POWELL www.ShopperNewsNow.com
|
www.facebook.com/ShopperNewsNow
IN THIS ISSUE
See page 5
The time is now... The Knox County Schools budget has for too long grown by bunts. It’s time for the community to swing for the fence. Last week, Sandra Clark toured two schools. Jake Mabe toured the Andrew Johnson Building. We make the case for the budget in a four-page spread. Please help!
➤
See pages 9-12
Plight of UT track Since last we talked about the plight of Tennessee track and field, Marvin West writes, the Volunteers have gone from bad to worse to awful. The men were next to last in the recent Southeastern Conference meet. If anybody still cares, they did not have a runner in the finals of the 100, 200, 400, 800 or 1500. And there are no recruits to suggest better days are ahead.
➤
May 21, 2012
Potter predicts ‘new Callahan’
PES time capsule opened
➤
twitter.com/shoppernewsnow
A great community newspaper
VOL. 51 NO. 21
Powell Elementary School buried a time capsule in 1986 when the new school was completed. Last week Betsi Vesser had the honor of opening the capsule and revealing the contents of the box to former teachers and special guests. In 1986 the school only went to the 4th grade due to construction; 5th grade students attended Powell Middle School. Ruth White has a photo feature.
|
By Sandra Clark When Dwayne Potter sent out notification to nearby property owners that construction on the final leg of Emory Road was about to begin he got back a response: “We’re glad you’re here. We’ve been hearing about this project for 60 years.” The writer probably would have heard about it even sooner if he were older. The much-discussed and often cussed Emory Road widening through Powell is underway. Dwayne Potter, a road builder based in Huntsville, Tenn., got the bid and is on-site. Potter expects the $15.6 million project to be open in September 2014. It’s a tough project. After numerous public meetings, the Tennessee Department of Transportation settled on a route that bypasses the heart of downtown Powell. A new road will pick up just south of Gill Road and will extend to Clinton Highway. “In my opinion, this will become (Knox County’s) new Callahan,” said Potter. Plans call for a traffic light at the intersection with Brickyard Road. A signal already has been installed at Clinton Highway near Walgreens. He envisions a stop sign at the point where the roads diverge, with an access road into “old Powell” on the right and continuation of the 5-lane swinging left. Design criteria require a 90-degree angle on the intersection, and that’s why residents see silt fencing on the north side of Emory.
Site preparation is underway for the widening of Emory Road at Powell. Photo by Ruth White
Workers are currently installing footers for a bridge which will span both the railroad tracks and Beaver Creek. Working “six days a week, 10 hours a day,” Potter said he wants to get those footers in the ground during the summer’s dry season. The bridge will be 850 feet long with sidewalks and a handrail on each side. He expects to move “several thousand cubic yards” of dirt, and explains it won’t be fill. “In our business, when we bring dirt in, we call it fill. When we move material around on-site, we call it excavation.” The new road will match Emory Road from Norris Freeway to Gill Road with two lanes each way, a
center turn lane and sidewalks, curbs and gutters on both sides. The speed limit will be 40 miles per hour. Potter runs a family business, assisted by his wife, Raisa; son, Robert; and daughter, Kristin, now off on maternity leave; and son-in-law Logan. He has two grandsons and it’s just a matter of time until they’re working, too. Potter was the contractor for the Forest Heights Bridge during the 2000-02 widening of Papermill Road. He just finished a project on Hwy. 62 in Morgan County and worked on a bridge replacement job in Campbell County last year. He currently is widening the off-ramps from Pellissippi at
See page A-4
Which tax could pass? What are the chances of a sales tax referendum passing with new revenue going to Knox County Schools? That is one option should there not be 7 votes on the 11 member county commission to raise county property taxes by 35 cents over a mayoral veto. Victor Ashe breaks it down.
➤
See page A-4
Index Sandra Clark A2 Betty Bean’s feature story A3 Government/Marvin West A4 PES Time Capsule feature A5 Community A6 Faith A7 Schools A13,15 Business A18
Janice Widener, Debbie Hayes and Janet Brown are retiring from Powell Middle School. Photo by S. Clark
Three retire at Powell Middle By Sandra Clark
4509 Doris Circle 37918 (865) 922-4136 news@ShopperNewsNow.com ads@ShopperNewsNow.com EDITOR Sandra Clark sclark426@aol.com ADVERTISING SALES Debbie Moss mossd@ShopperNewsNow.com Shopper-News is a member of KNS Media Group, published weekly at 4509 Doris Circle, Knoxville, TN, and distributed to 8,314 homes in Powell.
Assistant principal Janet Brown and teachers Debbie Hayes and Janice Widener are retiring from Powell Middle School. The three have taught for a combined 107 years in Knox County Schools. A dinner at Beaver Brook will honor the educators, and Brown is not quite sure what to expect. “They’ve been pretty secretive about it. …” Widener, a 7th grade math teacher, appreciates the opportunity “to teach where I grew up and went to school.” She has been at Powell Middle for 24 years, previously working at Northwest Middle School.
Math education has changed, particularly over the past five years, she said. “We expect a lot more (from students). When I started, we expected them to master addition, subtraction, multiplication and fractions (by 7th grade). Now we’re into algebra.” Hayes’ day is split between teaching computers and assisting other teachers with their technology. For the second job she carries the title BLTC (building level technology coordinator). “Powell Middle has very supportive parents and awesome kids,” she said. Hayes was selected for a 21st Century Classroom back in the day. From there she was
ted Nomina one of N’s “East T Best!”
P.C.C.A. Compounding Specialist Kenton Page, DPh Since 1976
5110 N. Broadway • 688-7025
7550 Brickyard B Bric Rd Rd. (Behind Bojangles on Emory) 7509 Northshore Drive (Rocky Hill Shopping Center) www.WearElseKnoxvilleTN.com
trained to help other teachers and her supportive role evolved. She’s been at PMS for 15 years. Hayes and Brown celebrated their final field trip recently when the bus in front of theirs broke down on Interstate 640. Their bus pulled in to assist, and “we just shook every time a truck went by,” said Brown. Somehow it seemed fitting. This year has presented challenges from the beginning. New construction at PMS created “room” for transfer students from schools targeted by No Child Left Behind. Powell added more than 100 unexpected children from Whittle Springs, Vine, South-Doyle and Northwest. All
Wear Else! 2 Receive 50% Off Clothing Item AAny One
New & Re-Sale Clothing Boutique
es May Purses, jewelry & formals excluded. Expirvisit with 28, 2011. One coupon per customer, permay apply. $25 min. purchase. Other exclusions
In Powell 947-9277
Mon - Thurs 10-6 • Fri - Sat 10-7
Dwayne Potter Northshore Town Center. “We try to stay busy, but it’s a balance between too much work and not enough.” On weekends, he “fools around with” Angus cattle. He says he enjoys farming but hasn’t yet figured out how to earn a living doing it.
came after school began. “We had two months of first days,” said Hayes. “But we handled it,” said Brown. Powell Middle added teachers, rearranged class schedules and soldiered on. Then came new teacher evaluations, challenging and timeconsuming for both teachers and principals. And now chaos ensues at year’s end as staff wrap up student records, value added test scores and evaluations. Brown quoted a colleague who said the end of school is like childbirth – so painful that you’d never do it again if you remembered. “Luckily, we have the whole summer to forget.” Brown is married to Holston Middle School principal Tom Brown, and he’s not retiring. “He tells people I’m older, but Tom worked a few years in the mental health field before becoming a teacher,” Janet explained. The Browns have a grandchild who turned 1 on Mother’s Day in Culver City, Calif. Janet is already mapping out a direct flight. Brown says she has “loved everything I’ve done” in a career that spans teaching, serving as guidance counselor at Northwest Middle for 13 years and being an assistant principal at Powell Middle for 12. How could things be better? Brown responds quickly: “The Powell community supports athletics wonderfully. I’d like to see that same level of support for academics.” Widener echoes that. “Let’s celebrate our success in the classroom.” 2707 Mineral Springs Ave. Knoxville, TN 37917 Ph. (865) 687-4537 280 N. Fairmont Ave.
Morristown, TN 37814 • Physical Therapy Ph. (865) 585-5023 • Aquatic Physical Therapy • Functional Capacity Evaluations • Jump Start Health & Fitness Program • Occupational & Industrial Services • Vocational Services • Work Conditioning
www.associatedtherapeutics.com