VOL. 8 NO. 15
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IN THIS ISSUE
A new generation
Civil War stories
As an undergraduate at Virginia Tech, I attended an earlymorning class that so engrossed me and my classmates that the lecture flew by. It was James Robertson’s Civil War class. Last week, I attended the Knoxville Civil War Roundtable and was once again thoroughly engrossed by Dr. Robertson. He is popular as a speaker and author because he is a social, rather than a military, historian. In all of his work, he endeavors to capture the feelings of the participants.
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‘holds the Fort’ By Wendy Smith
Fort Kid, the community-built playground adjacent to the Knoxville Museum of Art and World’s Fair Park, will survive to entertain new generations of children, thanks to one of its earliest users − and his mother. Attorney Alexander Waters heads a new committee, the Kids of Fort Kid, which will develop and execute a vision for the wellworn park. Seed money will come from a fund established in 1991 for continuing maintenance. Alexander is as enthusiastic about saving Fort Kid as his mother, Beth Waters, was about organizing 2,500 volunteers to build the playground in 1991, as part of the city’s bicentennial celebration. The children who grew up playing there are now young professionals, and they are ready to help with the project, Alexander Waters said last week. “Together, we’ll help hold the Fort.” Alexander was just a baby when his mother took him to Cedar Hill Park in Oak Ridge in 1989. When Beth saw the Robert Leathers community-built playground, with plaques recognizing the donors of each piece of equipment, Alexander Waters, son of John and Beth Wa- she knew Knoxville needed its ters, is coordinating efforts to renovate Fort Kid. own playground. She took the idea Beth Waters spearheaded the community-built to then-Mayor Victor Ashe. He told her to “talk it up.” playground in 1991. Photo by Wendy Smith She did, and the community caught the vision. A team of volunteers raised $110,000 and orgaAlexander Waters, at left, and his big brother, nized the massive build. Spencer Waters, investigated Cedar Hill PlayFort Kid was completed on ground in Oak Ridge. That visit was the inspiraApril 7, 1991, and Alexander’s 3rd tion for Fort Kid, says Beth Waters. Photo submitted birthday was two days later. Beth,
Read Wendy Smith on page A-3
City salaries: Bet you didn’t know ...
The city of Knoxville is essentially a service provider. It’s a people business. As such, wages and related fringe benefits make up the largest part of the city’s $183 million operating budget.
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Read Nick Della Volpe on page A-5
Marvin West talks basketball
My mentor ... said “basketball is such a simple game, even you can teach it.” All you have to do is control time and space – and don’t give up the baseline. He explained that effort and positioning are key ingredients of defense and rebounding. He said shooting was a bit more complicated, that even the best players rarely made half their shots. He recommended getting as close to the basket as possible before “putting it up.”
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April 14, 2014
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exhausted from the project, hired a clown and headed to Fort Kid. That began a tradition of celebrating a combined birthday for the playground and Alexander. The parties had themes, like Star Wars and Power Rangers, and hundreds of children participated each year. For several years, some $5,000 was spent annually to maintain the playground, Beth says. Over time, the maintenance stopped. But the fund continued to grow. Last spring, Ashe, now a columnist for the Shopper-News, wrote that the city planned to convert the playground to green space. After he revealed that the Fort Kid maintenance fund contained $65,000, Mayor Madeline Rogero met with Beth to discuss developing a new plan for the park. “I think they understand that if you tear it down, you open up a can of worms that you can’t close,” Beth says. Renovations to the playground will happen in two stages. The first phase, scheduled to begin this week, will include a new fence, repairs and staining of the wooden equipment and a new layer of pea gravel. Improvements are expected to be completed by June. On Sept. 20, volunteers organized by the Kids of Fort Kid will be onsite to add landscaping and finishing touches. They will also request community feedback on new equipment. That equipment, as well as picnic tables and a seating area, will be installed by April of 2015. “It’s a great time to be a kid in Knoxville,” Alexander says. Info: www.fortkidknox.com/.
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Union County: Sandra Clark interviews District Attorney General Lori PhillipsJones; while Libby Morgan writes about a headless cow. North/East: Betty Bean has the scoop on city plans to revitalize the Magnolia Avenue Corridor. Farragut: Stefan Cooper writes about a ice hockey team that won a national tourney.
Lay, McMillan are GOP candidates to replace Swann By Jake Mabe The swan takes flight. After 32 years on the bench, 4th Circuit Court Judge Bill Swann announced his retirement last year, shortly after lawyer Greg McMillan said he would seek the job whether Swann ran or not.
Correction
Last week’s story on John Huber’s lawsuit over a marina at his proposed development, Westland Cove, was incorrect regarding the distance Huber offered to move the two buildings during negotiations with homeowners. He offered to move the buildings 50 feet west. Our report said 50 yards.
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Analysis Swann is Knox County’s most controversial judge; lawyers and litigants either love or hate him. Many just bypass his court entirely, filing in Chancery Court and putting a burden on that court’s caseload. The biggest complaint against Judge Swann is his overreliance on psychologists, with several working in his court, pushing up costs. The state requires that divorcing couples undergo one mediation session; Swann requires four. The state requires four hours of Parent Education Seminars; Swann requires 12. It is difficult to get a trial date because he has trial “managements,” which require litigants to spend yet another day sitting in the courtroom with their lawyers so that progress toward settlement can be “measured.”
Another frequent complaint is his overreliance on Orders of Protection. At one time, Knox County’s 4th Circuit Court issued more OPs than Davidson, Hamilton, Shelby and Sullivan counties combined. He also has a stable of lawyers who work as his “special masters.” These lawyers have their own robes, dockets and nameplates. When they’re not wielding a gavel, they are practicing in his court, raising the question of how these individuals can be agents of the judge one day and come before him the next. Candidate Patti Jane Lay is one of these, and Swann has endorsed her to succeed him. These practices have caused Chancery Court dockets to become overloaded with divorce cases. Swann’s critics say he has made the process of getting a divorce in Knox County expensive, cumbersome and protracted. The candidates: Two lawyers seek to replace Judge Swann, a race that will be decided in the May 6 Republican Primary. The winner will face the winner of the Democratic Primary, either Daniel Kidd or David Valone, in the general election. Patti Jane Lay and Greg McMillan are campaigning hard – both
in the shadow of Bill Swann. Lay grew up in Fountain City and Bearden, graduating from Webb School of Knoxville. She earned a bachelor’s degree at Emory University in Atlanta and a law degree at UT. She and her husband, Tom Baugh, live in Bearden and have three children. Lay McMillan says he declared his intentions to run in 2006. He graduated from Bearden High before earning a bachelor’s degree and a law degree from UT. He and his wife, Summer, have five children. He is special counsel with the Lewis Thomason law firm. McMillan says he got into the race because “the court hasn’t been working well for the people of Knox County for several years.” He says he will: ■ Do a better job screening orders of protection, granting them not at the initial stage by special masters but by the court of record. “It eliminates appeals.” ■ Ensure better coordination between law enforcement and the court, making orders of protection simplified, clear and typed rather
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than written. ■ Change the way the docket is handled. He says most cases are filed in Chancery Court because of Swann’s “biases,” which have created a logjam. ■ Change Swann’s snowday policy, opening court even if Knox County government is closed for those who can McMillan safely make it to court. On the civil side, McMillan says he will change the current policy of a 12-hour parenting class to the state-required four-hour class and will look at offering online classes. He says when parents are going through a divorce, their children need them more than ever. “The court needs to work better for the people of Knox County. There’s going to be a change (in judges). But it needs to be the right change.” We were unable to connect with Lay by press time. Candidate bios can be found at their websites, w w w.pattijanelay forjudge.com and http://mcmillanforjudge.com. Betty Bean contributed to this report.
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