News - Friday, February 2, 2018

State Rep. John Ray Clemmons makes no secret about his disdain for private prisons in Tennessee.

Not only is he concerned about a Comptroller’s Office audit showing CoreCivic’s Trousdale Turner Correctional Center skating by with fewer staff than required, especially for critical posts, he says the Department of Correction is violating the spirit of state law by contracting with four counties to run more than the one minimum-security or medium-security prison allowed in Tennessee.

Confederate Lt. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest’s days in the State Capitol could be numbered.

Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, an Oak Ridge Republican, says he could support a move to rotate Forrest’s bust out of the Capitol and make sure Capitol displays are “more reflective of the entire history of Tennessee.”

In 1979, Ellis Gardner received the highest honor a high school football player could receive: a personal invitation from Paul “Bear” Bryant to play for Alabama.

Alabama was the returning national champions that year, but their record was being wiped clean with the advent of the new season, and Garner, who was as tall and athletic as they came, would be an asset for any team.

By Hollie Deese

Rep. Pat Marsh had never heard of platooning before he was approached by Peloton Technology with claims that the technology it offers could give trucks fuel savings of more than 7 percent overall per year.

And one commercial truck can easily go through more than $70,000 of fuel each year.

John Medearis of Chattanooga will serve as clerk of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee beginning Feb. 13.

Medearis succeeds Debbie Poplin, who has been appointed a U.S. magistrate judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee, effective Feb. 13, succeeding retiring Magistrate Judge Clifford Shirley.

La Paz Chattanooga has announced the addition of three members to its board of directors – Jay Elliott, Erwin Ovalle and Ronna-Renee Jackson – while also thanking two outgoing board members, Angela Garcia and Fred Fletcher, for their service.

You won’t find a lot of star power on Tennessee’s basketball team. You will find a roster of players buying into the system of third-year coach Rick Barnes.

Barnes coached 16 of his 17 teams at Texas to NCAA tournament bids with one Final Four berth before taking over at Tennessee, where he’s looking for his first trip to the Big Dance. He and the Vols appear well on their way.

I think we all remember where we were when we heard that figure skater and Olympic contender Nancy Kerrigan had been attacked after a practice session at the 1994 U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Detroit.

OK, maybe not, but I think most of the people reading this column can at least recall the infamous incident, the alleged involvement of her rival, Tonya Harding, and the media circus that followed.

The Southside in downtown Chattanooga has gone from up-and-coming to one of the most desired places to live in our area within just a few short years.

However, there’s still work to be done to ensure a safe, clean environment for our community. Recently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed adding the Southside Chattanooga Lead Site to the Superfund Program’s National Priorities List.

Buying a new home is one of the most important purchases you’ll ever make, but it’s also one of the most exciting. One great benefit of buying a newly-built home is that it will often come with a home warranty.

You probably have a lot of questions about what to expect from a new home warranty, especially if you’re a first-time buyer. Here are answers to three of the most common queries to get you started.

On February 4, the eyes of most of the country – and much of the rest of the world – will be on Minneapolis, site of the most-watched football game in the U.S.

As a fan, you can admire the way quarterbacks direct their teams. But as an investor, you can learn something from the big game by putting together your own team to help you achieve your financial goals – and you may find it helpful to have your own “quarterback.”

CHI Memorial, the Rees Skillern Cancer Institute and Buz Standefer Lung Center have introduced a new way to screen for lung cancer. Breathe Easy is a mobile health coach with a low-dose computed tomography machine. This technology is the first of its kind in the Chattanooga region and the only fully independent unit in the nation.

Churchill Mortgage has launched its Certified Homebuyer Program to improve how borrowers search for and purchase a home.

For many borrowers, getting pre-approved for a mortgage is the first step toward making an offer on a house. Churchill will now offer borrowers the opportunity to be pre-underwritten for their mortgage. This initial step will allow those borrowers to get ahead of other buyers and have the confidence that any qualified offer they make on a house will go through in the most efficient manner.

The new Children’s Hospital Outpatient Center lobby will be named after Grady Williams and the late Tom Edd Wilson for their dedication and support to building a new Children’s Hospital in Chattanooga.

The announcement came during Erlanger Health System’s 15th annual Dinner of Distinction honoring community leaders who have made a difference in the region’s healthcare. Presenting the Gordon Street Distinguished Leadership Award to Wilson’s family, Williams gave a tribute to his friend and fellow co-chair for the Children’s Hospital Capital Campaign. Wilson’s wife, Barby, then approached the podium and surprised Williams by announcing the lobby will be named for both him and her husband.

Depreciation may be the bane of new-car buyers, but it’s also the reason so many shoppers buy used. We scoured our annual Edmunds New Car Buying Guides from years past to see what cars we loved back in the day can now be had for $15,000 or less. For each vehicle, we’ve provided a range of years offering the best selection and value. In certain cases, getting an even older model is a viable option, too.

BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee has sold 210 acres on the Tennessee River for $8.1 million to Riverton LLC.

Riverton Development Group, a local residential and commercial development group, will plan and develop the property. The site is located five miles from downtown Chattanooga and for many decades has been referred to as the Lupton City property.

Long-time volunteer Deborah Williams has been named Hamilton County’s adult winner for this year’s Governor’s Volunteer Stars Awards. The award is by nomination and seeks “to recognize outstanding volunteers from each of Tennessee’s 95 counties.”