News

Newly released data from the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development shows July 2019 county unemployment increased in counties across the state.

Rates inched upward in 93 of Tennessee’s 95 counties and remained the same in two counties last month. 44 counties have an unemployment rate of less than five percent, while 51 counties have a rate of five percent or higher.

Williamson and Davidson counties had Tennessee’s lowest jobless rate during July. At 3.2 percent, both counties experienced a jump of 0.2 of a percentage point in unemployment when compared to June’s numbers.

Sevier, Cheatham, Rutherford, Sumner, Wilson, Maury, Robertson, and Dickson round out the list of counties with the ten lowest unemployment rates in the state.

Cannon County’s rate of unemployment increased from June to July.  The July rate is 4.2 percent up three-tenths of a point over June’s rate of 3.9 percent. Cannon’s adjoining counties of Coffee, DeKalb, Rutherford, Warren and Wilson all showed a slight increase in unemployment.

Hancock County had the state’s highest unemployment rate at 8.2 percent. That is 0.5 of a percentage point higher than it was in June. At 8.1 percent, Clay County had the second-highest jobless rate in July. That represents a jump of 0.8 percentage point when compared to the previous month.

Statewide, unemployment slightly increased last month to 3.5 percent, an uptick of 0.1 of a percentage point when compared to June’s statistic. 

The July unemployment rate for the United States remained unchanged in July at 3.7 percent.

A comprehensive listing of labor market information is available on the state’s workforce development website, www.Jobs4TN.gov

When filling-up at the pump this fall, the majority of U.S. motorists will find savings of potentially more than 25-cents/gallon compared to this summer. The national gas price average, which is already 15-cents cheaper than just five weeks ago, is poised to continue pushing less expensive due to several factors, including less expensive crude oil prices, the drop-off in gasoline demand after Labor Day and the move to winter-blend gasoline. AAA forecasts the national average to drop to $2.40 or lower this fall and offers motorists easy tips to maintain fuel efficiency throughout the year.

AAA forecasts crude prices to range between $50 and $60 per barrel this fall. That is a considerable drop from last fall when prices ranged between $60 and $75. Why so cheap? Current total domestic crude inventories sit at 438.9 million bbl, which is 31.5 million bbl higher than last year at this time. The continued glut of oil encouraged the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its partners to extend their 1.2 million b/d production reduction agreement through the end of the year. However, so far, reduced supply from OPEC and its partners has not led to a sustained higher price for crude. 

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security announced the launch of an efficient method to access traffic crash reports from law enforcement agencies across the state. Effective immediately, involved parties may obtain their crash reports through www.PurchaseTNcrash.gov.

“Our goal is to provide the best customer service to citizens of Tennessee and to those who travel through our state. The implementation of this website will provide the public with a fast, convenient option to access a crash report online and enhance the efficiency of law enforcement agencies across the state,” said Commissioner Jeff Long.

To obtain a crash report, you must have the following information: date of the crash, name of the agency that investigated the crash, last name of the driver involved and the driver license number of the driver involved in the crash. In addition you must also have one of the following: VIN number, license plate number, or the case or tracking number.

Crashes investigated by the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP), as well as local police and sheriff departments, should be available online within seven business days of the crash. The cost of an online crash report is $10. Citizens may continue to visit any local THP district office to purchase crash reports or request a copy to be sent via the U.S. mail. The fee for those options is $4. Business entities and insurance companies may request a business account for accessing the new system by submitting a request through www.PurchaseTNcrash.gov.

You may access online crash reports by visiting www.tn.gov/safety or www.PurchaseTNcrash.gov

Members of the Woodbury Municipal Planning Commission got their first view of expansion plans for a local industry.  Crane Interiors plans to add an additional 24,000 square feet of space. The expansion will include, 4,000 square feet of office space and 20,000 square feet of manufacturing space.

The new addition to the plant will be on the left side of the building and will extend into the current parking lot.  The plan calls for a new parking area behind the facility. No announcement was made concerning if the additional space will translate to additional employees.

The plans for the expansion were approved by the planning commission.

For the past few months, planning commission members have been studying plans for an apartment complex at 309 McMinnville Highway.  The .68 acre tract is adjacent to O’Reilly Automotive. The complex will consist of two buildings. The developers are Michael J. Hutchins and Faron Layne Ferrell. Commissioners approved the final plat.

During last month’s meeting, Steve Smith submitted a request to expand Smith Storage by adding a second building. The space of the expansion is not inside of the city limits of Woodbury.  Smith (doing business as SLB Partnership) requested annexation of property and services of the city. Commissioners passed a resolution for the annexation of the property and expansion of city services.   The resolution will now move to the Mayor and Board of Alderman for their approval.

The Tennessee Department of Health and numerous state and local partners continue to investigate and respond to a large, multi-state hepatitis A outbreak. More than 2,000 cases of hepatitis A have been confirmed in Tennessee, including 13 resulting in the deaths of the patients.


Hepatitis A is a liver infection caused by a virus. It can be transmitted through contact with feces or consumption of contaminated food or water. The groups most at risk for hepatitis A in the current outbreak include people who use recreational drugs, men who have sex with men and people experiencing homelessness.


Other steps to prevent infection with hepatitis A include washing hands with soap and water after using the bathroom, before eating and before preparing or serving food.

Local health departments are offering free hepatitis A vaccine for people in high-risk groups. Contact your health care provider or the local health department for more information on preventing hepatitis A.

The budget story for Cannon County continues. During the Tuesday night meeting, the commissioners approved budgets for the jail, ambulance service and election commission office.  Cannon like many counties across the state need to provide increased funding for their correctional facilities. The new budget for the jail is just over 1 Million, One-hundred-thirty-five thousand dollars.

Commissioner Kim Davenport suggested a public hearing for citizens will have the opportunity to review the new budget for the county, prior to a vote from commissioners.  The public hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, August 27^th at 5:30pm at the courthouse.

Commissioners are scheduled to meeting one more time prior to the public hearing.  The goal is to see if the time will generate any new budget reductions. The county commission will meet Thursday at 5:30.

Congratulations to the Cannon County 4-H participants for competing at the Central Region 4-H Outdoor Meat Cookery contest held at the Wilson County Fair in Lebanon. Cannon County had 9 participants and the senior high team placed 4^th!

Many of the lifeskills that are needed by the students as they prepare for their future are achieved thru the 4-H projects and activities, such as leadership, responsibility, communications, team work etc.

The contest involves teams with 4 members each cooking a product that they were to prepare and present to judges.  Team members decided on whether to cook beef, pork, poultry, and lamb. Each picked a different specie, came up with a cooking recipe, used proper food safety and handling practices, started their charcoal fires, and had a 2 hour window to prepare their entry.  When turned in to the official judges members had to tell what doneness the beef, lamb, and pork were cooked to. There hard work and dedication to the 4-H program has paid off. Out of 170 participants, all nine Cannon County 4-H members were recognized in the top 10 high individuals in their specific category.

Congratulations to our poultry grillers, Samantha Swoape for placing first and Abbye Moore for placing 5^th high individual. The pork grillers, Will Byford for placed 2^nd, William Davis placed 4^th, and McKenna Powell placed 7^th high individual.

Congratulations to lamb grillers, Hunter Owen for placing 6^th and Jacob Carlton for placing 7^th high individual.

We are proud of our beef grillers, Emma Grace Hughes for placing 9^th and Abigail Buchanan for placing 10^th high individual.

With Samantha Swoape placing 1^st high individual in poultry, she will have the opportunity to compete at the state Outdoor Meat Cookery competition held at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in October.

Congratulations to all participants for their hard work and dedication to the Cannon County 4-H program!

The University of Tennessee Extension offers its programs to all eligible persons regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, religion, or veteran status, and is an Equal Opportunity Employer. 

If you would like more information about the 4-H program, contact Sarah Ferrell, Youth Development Extension Agent, at the Cannon County Extension office.

As part of an on-going effort to provide better service to the people of Woodbury, the Sanitation Department is announcing a small schedule adjustment to the residents on a number of streets.

To the residents of the following streets:

Mears Drive

East and West Mason Court

Masey Drive

McMillian Street

Jenny Lynn Street

Wallace Street

Hillview Drive

Bryson Street

Williams Street

Murfreesboro Road

Starting this week your weekly trash pick-up will be on Thursday instead of Tuesday.  This change has occurred in order to better balance the routes and in turn improve service to all routes.

Should you have any questions about the revisions, please call Director of Public Works Shane Gannon at 615-563-4221.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District announces the immediate closure of Ragland Bottom Day Use Beach at Center Hill Lake in Smithville, Tenn., due to E.coli detected in the water. Buzzards are suspected and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Service technicians have been contacted for support.

The area is still open for picnicking and boat launching. No other beaches at Center Hill Lake are affected.

Signs have been posted and caution tape installed warning the public not to swim at this location. The day use volunteer will direct visitors to the Floating Mill Day Use Beach, an alternative swim area.

Follow-up testing of Ragland Bottom swimming area will continue until conditions return to acceptable levels. For any questions pertaining to the beach closure, please call the Center Hill Lake Resource Manager’s Office at 931-858-3125.