VOL. 7 NO. 29
www.ShopperNewsNow.com |
July 22, 2013
www.facebook.com/ShopperNewsNow
Karns Sports Park is favored site Ballplayers vow to ‘fight for our fields’ By Nancy Anderson
IN THIS ISSUE
Fair this week
Nancy Anderson has the scoop on this Saturday’s 60th annual Karns Community Fair.
➤
See story on page A3
Rysewyk gets new job with schools A young man has a new job with Knox County Schools. Dr. Jon Rysewyk will work on innovation and school improvement. Indya Kincannon calls him “smart and patient enough to build and sustain true grassroots reform.”
➤
See story on page A-11
Remembering Jenkins & Jenkins For them, the demise of the Jenkins & Jenkins name is one more marker of the end of an era. The firm that was founded in 1933 by the unrelated Ray H. Jenkins and Erby Jenkins (Erby’s brother Aubrey didn’t join up until 10 years later), has become Quist, Cone & Fisher. The legendary firm hasn’t dissolved, says J&J managing partner Michael Fitzpatrick, who has been a partner with the firm since 1980. “It’s just changing names.”
➤
See story on A-5
High on Charlie “Until further notice,” Marvin West writes, “Charlie High is my favorite Tennessee football walk-on. “Nobody can match his quarterback statistics – back-to-back state championships for Christian Academy of Knoxville, 74.4 completion rate, 10,978 yards, 131 passing touchdowns against 22 interceptions, astounding success.”
➤
See story on page A-6
10512 Lexington Dr., Ste. 500 37932 (865) 218-WEST (9378) NEWS news@ShopperNewsNow.com Sandra Clark | Nancy Anderson ADVERTISING SALES ads@ShopperNewsNow.com Shannon Carey Jim Brannon | Tony Cranmore Brandi Davis | Patty Fecco
Animated discussion with passionate points of view highlighted Tuesday’s meeting to discuss a site and programming for a new Karns Senior Center. County Commissioner Brad Anders joined Hemal Tailor, the county’s senior director of community outreach, and architect Stacy Cox to lead the discussion. “To get the biggest bang for our buck, we want to build on countyowned land,” said Anders. The less money spent on site acquisition and preparation, the more money available for the facility itself. Anders outlined three possible sites for the 6,000-square foot center: ■ Build on what is now a practice field at the Karns Sports Park ■ Build on the site of the old library, now used as a community center ■ Build at Ball Camp across from the elementary school Survey cards taken at the meeting showed an overwhelming preference for the sports park location with programming to include space for games, exercise, wellness classes, arts and crafts. A coffee bar is an absolute must. Mayor Tim Burchett will select the site, and the senior center is slated to open in 2014. Funding was included in this year’s budget. Even as the sports park site was favored by most, there was vocal opposition from adult softball
Stooksbury
Gentry
players at the meeting. Dave Dodson said, “The sports park was built for the kids.” He said afterwards that everything the seniors want to do at a senior
center can be done at their home. He said the sports park Dodson hosts some 300 players and spectators each night, boosting sales at local businesses. “We won’t sit here and not fight for our fields.” He said there is no parking for
the senior center. “The ball field is absolutely packed at night and every weekend.” Tailor said the senior center would operate from 8 to 5 weekdays with few evening events. Jack Stooksbury said he’s lived in the community 73 years. “I know what’s available for kids. Plenty. To page A-3
Work progresses on Harrell Road Park By Jake Mabe Work is progressing on Harrell Road Park, according to Knox County watershed coordinator Roy Arthur. The land was graded to specifications on Dec. 15 and since then Arthur says workers have had about Roy Arthur 10 days to proceed with the project due to the unusually heavy amount of rain. “As things have been drying out, we have begun putting amenities on the ground,” Arthur says. The site will be a stormwater best management practices demonstration park. Two wetland ponds have
been created and 700 feet of piping has been installed that in a one-inch rain will collect 355,000 gallons of runoff from nearby Painter Farms subdivision, which will be filtered of pollutants and slowly returned to Beaver Creek. Barring further rain delays, Knox County Parks and Recreation will install 4,000 feet of compressed-gravel trails, and a pervious parking lot will be installed by the Beaver Creek Task Force in August and September. Arthur said a rain garden will be installed this fall, which will capture excess runoff from the parking lot. Signage will also be installed to explain the stormwater best management practices. Trees will be planted beginning this winter. The final phase – putting down
compost and manufactured topsoil, which will include native seeds (wildflowers, shrubs, grasses, etc.) – will be completed next spring. The park is scheduled to open this fall and be completed by next May. The park will comprise 10 of the site’s 19 acres. The project’s total cost is $500,000, 90 percent of which will be funded through grants, Arthur says. The park will become a part of the Knox County Parks and Recreation system and will be the upstream launch for the new blueway. The project began in 2007, when developer Scott Davis donated 19 acres of land to Legacy Parks Foundation. The Foundation’s Land Conservation Committee, of which Arthur is a member, decided to build a park.
Tax talk takes two tracks By Anne Hart Tennessee’s state sales tax is a hot topic for everyone from school students and their parents to politicians and business owners. The conversations focus on two separate aspects of the tax. The one that brings excitement and anticipation is the annual “Sales Tax Holiday,” which starts this year at 12:01 a.m. Friday, Aug. 2, and runs
DEAL OF THE W WEEK! Preserve those old Pr reels, slides & vhs tapes today!
20% OFF PURCHASE
Bring your VHS, slides, Cannot be combined with any other discounts or offers. film and more into Coupon must be presented at time order is dropped off. Discount will the digital age.
Audio
Architect Stacy Cox from Studio Four Design lists suggestions from Karns area residents about programming at the new Karns Senior Center. Photos by Nancy Anderson
not be applied to previous orders or orders that are being processed. Expires 07/27/13 & Video Conversion SN072213
686-5756
www.DigitizeItNow.com 12752 Kingston Pike, Renaissance Farragut, Ste 103, Bldg E
until 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 4. The one that brings considerable stress is the tax reform measure titled the Marketplace Fairness Act and dubbed “E-fairness.” This measure, now moving through Congress, would require online shoppers to pay sales tax on purchases from Internet retailers who do business in ex-
cess of $1 million annually. Currently, sales tax is required only when an E-commerce store has a bricks-and-mortar presence within the state. Tax holiday: it offers three days of shopping for several things without having to pay sales tax. With the exception of computers, eligible items must have a price tag of less than $100. Buyers can forget about trying
30% OFF
WATCH BATTERY COUPON S Skagen W Watches In stock
Foster' s
limit one per pers person with coupon. Exp Expires 8/31/13.
Fine Jewelry
7023 Kingston Pike In the West Hills Center
584-3966
www.fostersjewelry.com
A grant was secured for $5,000, which allowed the Foundation to hire the East Tennessee Design Center to create a concept plan. Cannon and Cannon, CRJA and Water Resources LLC created engineering and landscape designs and implemented the first phase of the park – contouring the land – which was completed Dec. 15. Arthur says the park has been a cooperative among those firms, Legacy Parks Foundation, the Beaver Creek Task Force, the Knox County Highway Department, Knox County Stormwater, the Tennessee Water Resources Research Center and others. The Foundation has just received a $95,000 grant from the Tennessee Health Watershed Initiative to continue work on the park.
to get a clerk to ring up a more expensive pair of shoes as two separate purchases. It has already been tried and is not permitted. And while the holiday is intended to help parents save money on clothing and other items their children need for school, purchases aren’t limited to school-related items and shoppers don’t have to have school children to save money. If an item is exempt, anyone can buy it. As an example, any
shopper can purchase a desktop, laptop or tablet computer at up to $1,500 in price without paying sales tax, as long as the item is not for use in a trade or business. Personal digital assistants (PDAs) and electronic readers, such as the Kindle and Nook, aren’t eligible for the tax break, and neither are keyboards, software and other items that do not come pre-packaged with the computer. Computer To page A-3