Heh.

Is Harmon ready to endorse Padgett?

I typically don't blog these types of posts (did I use the words/verbs correctly?), but I feel pretty confident something is going on.

I'd try to verify it more, but I've got the day off and somehow I've managed to work anyway, and by the time you read this, we'll probably know much more.

Anyhoo, rambling here, I know.

But, I got a call this evening from a pretty reliable source. The person told me that Knoxville mayoral candidate Mark "The Plan" Padgett has asked the PBA for permission to use an area near the Deathstar to call a press conference for some time tomorrow (that would Oct. 4).

If I'm not mistaken, it was actually the steps of the Old County Courthouse. (But I don't remember.)

And apparently he's going to announce "a major endorsement."

So, the speculation at this point - that's Monday evening's speculation - is that Ivan "The Hunter" Harmon could be throwing his support to Mark Padgett.

I'm not exactly surprised, but still . . . .

It's fun to speculate. And I don't really care what anyone thinks about these blog posts and about anyone here speculating. (Which would be me doing the speculating. But I digress.)

Still, Padgett - even with Harmon's support - is going to have a tall hill to climb.

His opponent, "Battling" Madeline "Mad Dog" Rogero, scored more votes than he and Harmon combined. So, she's got that going for her. And of course, not all of Harmon's votes (whether he endorses her or Padgett) are going to Padgett.

Just like not all of Joe Hultquist's votes are going to Rogero as others have speculated. (I think some folks need reminding of that.) Personally, I think the people who voted for "Smoking" Joe will stay home.

On a side note, a number of folks are expecting about 20,000 to show up to the polls in November, so there's also those extra four or so thousand votes to consider.

Now, back to the beginning. I usually try to talk to a party or two before making a post, but I doubt I'm getting much at this point. So, if I'm wrong, then I'm wrong.

And I'll make it up to all of you by posting something really dumb next time.

Heh.