News 2012

The interim tag is off….The Town of Woodbury officially has a police chief of the Woodbury Police Department.  Kevin Mooneyham was named police chief last night by a unanimous vote at the Town of Woodbury Mayor and Board of Aldermen’s monthly meeting. Mooneyham, had been serving as the interim chief since Tony Burnett resigned from the position in March.  June 8th will be the first official day of duty for the newly named police chief. In other actions the Aldermen approved the Town of Woodbury’s budget for the 2012-2013 fiscal year.  Once again there are no needed tax increases or water rate increases.  The budget includes an increase in salary for the Mayor and Aldermen.   The increase will take effect in January.  The budget passed by a five to two vote with Joann Davis and Charlie Harrell both voting no.  The Aldermen approved the adoption of resolution 2-12 which is a resolution to apply to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation for a local parks and recreation fund grant.   The grant money will be used to resurface the second tennis court and basketball court and install bleachers at the Brown Spurlock Park.
Ordinance 444 which was an ordinance to amend the zoning ordinance to add residential parking regulations within the zoning ordinance was voted on to send back to the Woodbury Planning Commission for further study.
The board adopted to consider ordinance number 445 on first reading which was an ordinancee amending the zoning ordinance to delete references to residential rear yard setbacks in the C-3 Commericial zoning district within the zoning ordinance
Ordinance 446 was also adopted on first reading which is an ordinance amending the original budget ordinance for the town of woodbury for the fiscal year 2011-2012.  This ordinance has to be approved every year to close out the current fiscal year.
The next meeting of the town of Woodbury Mayor and Aldermen will be held July 3rd

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has removed one of the state’s Top Ten Most Wanted fugitives from the list after he was captured Friday afternoon in Rutherford County. The Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office assisted TBI and the U.S. Marshal’s Fugitive Task Force with a traffic stop near Sam Ridley Parkway on I-24 that led to the arrest. 
David Powell, 38, of Smyrna, Tenn. was taken into custody along with his accomplice, Alyssa Cartwright, 36, of McMinnville. Both were wanted by the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office on one count of attempted aggravated burglary. On May 25, 2012, Powell and Cartwright attempted to gain entry into a College Grove residence where a mother and three small children were staying. The victim stated the two were attempting to break into the front and back doors of the home when they were scared off. Powell also violated his probation on six counts of burglary and theft over $1,000. Cartwright was also wanted for violating her probation.
 
TBI put Powell on the state’s Top Ten Most Wanted list last week as he has a lengthy criminal history and is considered a predatory burglary due to the frequency and nature of his crimes. Both Powell and Cartwright were taken to the Rutherford County Jail.
 

For over a decade, the Middle Tennessee city of Manchester in Coffee County has hosted one of the most popular live music events in the country – the annual Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival.  The festival is a four-day, multi-stage music festival held on a 700-acre farm.  Thousands of people from all over the country make the yearly trip to attend the festival, and Manchester becomes their temporary home for several days in June.  As in years past, over 80,000 music lovers are expected to attend this year’s festival, which kicks off Thursday night, June 7, and winds down Sunday night, June 10.With 80,000 festival-goers converging at an old farm site in Coffee County, the area in and around Manchester always sees increased traffic traffic throughout the festival.  As Manchester prepares to welcome a multitude of visitors, the Tennessee Department of Transportation and Tennessee Highway Patrol are gearing up for the extra traffic expected in the area.  TDOT and the THP are working closely with the Manchester Police Department, the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department and festival promoters to keep traffic moving on I-24 while also getting Bonnaroo attendees to their destinations.
“Keeping traffic moving on I-24 while getting festival goers in and out of Bonnaroo is an enormous challenge for both TDOT and the THP,” said TDOT Commissioner John Schroer. “Through advance planning and coordination, along with years of experience, we will minimize delays as much as possible throughout the weekend.”
This year, Bonnaroo will open its gates on Wednesday evening June 6 at 7:00 p.m. CDT to allow more time for vehicles to enter the campgrounds.  Historically, the longest delays for arriving attendees have occurred from 4:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, so festival promoters have implemented the new plan this year in hopes of alleviating some of the congestion.  State Troopers will be on the job 24 hours a day beginning Wednesday night, patrolling on the ground and by air. THP helicopters will assist in relaying important information to marked patrol cars and motorcycles on the ground.
“StateTroopers will be out in force, working to control the congestion caused by Bonnaroo, and aggressively enforcing state traffic laws,” THP Colonel Tracy Trott said. “It is our goal to ensure the safety of both travelers and festival-goers.”  
During Bonnaroo 2011, Troopers logged nearly 5,800 man-hours, worked 20 traffic crashes (6 injury, and 14 property damage crashes), and wrote 182 citations and 42 warnings.  A breakdown of all THP-issued citations during last year’s festival period is included in this release.
TDOT HELP units will assist with traffic management during the festival and will aid any motorists who require assistance.  Also, for the first time, the speed limit on I-24 in the festival area will be reduced to 55 mph for the duration of the festival.  The speed reduction will be in effect between mile marker 104.6 (just west of Exit 105) and mile marker 129.4, where the speed limit currently drops to 55 mph to go over Monteagle Mountain.  After the festival is over, the speed limit will be restored to its normal level.
In addition to having HELP trucks on-site, TDOT and other agencies will be taking the following steps on the dates surrounding Bonnaroo beginning June 6 through June 11:

Efforts will be concentrated on keeping I-24 traffic flowing.

Exit 111 (SR 55) will be used as the main festival exit. Exits 97, 105, 112 (temporary exit on westbound side only), 117 and 127 are alternate exits if congestion occurs on the interstate.

TDOT maintenance units will be posted throughout the festival region, and maintenance personnel will be on call all weekend.

TDOT will provide variable message signs to warn drivers of delays.

There will be no construction-related lane closures on I-24 near the Bonnaroo festival area between 6 a.m. on Wednesday, June 6 through 7 p.m. on Monday, June 11.

Median crossovers will be guarded to prevent motorists from parking in the crossovers and blocking emergency vehicles.

Festival traffic will be kept in the right lane and/or on the shoulder of the interstate, allowing through traffic to utilize the left travel lane unimpeded.

Emergency vehicles will use county roads that will be kept at low volume.

Bonnaroo promoters issued early news releases to the trucking industry and other sources to alert the traveling public to festival times, location, and alternate routes.

Temporary communication towers are in place to improve emergency communications.

The sight of a baby sleeping peacefully is heartwarming to parents, grandparents and almost anyone else. Yet the lives of many babies are cut tragically short as the result of being put to sleep in an unsafe place or position. For Tennessee in 2010, the most recent year for which data are available, 131 infants died because they were not put to sleep as safely as they might have been. The Tennessee Department of Health is working to save these precious lives with a new effort to educate everyone who cares for young children about safe sleep practices for babies. “Sadly, that’s about six full kindergarten classrooms that are forever empty due to these preventable infant deaths,” says Tennessee Health Commissioner John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH. “The hard part is these risks don’t seem that risky. It has taken science to document and understand them, but the good news is they are very easy risks to minimize once you know how. That’s why we’re launching an aggressive awareness initiative to promote the ‘A-B-Cs of Safe Sleep.'”
Just like choosing to wear a seatbelt can protect you that one time you’re in a life-threatening accident, choosing to follow the A-B-Cs of Safe Sleep can protect your baby the one time he or she may be suffocated while sleeping.
The primary message for parents and others who care for infants is to “Remember the A-B-Cs of Safe Sleep.” There are three critical measures to follow when it’s time for an infant to sleep. “A” is for Alone: always let the baby sleep alone, never in a bed with another person where the baby could be smothered. “B” is for on the baby’s Back; an infant should be placed to sleep on his or her back, not on his or her side or stomach. “C” is for Crib: always put your child to sleep in a crib with only a firm mattress and tight-fitting sheet.
“Cribs should never have blankets, stuffed animals or toys in them,” says Michael Warren, MD, MPH, FAAP, TDH Family Health & Wellness director. “While it’s natural to want to surround your baby with cute objects, we have to remember young infants do not have strong neck muscles to raise their heads to prevent suffocation. A cuddly blanket or a plush toy, put in the crib with the best of intentions, can be deadly.”
To increase public awareness of safe sleeping practices for infants, the Tennessee Department of Health’s awareness campaign will feature public service announcements on radio and television; editorial messages in newspapers; bus wraps in Nashville, Memphis and Chattanooga; posters; flyers and other means of sharing this life-saving message. TDH has also created a dedicated website for the A-B-C program at safesleep.tn.gov.
“While we’re trying to reach as many current and soon-to-be parents as possible, we also want to reach out to grandparents, aunts and uncles, older siblings – anyone who might be responsible when it’s an infant’s bedtime,” Warren said. “It takes only a few seconds to put a baby into an empty crib on its back for safe sleeping, but those few seconds are so important. Just remember to follow your A-B-Cs and you might save a life.”
 

Construction is moving right along. You will hear some strange sounds coming from beneath you when you visit the Adams Memorial Library in Woodbury these days. Crews are hard at work remodeling the lower level meeting room. Earth moving equipment has built up the elevation of the main floor addition, too. Thursday, June 7th, the Friends of the Library are sponsoring a visit from the NHECM wildlife guy, Bob Tarter with his “creatures of the night!” The show is free for all and will be held at the Woodbury Head Start Gym at 3:00 P.M. Please arrive early so that everyone can be seated and quiet when he brings out the animals. He has promised us some fun surprises.

A public hearing starts off tonights Mayor and Board Of Aldermen of the Town of Woodbury’s monthly meeting.  The hearing will be in conjunction of ordinance number 443 which adopts the annual budget and tax rate for the fiscal year July 1st 2012 and ends June 30, 2013.  .  After the public Hearing there will be an opportunity for the Board to consider the adoption on second and final reading.  Also on the agenda tonight will be three ordinances for the Aldermen to vote on first reading and the possibility of appointing Kevin Mooneyham as permanent chief of police.  Mooneyham has served as interim police chief since the Tony Burnett left back in March.  The meeting will take place tonight at 7:00 at City Hall Also on tonight’s government meeting scheduled After having a public meeting to hear concerns about expanding the 5th District voting lines with no opposition to the expansion, there will be a Special Called Meeting of the Cannon County Commission on Tuesday, June 5, 2012
at the Courtroom of the Courthouse to be convened at 6 p.m.
Under Tennessee law, when there is a Special Called Meeting, there can be no other business discussed.
 

Nearly 250 rising high-school juniors and seniors from across Tennessee will be attending the 2012 Governor’s School for the Arts June 3 until June 29 at Middle Tennessee State University.  
Program concentrations will include dance, music, visual arts, filmmaking and theatre. Participants will be arriving Sunday morning, June 3, registering and checking into campus dormitories.
 
One of the featured highlights will be a Tuesday, June 5, 7 p.m. performance by internationally acclaimed ukulele player Jake Shimabukuro. The public is invited and tickets are $30.
 
Finale events will be held Thursday, June 28, starting with an art exhibit at 10 a.m. in Andrew L. Todd Hall. Two music finale concerts will be held, one starting at noon and the other at 8:30 p.m. Both will be performed in Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building.
 
Other June 28 events will include a film exhibition at 2 p.m. in Tucker Theater, a theatre finale at 2:30 p.m. in Tucker Theatre, the opera and guitar finale at 4:30 in Hinton Hall of the Wright Music Building and the dance finale at 7 p.m. in Tucker Theatre.
 
Other events and the entire four-week schedule can be found at www.gsfta.com. (Click on “2012 Governor’s School Major Event Schedule.pdf” to download and view.). Some events are open to the public, but there is an admission charge.  
 
 
MTSU professor of music Dr. Raphael Bundage is serving as Governor’s School for the Arts director. Lynda Hawkersmith serves as assistant director and dean of students, Janet Bell-Taylor is assistant dean of students, Glenna Robinson is school coordinator and Brenda Batey is finale event coordinator. Many MTSU faculty members assist as instructors.
 
For more information, visit www.gsfta.com or call 615-898-2223.

The Cannon County Sheriff’s Department will find out some suggestions today on how to get the jail certified by the state.  Earlier this year the jail, largely due to the fact of overcrowding, was not certified during an inspection.  .  Sheriff Darrell Young extended a personal invitation to the Cannon County Budget Committee and any County Commissioner as the Budget Committee reviewed the Sheriff’s Department’s Budget.  The Sheriff’s Department requested a budget of 1 million 716 thousand 657 dollars to fund the department for the next fiscal year.  The biggest need for the sheriff’s department is of a new patrol car.  Most of the patrol cars now have 90,000 to 200,000 miles on them.  The Budget Committee also reviewed the County Fire Department’s requests.  The Fire Department’s requested a budget of $119,134 for their operations.  which is an increase of over $50,000 from last fiscal year.  Communications equipment, fire uniforms and contracts with other agencies are the biggest needs the fire department have outside the need for fire trucks for a couple of county fire departments.  The Budget Committee will discuss the Election Commission and Rescue Squad’s wish lists this coming Thursday.  

Preliminary figures from the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security show 13 people were killed in traffic crashes on Tennessee roadways during this year’s 96-hour Memorial Day holiday period.  This is a drop from the 19 fatalities that occurred during the 2011 Memorial Day holiday weekend and the same number of deaths as 2010.The 2012 Memorial Day holiday period ran from midnight, Friday, May 25 through 11:59 p.m., Monday, May 28. During that time, there were 10 fatal crashes that resulted in 13 fatalities.  Six crashes were single vehicle wrecks, while four of them were multiple car crashes. Ten of the people killed were vehicle occupants and three were motorcyclists. Five of the ten (50 percent) vehicle occupants killed were not wearing safety restraints. 
In 1973, 26 people were killed in traffic crashes in Tennessee during the 78-hour Memorial Day holiday period, the highest number of deaths on record.  The lowest number of deaths occurred when five people were killed in traffic crashes during the 2002 Memorial Day 78-hour period. 
During this year’s Memorial Day enforcement period, the THP made 94 impaired driving arrests statewide. They also issued 1,139 seat belt and child restraint device citations, 1,500 speeding and 511 registration violations.
As of May 31, 2012, there have been 397 people killed on Tennessee roadways, 26 more fatalities compared to this same time last year. The last two months have shown a decrease in vehicular deaths compared to the same months in 2011, with 21 and 10 fewer fatalities in April and May, respectively.
“One traffic fatality is one too many,” THP Colonel Tracy Trott said. “However, the reduction in traffic-related deaths the last two months is an encouraging sign that our highway safety enforcement, along with our partnerships with local law enforcement agencies and highway safety advocates, is making a difference.”

Looking for his baby mama and claiming a condition of scoliosis did not prevent a Cannon County resident from getting charged with DUI recently.  According to Sheriff’s Reports, Cannon County Deputy M.J. Parsley observed a black Ford Mustang with a driver that was making some bad judgment moves such as getting in the left turn lane and making a right turn, running into a concrete curb and stopping a green light.  After stopping the vehicle when it traveled on the wrong side of the road with no headlights, Deputy Parsley questioned the driver, Steven Cyle Medley about his erratic driving.  Mr. Medley explained that he was looking for his baby mamma.  He also offered the explanation of that since his car was a stick shift, the struts were bad.  Mr. Medley later stated that he had taken some Loritab and deputies detected an odor of alcohol.  Mr. Medley informed the deputies that he couldn’t perform a field sobriety test because he has scoliosis  .  Mr. Medley was under arrest for driving under the influence and was taken to the Stones River Hospital to undergo a blood alcohol and drug test before going to jail