Oak Ridge Today

Anderson County Commission meets Monday (today)

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

The Anderson County Commission will meet Monday, September 19, at 6:30 p.m. in Room 312 of the Courthouse in Clinton.

Among the items on the agenda will be the election of a chair, vice chair, and parliamentarian.

Commissioners could head into executive session during the meeting as Anderson County Law Director Jay Yeager’s report to the Commission indicated that a settlement offer has been made in the wrongful termination lawsuit filed by former Public Works Department employee Lisa Crumpley, who sued the county alleging that she had been fired in retaliation for cooperating with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation on an investigation into her former boss David Crowley. Crowley was indicted last October on charges of illegally inspecting buildings without the proper certification, and he fired Crumpley the day the indictment was unsealed. He was ultimately acquitted in the spring by a jury. No details of that potential settlement have been made public, but it will require Commission approval. [Read more…]

Anderson County Commission meeting Monday

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

The Anderson County Commission will meet for its regular monthly session on Monday, June 20, at 6:30 p.m. in Room 312 of the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

Commissioners will be considering appointments of commissioners to the newly-created Budget and Purchasing Committees brought about by the recent change in financial management systems. The Nominating Committee met this week and recommended that Commissioners Chuck Fritts, Whitey Hitchcock, Myron Iwanski, Theresa Scott, and Jerry White serve on the Budget Committee. The Nominating Committee members also recommended that Commissioners Tim Isbel, Angeleque McNutt, Steve Mead, Theresa Scott, and Philip Warfield serve on the Purchasing Committee.

The full Commission will discuss and possibly vote upon the Operations Committee’s recommendation to move forward on a project to refurbish the Glen Alpine Convenience Center in Clinton. The Commission will also discuss a five-year lease extension at a cost of $1,000 per month for the land housing the Wolf Valley Convenience Center in Claxton. [Read more…]

No discussion of Crowley legal bill; trash talk dominates Operations meeting

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

The Anderson County Commission’s Operations Committee did not end up discussing Monday night whether to pay the legal bills of Public Works Director David Crowley in connection to his acquittal in April on charges that he illegally inspected buildings without the proper certification. In fighting the charges, Crowley’s legal bill came to $59,258.62.

Crowley had requested that the Commission do what it has done before in cases when a public official faced, but was acquitted of, charges related to their governmental posting. But during the May meeting of the County Commission, some commissioners questioned whether Crowley had followed proper procedure in submitting his request for reimbursement. The question was referred to the Operations Committee and was the first item on the agenda for Monday’s meeting.

But Crowley was not in attendance when the meeting began, and commissioners voted to put it on the end of the agenda due to his absence. Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank pointed out that Crowley’s presence was not necessary since the matter had been referred back to committee by the full Commission. When the topic came up again, Crowley was still not present. Commissioner Jerry White made a motion to pay Crowley’s legal bill, but discussion ended before it began due to a lack of a second. In the end, no action was taken, and the question of Crowley’s legal fees continues. [Read more…]

Crowley’s legal bills to be considered

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

David Crowley

David Crowley

From WYSH Radio

The Anderson County Commission’s Operations Committee will consider Public Works Director David Crowley’s request that his legal bill be paid after he was acquitted of criminal charges last month. Crowley had been charged with illegally inspecting five buildings without the proper certification, but he was acquitted on those charges in April.

In fighting the charges, Crowley’s legal bill came to $59,258.62. In the past, the County Commission has approved the payment of legal fees for county employees charged with crimes connected to their positions when they are cleared out of the county law director’s budget. The request was considered earlier this month and approved by the county’s budget committee. [Read more…]

Options for county courthouse in Oak Ridge: Extend lease, stay put, move to govt. building

Posted at
By 3 Comments

Anderson-County-General-Sessions-Court-Exterior-Nov-19-2015

The lease on Anderson County General Sessions Court, Division II, on Bus Terminal Road in Oak Ridge expires Dec. 31, but officials will ask for a one-year lease extension while courthouse options are considered. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

CLINTON—Several alternative locations have been proposed, including a city-owned building at A.K. Bissell Park and a county-owned building on Emory Valley Road, but for now, the Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge could remain at a privately owned building on Bus Terminal Road.

Once housed at the Oak Ridge Municipal Building, the General Sessions, Division II, courthouse has been on Bus Terminal Road since January 2009.

But the lease expires December 31.

On Monday, November 16, the Anderson County Commission voted 15-0 on a voice vote to ask for a one-year lease extension with no penalty and to work with Oak Ridge to share courthouse costs.

“That year buys us time to look at all the options,” said County Commissioner Myron Iwanski, who represents District 8, which includes Emory Valley, Woodland, and Hendrix Creek. [Read more…]

County officials to ask for one-year extension on expiring courthouse lease

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Anderson County General Sessions Court Judge Roger Miller

First elected in August, Judge Roger Miller, left, is pictured in Anderson County General Sessions Court, Division II, in Oak Ridge before a bond hearing this summer. (2015 file photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today) 

 

CLINTON—Anderson County officials could ask for a one-year extension of the lease on the General Sessions Court, Division II, in Oak Ridge. The current lease expires at the end of the year, on December 31.

The county has an option to renew the lease for five years from January 1, 2016, through the end of 2021, but it’s not clear if officials want to do that. There are questions about whether they want to keep a courthouse in Oak Ridge, particularly if the City of Oak Ridge is not providing financial support. But if Division II court does stay in Oak Ridge, there is a question about whether it should remain at the current location at the former Oak Ridge Utility District building on Bus Terminal Road.

Officials have limited time, about 80 days, to weigh the alternatives before the lease expires, and there are holidays in the meantime, said Anderson County Commissioner Mark Alderson, who made a motion to seek a one-year lease extension during an Operations Committee meeting on Monday. The committee unanimously approved that proposal on a voice vote. [Read more…]

AC Commission preview

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Anderson County Courthouse

The Anderson County Courthouse on Main Street in Clinton is pictured above. (File photo)

Information from WYSH Radio

The Anderson County Commission will meet at 6:30 p.m. today (Monday, September 21) in Room 312 of the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

Prior to this evening’s meeting, the Commission will issue a proclamation saluting Anderson County Community Action Commission for its 50 years of service to the county.

Once the meeting begins, one of the more interesting items on the agenda will be consideration of an Operations Committee recommendation that a writ of mandamus be sought from a judge to force Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank to sign a motion that has been approved twice by the Commission to open an access road to the East Wolf Valley convenience center in Claxton to alleviate traffic congestion.

Frank will address what she calls the county’s non-compliance with state laws regarding vehicles for elected officials and will revisit the issue of whether the Commission has the authority to directly hire and supervise employees. [Read more…]

AC Operations Committee to consider senior center lease

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

The Anderson County Operations Committee will meet at 6 p.m. today (Monday, June 8) with a full agenda, including consideration of a five-year lease on a building at 439 South Charles Seivers Boulevard for use as an Anderson County Senior Center.

The cost of the $1,896-a-month lease would primarily be paid for out of the budget of the Anderson County Office on Aging, with some county assistance possible. But the remainder of the cost is expected to be paid for through donations.

Seniors and supporters of a senior center will rally before the meeting and then head upstairs to further demonstrate that support to committee members.

The Operations Committee will meet in Room 312 of the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton. See the agenda here.

Anderson County Commission to consider pay raise proposal tonight

Posted at
By 6 Comments

Chuck Fritts

Chuck Fritts

They haven’t had a raise in more than two decades, and on Monday night, Anderson County commissioners will consider whether to approve a salary increase for the new commission that starts in September.

Commissioners now receive $537.59 per month, or $6,451 each year. That’s what they’ve earned since Fiscal Year 1995-96.

Commissioners last received a salary increase in FY 1992-93, when their pay was raised 1.5 percent to $599 per month, or $7,199 each year.

But their monthly salary was then cut to the current level of $537.59 a few years later, in FY 95-96. There has been no change since.

A resolution to be considered by commissioners tonight (Monday, August 18) would give the new commission that starts in September the same pay raises awarded to all other elected officials, Commission Chair Chuck Fritts said. It would put commissioners on the same “playing field” as other elected officials, said Fritts, who made the proposal. He said commissioners ought to be included when those elected officials receive a raise. [Read more…]

AC Commission to consider workhouse designation for jail

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Anderson County Detention Facility Expansion

The 212-bed expansion of the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton is pictured above under construction in December.

When it meets on Monday, the Anderson County Commission will consider a resolution declaring the Anderson County Jail as a county workhouse.

The proposal was unanimously approved on Monday by the county’s Operations Committee. If approved Monday by the full Commission, it will give judges more options when sentencing certain offenders. Additionally, some inmates could get time taken off their sentences in exchange for days spent on county work details.

The resolution declaring the jail a workhouse will allow some offenders to serve their jail sentences at night after being allowed to go to their jobs or in some cases to take care of their families during the day. [Read more…]

Guest column: Legal battle between county mayor, sheriff must be resolved immediately

Posted at
By 1 Comment

Myron Iwanski

Myron Iwanski

Note: This is a copy of an Oct. 9 e-mail that Anderson County Commissioner Myron Iwanski sent to the other commissioners and county officials. The sheriff’s salary lawsuit against the county mayor was not discussed during the Oct. 21 County Commission meeting, as Iwanski had hoped, but it is scheduled to be considered during a special meeting this evening.

I am very concerned that the legal battle between the mayor and sheriff has not been resolved. This battle will have huge impacts on our budget this year and in future years. I have asked that this item be placed on the agenda for the Operations Committee meeting, and I would like to see it discussed by the full County Commission at its next meeting.

Costs continue to mount in this legal battle. If the large attorney fees are included with the cost for staff time to prepare all the documents and evidence being demanded, I believe this case could end up costing the county hundreds of thousands of dollars.

More importantly, no matter which side prevails in this case, I fully expect we will be told by Tennessee Corrections Institute and/or the federal courts that we must fund the jail. As we wait for this legal case to be resolved, nothing is being done toward bringing in the federal inmates we need to help provide the funds we need to operate the jail in future. This will likely mean that we will be forced into a tax increase next year. This could have been avoided had this case been worked out and we instead focused on getting the revenue we need to operate the jail. [Read more…]

Lake City picked for PlanET demonstration project

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

It has already been a banner week for Lake City.

On Monday, the Anderson County Commission’s Operations Committee voted to recommend purchasing the old Bank of America building in Lake City for $100,000 using part of the proceeds of the pending sale of county-owned land to the Hollingsworth Company for $303,000. The remaining $203,000 would be used as seed money for the start-up Anderson County Economic Development Fund. Supporters of the bank building purchase foresee using it as the new home of Coal Miners’ Museum as well as for storage and use as a satellite office for some county government entities.

Now, PlanET, a regional partnership of East Tennessee communities in Anderson, Blount, Knox, Loudon, and Union counties, has selected Lake City as one of its so-called Demonstration Project sites. The program will be funded through the Plan East Tennessee Grant and leverage in-kind services from the East Tennessee Community Design Center, or ETCDC, and the University of Tennessee School of Agriculture. [Read more…]