A $50,000 donation from Don and Carol Story, a $200,000 donation from the Charles and Sue Fouche Charitable Trust, and a $250,000 donation from PetSafe to be announced today complete phase 2.

The Maryville Daily Times has more...

Joe Hultquist will be the featured guest speaker at the 2010 Annual Meeting of CAPPE (Citizens Against the Pellissippi Parkway Extension, Inc.). The meeting is scheduled for Monday, February 22, from 6:30-8:30pm in the Sharon Lawson Room at the Blount County Library.

"For several years we have designed our Annual Meeting as a community education event, featuring speakers who are knowledgeable about transportation issues relevant to our region," said Nina Gregg of CAPPE's Board of Directors. "We saw a need for education and civil discussion about transportation issues and decided to devote a portion of each year's Annual Meeting to fulfilling this need."

"This year we are pleased to welcome Joe Hultquist, Interim Executive Director of East Tennessee Quality Growth (ETQG) as our featured speaker," Gregg said.

Mr. Hultquist, who was born and raised in Blount County, will be speaking about the future of transit in the greater Knoxville area, including the upcoming Regional Corridor and Opportunity Area Study; options for transit between the airport and Knoxville; the role of independent advocacy groups; and ETQG's perspective on transit as a component of quality growth in the region.

Mr. Hultquist is currently serving as Interim Executive Director of East Tennessee Quality Growth, a new organization with representation from 16 counties of middle East Tennessee. ETQG's mission is to "create a vision for quality growth through dialogue, research, and education," and to "promote and facilitate implementation of this vision through regional cooperation and local action."

Previous speakers at CAPPE Annual Meetings have included Rees Shearer from RailSolution, Cindy McGinnis from Knox Area Transit (KAT), Jeff Welch from the Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) and Bill Dunlap from the Blount County Highway Department.

The public is invited to come hear Mr. Hultquist's presentation, which will begin at 7pm. Refreshments will be served at 6:30pm. CAPPE's annual business meeting will follow the speaker.

For more information, call Nina Gregg, CAPPE Communication Committee Chair at 977 7399.

We are excited! It's happening.

The City of Alcoa held the groundbreaking ceremony today to start the Alcoa Highway pedestrian bridge. It should be complete in September, 2010 (eight months)!

Yeah! Kudos to the City of Alcoa for continuing the legacy of parks, greenways, greenbelts, and walkability!

EIGHT ANNUAL CHILI FEST set for Saturday, February 6, 2010

CAPPE's Eighth Annual ChiliFest, which is both a contest and a tasting opportunity, is set for Saturday, February 6 from 4-7pm at Stovall Family Life Center beside First Church of the Nazarene, 1608 E. Broadway, Maryville.

The event begins at 4pm, with tasting and judging continuing until the winners are announced at 6:30pm. In addition to the different chilis and a variety of beverages, tortillas and quesadillas will be available along with a bake sale of delicious home-made treats. Everyone will be eligible to win door prizes.

Several contestants from area businesses will challenge previous winners who are defending their titles. Judges will select the winning chefs in three categories: beef, other meats and vegetarian chili. The general public will vote for the People's Choice winner. Four $50 prizes will be awarded.

To enter the contest, submit an entry form and the $20 entry fee by February 2. Each contestant is asked to bring a minimum of four quarts of warm prepared chili in a crockpot, and to provide a ladle and someone to serve.

Entry forms and advance tickets are available at Southland Books (601 East Broadway) and Waste Not, Want Not (1505 East Broadway).

Suggested donation for admission is $5 in advance and $6 at the door (children under 10 admitted free). Admission includes tastes of entries and one bowl of chili and one vote for the People's Choice winner.

For more information, call Mike Cook, CAPPE President 984 9003 or Susan Keller 982 4267.

The City of Alcoa offers electronics recycling for City of Alcoa residents.

Residential electronic scrap items such as computers, monitors, TVs, printers, keyboards and mice, scanners, fax machines, VCRs and other small consumer electronics can be dropped off at:

City of Alcoa Service Center (new building near Springbrook)
725 Universal Street, Alcoa, TN

Alcoa/Maryville/Blount County Landfill
240 Long Powers Road, Maryville, TN

Contact the City of Alcoa Public Works Department (865-380-4800) with any questions or for additional information,

There is a Health Coverage Tax Credit program that will pay 80% of health insurance premiums for workers that are receiving Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) benefits or receiving pension payments from Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC) and over the age of 55.

The IRS is holding an education session to assist eligible individuals through the process.

Crowne Plaza
401 W. Summit Hill Drive
Knoxville, TN
9 AM to 3 PM

Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) is a benefit for individuals who have lost their jobs because of trade with foreign countries. Employers and unions file a petition with the Department of Labor (DOL) to have their employees TAA certified.

Area companies that are Trade Adjustment Assistance certified include:
Alcoa, Inc., Alcoa, TN
Newell Rubbermaid, Maryville, TN
Ceramaspeed, Inc., Maryville, TN
Key Safety Restraint Systems, Knoxville, TN
Panasonic Electronic Devices Corp. of America, Knoxville, TN
DeRoyal Industries, Inc., Powell, TN
La-Z-Boy, Dayton, TN
Bos Automotive, Morristown, TN
Berkline/BenchCraft, LLC, Morristown, TN
The Mazer Corporation, Johnson City, TN

Use the US Dept. of Labor web-site to search for TAA certified companies.

According to the Maryville Daily Times,

A Health Care Reform discussion forum will be held at the Blount County Library on January 26th at 6:30PM.

The event is sponsored by the Center for Strong Communities at Maryville College, the Blount County Ecumenical Action Council and the nonpartisan Tennessee Health Care Campaign.

The groups "advocate for health care reform as a moral imperative regardless of the current national political debate."

Previous events by the groups were held in September, 2009, and January 3, 2010.

Cloudy skies and cold weather didn't stop anyone from coming out to the Maryville Christmas Parade in downtown Maryville today. According to the paper there were over 160 entries in the parade, and folks from all over lined the parade route. Here are some snapshots... 

(Click here for larger view)

Once again there is discussion of building an "Alcoa Parkway" to allow drivers to avoid a 3 1/2 mile section of Alcoa Highway. The 2007 estimated cost for this "parkway" is over $64 million, whereas the redesign of this section of Alcoa Highway with better turn lanes and traffic signals is approximately 1/2 million dollars.

Do we really need to pave Alcoa? Do we really need a 5 mile 6 lane interstate through Alcoa? Oh, my bad, it is a "parkway". Doesn't that sound pleasant?

There is no need to make Alcoa a parking lot so commuters can go 3 1/2 miles very quickly only to be stopped by the traffic light managed Hall Road (35 mph) or Alcoa Hwy bypass (US 129/State Road 133).

I'm pretty sure travelers can find the new "Downtown Alcoa" without this 6 lane albatross. Wouldn't it be nice if the section of Alcoa Highway from Singleton Station Road to Hunt Road/Hall Road was made a well managed boulevard? How long does it now take to get from Singleton Station Road to Hunt Road/Hall Road? 2-3 minutes? Okay, so there have been frequent accidents on Alcoa Highway, wouldn't it be more beneficial to redesign the existing road (better managed access) than to pave Alcoa to avoid this minor stretch of road?

Have you seen the section of Alcoa they are planning to pave? Lots of green space, including a golf course. The new "parkway" will be on the edge of the most historical neighborhood and park in the City of Alcoa, Springbrook. Won't that be pleasant? Just what those hard working, middle-class citizens need, more traffic noise and pollution. How about it if we encourage planned development with continued greenspace requirements and managed roads without an interstate through Alcoa.

Let's think about this people. Are you with me? We do not need the "Alcoa Parkway".

What are your thoughts?

The fall Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event is scheduled for: Saturday, November 14, 2009 from 8 a.m. - 2 p.m.

At William Blount High School at the County Farm Road entrance gate.

Acceptable items include paint, pesticides, liquid household cleaners, batteries, and chemical sprays.

The City of Maryville unemployment rate dropped from 19.6% in July, 2009 to 9.8% in August, 2009. It all happened with smoke and mirrors.

Alcoa Parkway bypass of Alcoa Highway moving closer to reality

"The purpose is to get rid of traffic congestion on Alcoa Highway, which will turn into a commercial street. It will be our Kingston Pike," Wiggins said. "It's our commercial corridor."

And we want a Kingston Pike in Blount County, why? Have these guys driven out there lately? We've already got two empty car lots on Alcoa Highway. I guess we need some empty strip malls to go with them.

Johnson hopes to pull out the Hunt Road portion from the Hall Road/U.S. 129 Bypass split to just south of McGhee Tyson Airport and construct it first.

"That would be easy to do," Wiggins said.

That area of Alcoa Parkway is going to serve as the main entrance into the 350-acre former ALCOA Inc. West Plant property. Developers Kinsey Probasco Hays (KPH) and International Risk Group (IRG) are planning a $500 million development at build-out, not including inflation.

Ding ding ding, we have a winner. Everything is becoming much clearer, now.

The Last Friday Art Walk is a recurring event to celebrate the arts on the last Friday of every month in Downtown Maryville.

Maryville Arts Coalition is proud to present the second annual Last Friday Art Walk Tribute to Music event! August 28, 2009. 5-9pm. Artists and Musicians will be lining the streets of Downtown Maryville. The theme? Paint the Music!

Note from the Little River Watershed Association:

Keep Blount Beautiful needs your help to prevent Cigarette Litter in Downtown Maryville... the Friday Night Art Walk and KBB is looking for 24 volunteers to help hand out free pocket ashtrays at the event for one hour... Please contact Jillian Atchley at 681-4809, email intern@keepblountbeautiful.org to volunteer, please specify a time you are interested in.

In the Legals section of The [Maryville] Daily Times, the South Blount Utility District Water has a post regarding their continuing drinking water problems. Higher than acceptable lead levels are being reported, 0.015mg/L versus 0.036mg/L. High levels of lead were reported for the South Blount Utilitiy District in 2006 and 2008.

As in the past, the blame is put on homes built prior to 1987, which may contain lead solder joints on plumbing.

This problem has been lingering for at least three years. The lead levels do appear to be going down, but they are still twice the actionable level. Why can't South Blount Utility District provide acceptable drinking water? Are other water districts having this problem? Don't they have homes built prior to 1987?

According to the South Blount Utility District, here are some important safeguards regarding drinking water:

• Do not drink of cook with water from the hot water tap.
• Do not boil the water in an attempt to remove contaminants. Lead remains in the water and cannot be boiled away.
• Run the water for 15-30 seconds before drinking or using to flush standing water from pipes.

For more information, contact South Blount Utility District, 865-982-3560.