Chamber News
Executive Director’s Update for April
April is going to be a very busy month at the
Chamber. On April 1 we will be holding a ribbon
cutting at Twice the Ice on Anderson Avenue. April 2
through 4, I will be traveling to Cookeville,
Tennessee, for the USDA Rural Development
Conference. USDA does a wonderful job in West
Tennessee.
On
April 10 our Haywood County Leadership Class will
hold its graduation. On Friday, April 11, at 8:30
a.m., downstairs at the Chamber, we will hold our
annual Legislative Update Breakfast. House Speaker
Jimmy Naifeh and Senator John Wilder will be here
speaking about current issues going on in Nashville.
Everyone is invited to this special breakfast.
The
economy may be slow but things are busy as ever at
the Brownsville/Haywood County Chamber of Commerce.
If you are not a member of our Chamber; please join
us today as we work hard to bring opportunities to
the people of Haywood County. Until next time.
Joe
Ing
Executive Director
Brownsville/Haywood County
Chamber of Commerce
Haywood County February unemployment remains the
same
Haywood County’s unemployment rate remained the same
in February as it was in January – 8.0 percent,
according to the Tennessee Department of Labor and
Workforce Development report released on March 27.
Five of the surrounding counties were up in
February, while only one other county remained the
same.
Crockett County’s unemployment rate went up from 8.4
percent in January to 8.6 in February. Lauderdale
County’s rate increased also to 8.8 percent.
Madison, Shelby and Tipton counties all had
increases in unemployment rates to 6.2, 5.9 and 6.7
percent respectively. The only other neighboring
county rate that remained the same in February was
Fayette County at 7.4 percent.
The
state’s rate increased from 4.9 percent in January
to 5.3 percent in February, however the national
unemployment rate decreased from 4.9 percent in
January to 4.8 percent in February.
County Justice Center a go
The
Haywood County Commission met Monday night, March
17, with a full courtroom and all 20 commissioners
in attendance. The big attraction – the pending
decision about the fate of a Haywood County Justice
Center.
Among those attending were some of the about 400 in
the community who filed a petition against selecting
the old Wal-Mart building or another site that was
under consideration on the bypass for the Justice
Center.
Commissioners made the decision, voting14-6 to build
a Criminal Justice Center in the old Wal-Mart
building at the corner of Dupree and East Main.
After planning sessions with each of the departments
that will be in the new center, County Mayor
Franklin Smith took a beginning construction price
of $11,495,512, presented by South Build
professionals, and added other fees and costs,
giving the county a total cost of $15,366,976. Then
the Mayor made a few adjustments and negotiated a
several hundred thousand dollar savings on the cost
of the building and property before reaching the
final price of $14,753,825. This figure comes in
under the $15,000,000 cap that the county
commissioners put on the project last fall.
The
proposed Justice Center will be built in the old
Wal-Mart building, and the jail will be built on the
south side of the building next to the strip mall.
Included in the purchase will be the first building
in the strip mall adjacent to the proposed jail
site. The jail will have a capacity of 128
prisoners, 104 for men and 24 of them for women.
There will also be room for expansion in the center.
Smith said that the architects and designers will
have the final drawing ready in September, put the
project out for bids and select sub-contractors in
October. The county has hired a construction manager
to be responsible for the project. The completion
date is expected to be some time in 2010. The final
price also includes funds to pay for changes that
will be made in the courthouse after the sheriff’s
department, the courts, judges and staff members and
the clerks move into the new center.
The
cost for putting the Justice Complex on the other
site that was still being considered – the
Baggett/Hatcher property on the bypass near the
County Shop - $16,500,000.
The
commissioners also approved an expenditure of
$472,474 to replace the east side of L. Z. Hurley
Memorial Stadium. These grandstands have been deemed
unsafe, and restoration of the existing structure is
not an option, according to engineers hired by
Haywood County Schools to inspect the stands. The
unsafe structure, built in the early 1950s, will be
replaced by a free-standing building that will house
the dressing rooms for both home and visiting teams
and metal bleachers. Director of Schools George
Chapman said that he won’t know what portion of the
cost he can pay out of schools money until he has
closed out his fiscal year. Once that is determined,
the rest of the cost will be paid by the county. It
was noted that time is of essence because the
project must be completed in time for the football
season that begins in mid-August.
In
other business, Mayor Smith asked commissioners to
approve the reappointment of four people to county
boards. Ervin Turner, James Ernest and Jimmy
Studdard were reappointed to the Emergency
Communications Board for a term of four years, and
John King was reappointed to the County Planning
Commission for four more years.
No
regular county commission meeting is planned in
April, but Mayor Smith there may be a called
meeting.
Haywood County residents eligible for disaster aid
Homeowners, renters and business owners in Haywood
County who suffered uninsured damage or loss as a
result of last month’s severe storms and tornadoes
are now eligible to apply for federal disaster
assistance.
A
mobile disaster recovery center will be visiting
Haywood County March 24-26 and will be located at
the Parks and Recreation building at 100 Boyd Avenue
in Brownsville. The Disaster Recovery Center will
open at noon on Monday, March 24, and close at 6
p.m. The Center will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
on Tuesday, March 25, and Wednesday, March 26.
The
assistance can include Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) grants to homeowners and renters to
help pay for temporary housing, home repairs and
other serious disaster-related expenses. The U.S.
Small Business Administration can make low-interest
disaster loans to homeowners, renters and businesses
of all sizes to cover losses not fully compensated
by insurance.
Haywood County is one of 18 counties now eligible
for the Individual Assistance program. April 7 is
the absolute deadline to apply.
Residents are encouraged to apply with FEMA by
calling 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) or
TTY 1-800- 462-7585 for the hearing or speech
impaired. Applicants can also go online to
www.fema.gov.
FEMA’s temporary housing assistance and grants for
public transportation expenses, medical and dental
expenses, and funeral and burial expenses do not
require individuals to apply for an SBA loan.
However, an applicant must complete an SBA loan
application to be eligible for assistance that
covers personal property, vehicle repair or
replacement, and moving and storage expenses.
All
FEMA assistance is subject to eligibility criteria
and may vary from disaster to disaster. SBA
eligibility criteria are applied to all applicants.
Applicants who do not qualify for an SBA loan are
reviewed for grant assistance in compliance with the
limits established by the state.
Inaugural Orange Carpet Tours; ECD to bring site
selectors to Haywood County
Governor Phil Bredesen and Matt Kisber, commissioner
of the Tennessee Department of Economic and
Community Development, have announced plans to bring
site selection consultants to five rural Tennessee
regions, including Haywood County, as part of the
inaugural Orange Carpet Tour program.
The
tours, patterned after traditional economic
development red carpet tours employed by many urban
chambers of commerce, were announced as part of the
Governor’s Rural Opportunity Initiative during the
Department’s annual Governor’s Conference in
September. The ROI strategy is a three-prong
approach to increase economic development efforts in
the state’s more rural areas. In addition to the
tours, it includes an enhanced series of tax
incentives for companies investing in rural
Tennessee and the Rural Opportunity Fund, a new
source of capital available to rural Tennessee
businesses.
“Each Orange Carpet Tour will be a valuable and
unique opportunity for participants to receive
critical feedback from some of the nation’s leading
site selection consultants,” said Governor Bredesen.
“It will also allow them to showcase their
communities for site selection professionals who
might not otherwise have occasion to visit
Tennessee’s more rural areas.”
The
project involves a two-day, intensive site selection
visit in which the communities will organize a
full-scale, detailed presentation to the
consultants. Upon conclusion, the consultants will
provide community leaders direct feedback, including
detailed information on strengths and weaknesses of
the area, especially as they relate to those
elements of most interest to relocating companies.
“This exercise is designed to provide communities a
direct critique of their economic development
product from some of the best experts in the
country,” said Commissioner Kisber. “The consultants
will visit areas of the state they wouldn’t normally
see and will also be working with communities to
develop short- and long-term strategies to address
any concerns raised in the process.
The
Department of Economic and Community Development
will be working with local leaders upon conclusion
of the tours to assist them in implementing
strategic recommendations that result from these
tours.
“Under Governor Bredesen’s leadership, we have had
tremendous success in creating the most
business-friendly climate in Tennessee’s history,”
Kisber said. “But most of the job growth has
occurred in our urban and suburban regions of the
state. It’s our goal to bring economic prosperity to
all Tennessee communities. This process is a very
innovative economic development tool and will assist
communities in marketing themselves, making them
even more attractive to companies looking to
relocate or expand.”
City board votes against annexation
When the Brownsville City Board of Mayor and
Aldermen met On March 12, Brownsville’s leaders
voted against an annexation of the county farm and
jail property into the city limits. County Mayor
Franklin Smith, at the request of some members of
the county commission, made the request at the
meeting.
Some county leaders have suggested that the best
place for the new Criminal Justice Complex is at the
site of the county farm – located about 3 miles east
of the present city limits on Highway 70 East.
Board members learned that the so-called tiny town
laws would make it difficult if not impossible to
grant the request – and so would the cost. The law,
according to city leaders, would require a
countywide referendum. And the cost – Mayor Webb
Banks says – would be between $6 and $8 million
dollars.
Pit bulls illegal in Brownsville
The
renovation of Brownsville’s pet ordinance passed a
final review of the city board of mayor and aldermen
when they voted unanimously on March 12 to approve
the ordinance.
The
new rules prohibit any new pit bull dogs in
Brownsville, and places new restrictions on owning
dogs already here.
Among the many new regulations, pit bull owners must
now register their dogs with the city, pay an annual
permit fee and show proof of insurance. Eventually,
when the current generation of pit bulls are gone –
it will be against the law to own one in
Brownsville.
Other business
Ordinance #855 also received no opposition during
the public hearing and was approved by the board on
the second reading. The ordinance amends the
municipal zoning ordinance replacing the current
flood hazard ordinance with a new one.
The
next city board meeting is scheduled for April 8 at
city hall.
Saved by the Belt
Lt.
Barry Diebold of the Brownsville Police Department
presented Cassandra Perry and her four children with
the 2007 Saved by the Belt award at the city board
meeting March 12. This award is presented by the
Brownsville Police Department to persons involved in
a serious crash, who were properly restrained with
seat belts that reduced the intensity of injury and
even possibly saved a life. Pictured are (from left,
front) Christian Perry and Kawanis Perry; (back row)
Lt. Barry Diebold, Police Chief Gil Kendrick,
Crystal Perry, Jasmine Perry, Cassandra Perry, and
City Mayor Webb Banks.
County-wide planning meeting convenes
Thomas Skehan with the West Tennessee Region office
of the State of Tennessee Economic and Community
Development was among those who addressed a
county-wide planning commission meeting Monday
night, March 11, at the Brownsville-Haywood County
Chamber of Commerce.
A
county-wide planning session was held Monday
evening, March 11, at the Brownsville-Haywood County
Chamber of Commerce.
Representatives from the Brownsville, Stanton, and
Haywood County planning commissions attended, along
with representatives from the State of Tennessee
Economic and Community Development department and
Askew Hargraves Harcourt and Associates (A2H), a
company composed of engineers, architects, and
planners.
Thomas Skehan, a community planner with the State of
Tennessee Economic and Community Development in the
West Tennessee Region, opened the meeting by
presenting a legislative update regarding current
and proposed legislation that directly affects
developmental projects.
Reverend Rick Rouse, chairman of the Haywood County
Planning Commission emphasized the role of the I-40
corridor in community planning and development. He
also urged the three planning commissions to work
together since all areas of the county stand to
benefit from development along the corridor. Stanton
would benefit directly from Exits 42 and 47;
Brownsville would benefit directly from Exit 56; and
the county would benefit from all the exits
including 52, 60, and 66.
Alderman Allan Sterbinsky spoke on behalf of the
Stanton Planning commission and updated the group on
their progress regarding downtown development.
Patrick Harcourt with A2H reported that the master
plan for downtown development in Stanton is about 60
percent complete and about 40 percent of the
completed master plan has been submitted to the
Economic Development Authority in Atlanta. Two of
the three required meetings have been held and the
third meeting is scheduled for next month. The
master plan should be finalized in about two months.
Alderman and Vice Mayor Joe Taylor spoke on behalf
of the City of Brownsville and updated the group on
the recently purchased property for a new industrial
park and stated that other space for industrial
development was also available in the property on
Anderson Avenue adjacent to PictSweet.
County Mayor Franklin Smith was the last person to
address the group. He reminded them of the
importance of working together for a brighter future
for the entire county.
He reported that the Megasite project is very much
alive. “We’re still getting bites,” he said. “I’m
not at liberty to share specifics with you now but I
hope to be in a few months.” He also reported that
he would be meeting with landowners within the next
few day to renegotiate land options within the
Megasite area.
Smith also emphasized the positive role of the I-40
corridor that must be considered in any county
planning efforts. According to some figures, about
80,000 vehicles travel I-40 each day. “Imagine the
impact upon our community if only 1,000 vehicles per
day stopped in Haywood County. “While we don’t have
the rooftops, we certainly have the traffic,” he
concluded, “and it’s about time that we utilize the
impact of the corridor.”