Blaylock named Knox County fire chief

Gene Blaylock

Gene Blaylock, a longtime firefighter who joined Rural/Metro Fire Department when it began its Knox County operations in 1977, has been named Knox County Fire Chief.

Blaylock started his career as a firefighter at Station 26 on Strawberry Plains Pike and rose to the rank of assistant fire chief. Over the course of his 36-year career, the veteran has served at five stations and received numerous promotions, culminating in his recent advancement to fire chief.

The position opened when Jerry Harnish was named Rural/Metro of Tennessee Regional Manager on an interim basis last week, a title that is now permanent.

“Chief Blaylock is part of the fabric here at Rural/Metro,” Harnish said. “He’s been here since operations began, and he is a proven leader. I have full confidence that Gene will continue to provide excellent fire protection coverage to our Rural/Metro Fire Department subscribers in the county.”

Schools owed at least $1.4M in taxes

School system owed a bunch of coin.

Drink up, fellas, cause the school system needs the money. Heh.

Check it out:

Knox County and Farragut officials plan to meet next week to figure out just how much the two governments owe the Knox County school system from revenues connected to the local mixed-drink tax that were never turned over.

At this point, the county more than likely owes as much as $350,000, and Farragut is probably on the hook for at least $1.1 million dating back to 1999.

Knox County Finance Director Chris Caldwell said the matter was initially brought to his attention a couple of weeks ago after officials received an email from the Tennessee Governmental Finance Officers Association.

"They said 'by the way, are your cities paying this to your schools?'" Caldwell said. "We looked at it and then met with our auditors and realized we weren't. But, it's not just us, though, it's a statewide issue and the TGFO just made everyone aware of it. It's really an obscure tax that you don't always think about."

The City of Knoxville is up-to-date on its payments, Caldwell said.

For more details, click right smack here, and check out tonight's 10 and 11 shows on WBIR Channel 10.

Commission to address CTAS bonuses

Knox County Commission Vice Chairman R. Larry Smith wants the county to cut its bonus payment program for employees who complete the state's certified public administrator training initiative.

Instead, he added, employees should receive bonuses based on promotions – not completing educational coursework.

"Constituents are telling me that they don't want to pay these bonuses just because they took a two-day refresher course when they, themselves, take continuing education," Smith said. "Look, I don't mind if the county pays them to take the course, but the problem I have is that some businesses pay people to take continuing education but they sure don't give them a bonus."

The commission is expected to address the matter during its October 21 work session.

"I don't know if I've formed an opinion about it yet," said commission Chairman Brad Anders. "I think on one hand that it sounds excessive, but what concerns me is that the commission would tell another completely separate officeholder what they can do with their payroll."

You can read the complete bad a$$ story right smack here.

Living like a king, free of charge

Saw this. Thought it was funny. Actually, it's pretty much true. Sadly.  

My dog sleeps about 20 hours a day.  He has his food prepared for him.  His meals are provided at no cost to him.  

He visits the doctor once a year for his checkup and again during the year, if any medical needs arise. For this he pays nothing and nothing is required of him.  

He lives in a nice neighborhood in a house that is much larger than he needs, but he is not required to do any upkeep.  

If he makes a mess, someone else cleans it up., and he has his choice of luxurious places to sleep.  

He receives these accommodations absolutely free.  

He lives like a king, and has absolutely no expenses whatsoever.  

All of his costs are picked up by others who earn a living.  

Then it hit me: My dog is a Congressman!

Heh.

Burchett won't seek US Senate seat

Becker and Burchett

Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett this afternoon told WBIR stud John Becker that he will not challenge US Senator Lamar Alexander for his seat in the 2014 GOP primary.

"I prayed about it and it didn't feel right," he said.

I told you so (heh) in July and again last month.

A number of folks in the local, state and national media for the past few months have suggested that he would contend for the seat.

Burchett, though, was just having a little fun.

Course that's not to say that he approves of the job Alexander is doing. but, he's just smart enough to know that he doesn't have the numbers, despite what a vocal but very small tea party minority would believe.

Thomas kicks off commish campaign

Former radio dude Bob Thomas this morning officially kicked off his campaign for the at-large seat on the Knox County Commission, the one currently held by Mike Hammond (a radio man in his own right who isn’t going to seek re-election). 

The event, which drew a couple hundred people at least (quite frankly, I quit counting) featured some bad a$$ fried bologna sandwiches, chips, Moon Pies and R.C. Colas, and music by The Hillbillies and Con Hunley.

Folks lining up for some food

It also brought out scores of current and former state and local leaders, the usual movers and shakers, a number of politicos and quite a few sycophants. 

The primary – Thomas is a Republican – is set for May. The winner will advance to the August general election where he or she will win because, let’s face it, a Democrat ain’t getting that gig in Knox County.

Lots of folks eating bad a$$ bologna

A number of people spoke during the event today, but I didn’t really pay attention. Thomas, the former co-host of the Ed & Bob morning show, introduced his family, thanked a bunch of people and said “we’ve got to keep this thing moving,” presumably referring to the job the current County Commission is performing. 

Oh yeah, Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett also spoke. Heh. He bragged on Bob a little bit. The good mayor talked about the $35 million tax increase that the folks in the “Ivory Tower” tried to implement last year. He added that he was tired of said “tower” trying “to tell us what to do,” and that Thomas (along with then-co-host Ed Brantley) let “us go on the radio and tell our side.”

Henley Bridge opening set for Oct. 17

Well, it looks like the Henley Bridge will open Thursday, Oct. 17 at 12:01 a.m. Or at least one lane in both directions will open, which is still cool. The bike lanes, however, won't open until the final completion date of June 3, 2014.

The entire project is expected to cost some $31 million.

In a released statement Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett said:

“Finally, the Henley Street Bridge is reopening to traffic next Thursday, and this is great news for businesses and residents in South Knox County. Unfortunately, the final completion of the bridge is sometime away, so it’s important that we continue to support businesses south of the river.”

Halls High cistern dedication today

The latest from the county mayor's office. Something about a cistern. Whatever that is. Kidding. Looks like they're really looking for the publicity, though. Cheers:

Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett, whose office immediately honors records requests, and Dr. Jim McIntyre, Superintendent of the Knox County Schools, which typically farts around for weeks when you ask for records, will join members of the Halls Outdoor Classroom Committee at Halls High School today at 4 p.m. to dedicate a new greenhouse cistern.

The cistern, designed and installed by Rainwater Resources of Knoxville, is a result of the Adopt-a-Watershed program and will capture 34,000 gallons of rainwater a year for greenhouse irrigation.

The Adopt-a-Watershed program is a Knox County Schools program funded by Knox County Stormwater Management.  It is in its 18th year, and has served 125,000 students in various Knox County middle and high schools.

Historic Knoxville HS proposal unveiled, commish to address it

The latest from the county regarding historic Knoxville High School:

A building on Knox Heritage’s “Fragile 15” list will be preserved as part of a proposal going before the Knox County Commission at the board’s October meeting, Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett announced today. 

Bad a$$ photo by John Gustin

In addition to preserving the historic Knoxville High School, the proposal by Family Pride Corporation and Southeastern Housing Foundation will also allow the iconic World War I doughboy statue to continue standing guard in front of the school.

You can check out the proposal right smack here.

“There is a lot of Knoxville history wrapped up in this school, and it looks like we’re going to be able to preserve it,” said Mayor Burchett.  “The $13.7 million dollar investment that Family Pride and Southeastern are planning to make is great for this community.”

The plan, which was the winning bid resulting from a recent Request for Proposals (RFP), includes 100 units of senior housing and would create an anticipated 18 new jobs, generating nearly a half million dollars in annual payroll.

“Historic Knoxville High fits beautifully into our mission of preserving historic buildings, and providing senior living services of the highest quality at reasonable costs,” said Family Pride Corporation General Manager Rick Dover.  “We are grateful and excited about the opportunity at Knoxville High.”

“Southeastern Housing Foundation has a strong track record of serving people in the community well, and this partnership is another big step in that direction,” said foundation President Chris Martin.  “We believe this proposal will provide a legacy for this historic property that all generations – past, present and future – can be proud of.”

The Knox County Commission will likely vote on the proposal Oct. 28 during the board’s monthly meeting.

Lawyer, GOP chair, blogger battle?

Looks like we might have us an old fashioned showdown between the rogue blogger, the rebel lawyer and the Republican chair.

Ya see, a little more than a week or so back, rubble rousing attorney Herb S. Moncier, presumably representing current Knox County GOP chairwoman, Ruthie Kuhlman, sent blogger Brian Hornback a note, telling him that he needed to correct, retract and say he’s sorry for some of his blog posts. 

(I’m not sure which ones, but they had something to do with overheard conversations regarding Kuhlman.)

Moncier apparently gave Hornback 10 days to do this.

Well, the rogue fired back on Friday, with his own letter, saying he has no intention of doing any such thing.

You can find that bad boy, right smack here.

This could get interesting on a number of levels. Moncier is not afraid to sue. He probably holds the Death Star record. Kuhlman is a public figure, so it would be hard for her to win. But, it’s also interesting on the level of what role a blogger plays, the freedom of speech thing, the whatever. 

Hornback also can be a polarizing figure in the local political circles, so – no matter what people say – my suspicion is that a lot of folks will watch this closely, particularly if it goes further.

Five so far applied for ethics spots

Five folks so far have applied for the three open positions on the Knox County Ethics Committee.

Resumes are due by noon Oct. 18, so expect some more to send in their stuff. The commission will hold a public hearing to interview the candidates on Oct. 21 at 2 p.m. in the Main Assembly Room of the Death Star.

They'll make a final decision on Oct. 28.

In the meantime, click right smack here for cover letters and resumes of the latest batch.

We've got a UT Federal Credit Union president/CEO, a local high school math and physics teacher, a Pellissippi State religious studies teacher and self-proclaimed "old fashioned liberal," a trust officer with First Tennessee Bank and an "experienced property manager." 

Harnish named to Rural/Metro top spot

Jerry Harnish

Rural/Metro, which makes a gazillion dollars because of an ambulance contract it has with the county, announced this morning that Knox County Fire Chief Jerry Harnish was named interim division general manager for Rural/Metro of Tennessee.

Rural/Metro's previous division general manger Rob Webb resigned from his position on Sept. 30.

According to the company's spin team, Harnish has 33 years of experience in fire and emergency operations, including six years as fire chief in Knox County. Harnish said the same high standard of operations will continue during his leadership.

“Both the fire and ambulance divisions are meeting and exceeding Knox County requirements,” Harnish said in the release. “We will continue to meet the emergency needs of Knox County residents and those in the other counties we serve without interruption. Our people are committed to this goal.”

Harnish began his career as a firefighter and emergency medical technician with Rural/Metro in 1980. He rose through the fire department ranks and was named fire chief in 2007.