The Worst That Can Happen
February 12, 2010

Unfortunately, the worst that could have happened in regards to the Coffee County Ambulance Authority and its chairman Jimmy Bradford has happened - a Tullahoma citizen has died in the northeast quadrant of the city and the Tullahoma Fire Department wasn't called out until it was too late.

Since the person's name has not yet been released publicly, I won't release it. They lived in Fairways though, and it took the county ambulance 16 minutes to get there. When the Fire Department was summoned it took them three minutes to get there, but the patient didn't make it.

My prayers go out to the family in what appears to have been a very unnecessary tragedy. The county has been warned that this would happen again, yet it has stalled this process for over a year, leaving Tullahoma's citizens without the benefit of the closest, trained personnel responding to life-threatening emergencies.

Bradford, a county commissioner supposedly representing Tullahoma on the 21-seat commission, has refused to allow the TFD to be a first responder except in cases where CPR has been started. This limitation has endangered citizens, especially in the northeast quadrant, and now has resulted in a death.

Nashville TV stations are already aware of this event and are in Tullahoma right now preparing their stories on this. You folks know my stance here as I have blogged about it multiple times. The Ambulance Authority, and Mr. Bradford in particular, must be held responsible. He has made it very clear that he, and only he, will decide when the TFD can respond.

Alderman James Eads, a member of the Consolidated Communications Commission along with Bradford and a neighbor of the deceased, has been very outspoken in his opposition to how Bradford has handled this issue. Eads has stated that should a fatality occur because of the stalemate on this issue then Bradford should be held responsible.

This tragic event is but another example of how the Coffee County government treats Tullahoma as if it were an enemy, as opposed to its most-populated city and the primary source of its sales tax and property tax revenue.

It is now too late to fix this first responder issue before a tragedy occurs. The scar from this may not heal anytime soon between the city and county, and it shouldn't. Whether its court, or simply refusing to obide by the ambulance authority's rules, Tullahoma needs to take action to insure the safety of its citizens.

No Surprise at Voter Turnout or Result
August 7, 2009

It was no surprise that the voters of Tullahoma, or at least the disappointingly-low 16% that chose to go to the polls, sent the two incumbents home and elected four new folks to the 14-member elected bodies of Tullahoma.

The lesser surprise is the Board of Mayor and Alderman. That is not a reflection of the job that Sandy Lindeman did during her time of office, but more a reflection of recent trends on our city board.

The last incumbent alderman to seek re-election and win was Jim Waters in 2003. Phil Trimble, Lane Curlee, Mr. Waters, Richard Darden, myself, Janice Bowling, and Jonathan James all chose to not run for another term.

Troy Bisby has been the only incumbent that won another term, and I still don't understand how that happened, but that has been too many blogs ago and that is no longer of interest to me. My hope is that if the mayor chooses to run for a third term that there is quality opposition.

The Board of Education results were very surprising to me. Not that the two challengers weren't good candidates, but anytime a 20-year member of any elected board in Tullahoma runs again and loses it is big news. Especially on the BOE

In fact I can't remember the last time a school board member ran and didn't get elected. Half the time they run with little or no opposition. That was the case with the city board for a long time but now that has changed. Don't be surprised if now the BOE goes through a transition of personnel over the next few years. Change is good.

My Time of Year
July 15, 2009

Most people have a favorite time of year and this is mine. Once football season starts it seems to go by so fast that before I know it the season is over. I like this time, the buildup to the season, because it seems to last a lot longer.

Another thing about this time of year I enjoy is the local political races. As a former (and perhaps future) elected official I know what it takes to run a successful campaign. It is hard work and mentally draining.

I attended the forum at Motlow Collegeput on by the Tullahoma Chamber of Commerce. The event was very well put together and professional. Howard Kirksey was outstanding as moderator and each of the candidates represented themselves well. I think obvious favorites to win were apparent, but I'll keep those opinions to myself at least for now.

As you can see I have added my twitter site into my blog. Now you can not only read the latest blog entry from here but you can also follow my tweets! This new world of social networking is very exciting, and the more I learn about it the more possibilities I find.

My schedule for the coming football season is falling into place. Binns Jordan and I will once again host "High School Sports Plus", our hour radio talk show, each week on Fantasy 101.5 FM and online at FantasyRadio.com. As of today the show will move to Monday at 6pm, beginning on August 10. I'll let you know if that changes.

I will begin my 26th year of covering Tullahoma Wildcat footbal when the 'Cats host Blackman on Friday, Aug. 21 at the new Wilkins Stadium. Pregame begins at 6pm and kickoff is at 7pm. Binns and I look forward to another exciting season of High School Sports Plus and Wildcat football on Fantasy.

Name That Stadium
July 1, 2009

First let me congratulate the Board of Mayor and Aldermen for their sound judgement in voting down the mayor's untimely raise proposal in the 2010 fiscal budget.

At the same time, let me go on record as saying I very strongly disagree with the fact that the BMA chose to use almost $400,000 from reserve accounts to balance the budget. This practice is just wrong and resulted in our city getting in financial trouble earlier this decade.

If you suddenly find your home bills have become larger than your income do you start taking money out of your savings to pay those monthly bills or do you cut your spending somewhere? I believe you either cut spending or increase revenue, but NEVER use savings for recurring expenses. It's just bad policy and should be a primary election issue. This issue was not even discussed during passage of the budget.

I want to thank the Board of Education for allowing citizens to have input on the naming of the new football stadium. A name change is the proper way to go, and allowing you and me the chance to give our opinion of what the new name should be is the right way to do it.

As I stated on my radio show, "High School Sports Plus" in late August, 2008, I believe the stadium should be broken up into two names - one for the field and one for the stadium. For example, the baseball team plays on Jerry Mathis Field at Grider Stadium.

It seems a no-brainer to name the field John Olive Field. Coach Olive is the longest-tenured, winningest coach in THS history. In addition, his strong leadership and moral character have made him a pillar or our community. John Olive Field is the right way to go.

It is my hope the Board of Education will use the naming of the stadium as an opportunity to raise money and get the local business community involved. The schools actively recruit CEO partners, encouraging local business to invest in our education system.

It would seem that an agreement between the school system and a local business to have that business's name on the stadium would be beneficial to both, just like LP Field in Nashville. The length of the agreement and cost to the business could be worked out on a yearly basis or multi-year basis.

The revenue for such an agreement could go towards continuously improving the new facility, adding some of the things that were cut because of limited funds. This revenue could also be used for regular maintenance to the facility, etc.

I strongly encourage all citizens who have an opinion on the naming of the stadium to email your Board of Education members and let them know your feelings on this matter.

Mayor's Budget Shows Poor Judgement, Favoritism
June 11, 2009

It has been quite awhile since I blogged on City of Tullahoma politics, but the news regarding the Board of Mayor and Alderman's first reading of the fiscal year 2010 budget is just too bizarre for me to ignore.

First let it be noted that Mayor Troy Bisby made it very clear to everyone that this first budget proposal is his budget. As was a point of contention over the last couple of years, the truth is the first budget is supposedly the City Administrator's budget according to our city code, but let's not get sidetracked by technicalities such as what the law actually says.

In summary what happened at the first budget reading was the Mayor, without consulting with other board members or even city department heads, surprised everyone with a list of folks that he felt like deserved raises for one reason or another.

Now that in itself doesn't sound like a bad thing, other than the fact that he has never understood, and still doesn't understand, that he is but one of seven board members. He has consistently brought questionable ideas to the board (see the caboose) without any warning or attempt at building a consensus.

How and why would he announce months ago, before budet meetings ever started, that there would be no raises this year because of the unsure nature of our economy and then turn around on the first budget reading, with the economy even more uncertain, and propose targeted raises for only six of some 150 city employees?

Why would he propose a 12.5% raise for the community coordinator, which would leave her making more money than the assistant fire chief who has been with the city for 35 years?

Why would he propose a 6% raise for the city finance director, who has only been in her position for around 90 days, leaving her making more than the police chief who has a master's degree and has totally revamped his department's image and performance during his two years in his position?

Why would he put department heads such as the Recreation and Public Works heads in a position where none of their employees are getting raises but the department heads are? Obviously he hasn't considered the resentment that will build inside those departments.

The whole concept is misguided and guaranteed to hurt morale throughout the city workforce. It is unfair to those department heads who aren't getting raises and unfair to every city employee. One member of a seven-member board should not be deciding at random that select members of the city staff deserve raises and others don't, especially after announcing earlier that there would be no raises.

Finally, the mayor's budget pulls hundreds of thousands of dollars from reserve funds and uses it for recurring expenses. That is the type of fiscal policy that got our city in a $1.6 million budget shortfall a few years ago, and it is a road that should not be traveled again. Efficiency and constaints should be guideing this year's budget, not reliving past mistakes.

I call on each and every citizen to let the members of the BMA know your feelings on this issue, and I encourage you to ask them to change this budget to either include common, fair raises for all city employees are no raises for any city employees. I also ask you to request that they NOT use reserve funds for recurring expenses.

You the voter began an overhaul of the city board four years ago, and the result was balanced budgets, lower property taxes, and major capitol improvements throughout the city. Please don't allow this board to destroy those positive developments and lead us back down the worn path of the late 1990s and early 2000s.

High School Sports Plus Named Award Finalist
April 20, 2009

I'm extremely proud to announce today that Binns Jordan and I have been named as finalists by the Tennessee Associated Press Broadcasters for the best radio talk show in the state of Tennessee for our program High School Sports Plus.

The finalists were recently announced by the Associated Press. (click here to see all finalists). According to the Associated Press web site:

"Newspaper, television and radio members of the Associated Press will meet Saturday, May 9, in Nashville to applaud the best of the state's journalism during the 2008 calendar year.

Tennessee AP Broadcasters and Tennessee AP Managing Editors will hold a combined event at the Sheraton in downtown Nashville, beginning with a cocktail hour at 6 p.m. Central. Dinner and the awards presentation will follow.

It's an excellent opportunity to honor the top newspaper and broadcast journalistic achievements of 2008 and enjoy an evening of fun and fellowship."

High School Sports Plus is a sports talk show that ran last year from August into December on Fantasy 101.5 FM. The show focused on high school sports in this area, with Tullahoma and Coffee County as its center. HSSP will begin its second season in mid August with the second annual season preview show.

Binns and I appreciate the management at WFTZ for giving us the opportunity. We also want to thank Joe Barstad at Sports Plus for being our title sponsor, and TaxProSolutions.com, Weichert Realty, American City Bank, Sign-A-Rama, and Motlow College Athletics for their sponsorship as well.

The most interesting and exciting thing about the nomination is the fact that the show was not nominated as a sports talk show but simply as a radio talk show, while the other two nominations for the award are not sports shows and have won this award in recent years.

HSSP is a finalist along with a true heavyweight in the industry - Hallecin Hill and the H.H. Hill Morning Show on WNOX in Knoxville. Hill, who has been a guest host of the Rush Limbaugh program and a Knoxville broadcasting staple for a long time, is joined on the show by Chris Marion and Dave Foulk.

The 2008 winner of the best talk show award is once again nominated as Matter Shafer Powell, Chrissy Keuper and Greg Hill compete with their show Dialogue, which airs on WOUT, another Knoxville station.

Five Weeks From the Deadline
April 14, 2009

The deadline to file petitions to run for the Board of Mayor and Aldermen, The Board of Eduction, or City Judge in Tullahoma is May 21, 2009. With around five weeks remaining before the deadline it looks like our options are beginning to clear up.

For the three year Aldermen seats, currently held by Jonathan James and Sandy Lindeman, those who have qualified are Mrs. Lindeman, Jimmy Blanks, Teresa Lawson, and Greg Sandlin.

The four-year Board of Education seats, currently held by Susan Campbell and Brac Thoma, have as candidates so far the two incumbents as well as political newcomer John Manis. The City Judge position is currently held by Jim Conley and so far Jim is the only qualifier for the coming eight-year term.

Over the next few months we will provide information about these candidates in regards to their positions on issues, their past actions in relation to their campaign promises, and their knowledge, or lack of therein, of the facts surrounding current issues.

The first thing that stands out to me when looking at this list is the absence of incumbent Alderman Jonathan James, who ran as a political newcomer three years ago and finished second to Lindeman. Although a fairly new resident of Tullahoma at the time, James struck a cord with Tullahoma voters with his conservative platform and has held firm to his positions despite brutal attacks by the local press and some fellow board members.

His deep knowledge of law and economics, as well as his dedication to studying issues and demanding answers has been a welcome addition to the BMA. History will provide clear perspective that James helped guide the city through one of its darkest financial times, and he was a primary participant in funding the new school capital projects while balancing the city budget.

In consideration of the best interest of Tullahoma, the city I have lived my whole life in and raised my children in and invested my life in, I hope James will reconsider his options and choose to run once again.

It is interesting to note the fact that incumbents in recent years have been hesitant to run. Myself, Janice Bowling (who ran unsuccessfully for mayor), Lane Curlee, Phil Trimble, Jim Waters, and Richard Darden; the six sitting board members just three years ago, each chose not to run for re-election for alderman. That stands in stark contrast to just five years ago when folks like Waters, Curlee, Steve Cope, etc. served multiple terms, often running without opposition. The question lingers as to why we have had so much turnover on the board in recent years.

Now That's How to Sink Morale
April 3, 2009

One sure way to lower the morale of employees is to make a public statement at the beginning of budget sessions that your plan is to keep spending at last year's rates with no operating increases and no payroll increases.

Talk about taking the easy way out! Where is some creativity in attempting to find ways to reward your workforce for their efforts during the past year? Could you not at least have offered some hope?

Employees of the city of Tullahoma have seen their operating budgets and pay rates kept at near-stagnant levels for a number of years now. The last thing they needed to hear was that would be the case once again.

This is a time to be creatively exploring ways to be more effecient and searching for methods to streamline the cost of operations, not to simply announce intentions to leave things as they are. Now is the time to step back and review your processes, your organization structure, and your priorities.

I strongly encourage the Board of Aldermen to not be lulled into a do-nothing budget session that simply leaves the status-quo in place. Go to work.

We have worked our way out of severe budget shortfalls and lack of capital resources by making tough decisions and holding spending down, which has resulted in a balanced budget the last few years while building significant reserves.

With retail businesses bailing out of Tullahoma at an alarming rate it would seem this is the time to seriously examine our structure and to consider how we might operate more effectively. Both the BMA and the Board of Eduction are charged with getting the most bang for our bucks.

Unfortunately what we have seen in the past year is a repeat of what we experienced for most of the 1990s, forming committees which take a long time to study issues until the issues are no longer at the forefront of public thought. That lack of willingness to act played a major role in leading us to the mess we were in during the first half of this decade.

Campaign Not in the Cards
March 23, 2009

Unless something drastic happens to change my mind before the early May deadline, I have made the decision to not run for any local office this year.

Thank you to the numerous people who have encouraged me to seek another term this year. Be assured that my interest remains high in how our city is governed and I fully expect to make a run at some point in the future. I loved serving and my desire is to attempt to serve again, just not this year.

With that decision now made I am prepared to begin a more consistent blogging of my views and opinions of happenings on the local scene. I hope that you will continue to express your views to me when we pass each other at Wal-Mart or the athletic event or wherever we cross each other's path.

Now that construction has begun on our new football stadium I have every expectation that it will be completed in time for the August 21 season opener. There is no reason not to expect that result. You should expect that and let those responsible for this project know you expect that result.

In fact, you should expect that all three school projects be completed in a reasonable amount of time. They have been approved for nine months now and it seems fair to expect to begin to see progress on each of them. As was the case when I was in office, and should always be the case, we should expect those that we elect to take the actions they approve.

The latest incarnation of our city board has proven to be a major disappointment to me during this session. Although there are bright spots in a couple of those board seats, the majority of BMA members have not performed at a very high level.

The real test of the board as a whole, and of each member individually, is during budget sessions. Budget time is quickly approaching, and with the economy struggling it will be a challenge for the BMA to properly fund the city, the schools, and capital projects.

Watch the budget meetings closely and you can really tell where current board members stand as far as what is important to them and what they are willing to fight for. Remember, dissent and disagreement on the board, especially during budget debates, is a very healthy environment despite what the local press would attempt to have you believe.

Last night's Board of Mayor and Aldermen meeting provided really clear insight into where our city government currently stands in regards to its willingness and committment to make decisions that are in the best interests of Tullahoma's citizens.

I'm speaking of the debate on revisions to the sign ordinance. Yes I realize that sign ordinances are not exactly earth-shattering political issues, although a bad sign ordinance can certainly lead to a lot of problems.

The reason the aforementioned debate caught my attention was because it was one of the few true debates this board has had since it was assembled in August, 2008. That is seven months with hardly any extended debate about anything.

Past boards have been accused of spending too much time debating issues at times, and perhaps have been guilty of the same. However, personally I would rather my government over-debate an issue than to pass bad legislation without being willing to take the time to get it right.

The Planning Commission, of which I was a member from 2005-2008, has sent the BMA a revised sign ordinance. BMA members Sandy Lindeman and Jerry Mathis are on the Planning Commission and were primary participants in creating this new ordinance.

As the debate progressed it became quite obvious to anyone watching that the majority of baord members didn't understand what the new ordinance entailed. BMA members raised a number of real questions that seemed to show the ordinance left a whole lot of room for interpretation by the Planning and Codes Director.

Although leaving some things open to common-sense interpretation is a good idea in many instances, the holes in this new ordinance that are left for interpretation are big enough to drive a truck through. If members of the committee that created it don't understand it then how are the rest of us supposed to not only understand it, but abide by it?

Also, an auction company can put a sign up and a real estate company can put a sign up, on public property mind you, but a citizen can't put one up announcing a yard sale. I'll bet you there is more economic stimulus in yard sales in this town over the course of a year than there are auctions. Oh wait, folks don't pay taxes at yard sales.

The ordinance also ends the practice of placing political signs on public right-of-ways. On the surface this may seem like a good idea because the clutter of signs during election cycles can sometimes become almost unbearable.

But dig a little deeper and realize that incumbents already hold an advantage in elections because of name recognition. It stands to reason that significant reductions in signage during elections will favor the incumbents even more, since the sole purpose of signs is to increase name recognition.

And the whole issue of public right-of-ways and signs is so unenforcable anyway. Different streets have different widths of right-of-way and once the signs start flooding the same old areas this ordinance will become meaningless. Who is going to enforce all these new restrictions?

In recent months the BMA approved the Planning and Codes office to no longer have a full-time codes enforcement officer, yet the new restrictions the proposed sign ordinance contains would require a full-time person just to enforce them, much lest the significant rest of our city codes.

The whole concept of regulating signs that folks put on their private property is shaky. What about signs that support student athletes, signs that show who landscaped a house or did the windows or did the plumbing, etc.?

The bottom line here is that this new ordinance is just bad legislation. The BMA didn't seem willing to take the time to work and make it better. Now they have scheduled a public hearing, which is required, and a study session to study the issue further.

Hopefully between now and then the BMA will commit itself to taking the current proposed ordinance and shaping and molding it into something that is fair for everyone, taking common sense into account and also upgrading the beautification efforts in our city.

I'm trying so hard to not talk about the football stadium...

Examining the Current Landscape
February 6, 2009

In a few days the call will go out for candidates for the August, 2009 election to begin picking up their petitions. Being a former alderman and all, this is always an interesting time for me.

Who will be the candidates in 2009 to seek the two Board of Mayor and Alderman seats currently occupied by Sandy Lindeman and Jonathan James? Will either or both incumbents seek another term? My guess is they both will run again, but at this point that is just a guess.

We won't know the final answers to those questions until the cutoff period in May, but we should begin to see things shake out in the next couple of weeks. There are always candidates that jump out early and pick up their papers to stake their claim, and to get those mentions in the local press as many times as possible.

There are also two seats up for grabs on the Board of Education, currently occupied by Brac Thoma and Susan Campbell. History says both will run for re-election, as almost no one voluntarily gives up a BOE seat. Of course, history also says that nobody will oppose the two incumbents should they choose to seek re-election.

Here in my little corner of the world I sincerely hope and pray that we have an abundance of candidates for both offices. The more choices that citizens have when it comes to elected officials the better off we all are in the long run.

I am currently weighing my options heading into the election cycle. As you know, I chose to not seek re-election to the BMA last year. Without a doubt that was the best thing for me at the time and I don't regret my decision one bit.

On the other hand, I still feel that I can make a significant contribution to our city in the political arena. I have been encouraged by a number of folks to consider running for office this year, and I am currently pondering the possibilities.

So I ask you to help me make the decision. Give me a call or send me an email and let me know if you think I should run for office this year, whether it be BMA or BOE, and I will take your opinions into consideration as I make a decision in the next few months. Thanks.

The View From the Pressbox is Gone

January 14, 2009 is a bittersweet day for me, and at the risk of sounding too self serving, considering I pay for this little piece of the Internet I would like to share it with you.

Today I rode by Tullahoma High School and noticed the pressbox, which was the last standing portion of the home side bleachers of Wilkins Stadium, is gone.

I spent a significant amount of time and energy over the last three years as an Alderman in Tullahoma working to upgrade the facilities of our local school system. The success is evident in the fact that construction is underway on a new stadium, as well as plans underway for a new elementary school and, hopefully, a new auditorium.

From that side of my brain I am very satisfied. Although I was villanized by the local media, and sometimes by the school system itself, for my efforts I am satisfied with the success that was achieved. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made, and often times the right thing to do is painful.

On the other hand, I have spent the last 25 years as a radio broadcaster of Tullahoma Wildcat football games on the radio. That means in the 50-year history of the stadium I have been in the pressbox for almost half of every home game played there.

I remember as a child going to home football games there. I didn't realize in the mid-sixties that the stadium was new, I just knew that it was a thrill to go there to watch games and cheer for the local sports idols of my youth.

As a teenager and student at THS I engaged in the traditional ceremonies romantically linking high school students with football stadiums. The memories are sweet of what were the golden days of my youth.

I feel a special bond and history with the old stadium, having probably witnessed 500 varsity, junior varsity, freshman, middle school, junior high, Pop Warner, and yes even women's professional football games there.

There have also been many Kiwanis July 4th firework displays, graduations, concerts, and other events there. The stadium has been a intregal part of the fabric of our city for the past 50 years, and it is always difficult to let an old friend go.

But with time comes change, and its time to turn the page on my view from the pressbox. I know the new stadium will be beautiful and will feature a number of luxuries that were not part of the old stadium.

So this is my goodbye to an old faithful friend. You have served us well and you will not be forgotten. Thank you for your service.