2018 Archives for County Government

  • Knox County Precinct #55
    Precinct Profile: Knox County #55
    Tucked away off Middlebrook Pike, a middle-income suburban district leans Republican but not by much. Just ask Marsha Blackburn.
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  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found #10: Graffiti Ghost
    A weekly mystery photo to test your knowledge of the local landscape.
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  • Tim Burchett
    2018 Revue: A Changing of the County Guard
    The turnover in county offices was expected, but some of the results were still surprising.
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  • Glenn Jacobs
    The Bully Pulpit
    Three months in, Glenn Jacobs is finding his feet -- and his voice -- as chief executive of Knox County.
    Read more.
  • Joint Education Committee
    Basic Facts
    A crash course in the state’s formula for school funding highlights challenges for Knox County.
    Read more.
  • Precinct Profile: Knox County #77
    Forks of the River is an area of fields and factories and Republicans.
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  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found #9: Think Tanks
    A weekly mystery photo to test your knowledge of the local landscape.
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  • Register of Deeds Nick McBride
    Return to Sender
    In a pinch, the state confiscated fees from county registers of deeds. County Commission wants the money back.
    Read more.
  • Community Health Assessment
    Keeping It Down
    Teen pregnancy rates have dropped dramatically in the past 25 years, and the Knox County Health Department is trying to make sure they continue falling.
    Read more.
  • State St. Marriott
    PILOT Projects Revisited
    A new state law sends some redevelopment tax incentives to County Commission for approval, even one for a project that’s almost finished.
    Read more.
  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found #8: Look Up
    A weekly mystery photo to test your knowledge of the local landscape.
    Read more.
  • Precinct Profile: Knox County #70W
    This suburban West Knox district between I-40 and Middlebrook Pike can serve as a bellwether for countywide election results.
    Read more.
  • finance graph
    Division of LIBOR
    A settlement from an international banking scandal nets Knox County at least $2.6 million.
    Read more.
  • Richie Beeler
    Commission Selects Beeler for 8th District
    Growth and infrastructure dominate the discussion in filling a vacancy for the rural East Knox sector. Five applicants made their case Wednesday.
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  • Precinct Profile: Knox County #39
    The Inskip neighborhood in North Knoxville leans a little Republican, but voters will opt for Democrats from time to time.
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  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found #7: Nessie in Knoxville
    A weekly mystery photo to test your knowledge of the local landscape.
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  • The Christmas tree in Krutch Park Extension.
    Precinct Profile: Knox County #6
    From high-rise condos to subsidized housing, the voters of the district that includes downtown have something in common: They prefer Democrats.
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  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found #6
    Knox Found again! Every week, we post a photo of something or some place in Knox County, and we ask you to identify it.
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  • Dave Wright
    Commissioner Wanted. Inquire Within.
    With the resignation of Dave Wright, County Commission prepares to fill a vacancy in its 8th District seat.
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  • Precinct Profile: Knox County #87
    Reliable Republicans dominate in the rolling farmland of this rural sector of East Knox County.
    Read more.
  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found #5
    Knox Found again! Every week, we post a photo of something or some place in Knox County, and we ask you to identify it.
    Read more.
  • All In on Midway
    Knox County leaders break ground at the once-controversial Midway Business Park in East Knox County.
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  • Sam Quinones
    No Easy Fix
    Sam Quinones, the bestselling author of ‘Dreamland,’ tells Knoxville leaders the solutions to the opioid epidemic begin with community.
    Read more.
  • Precinct Profile: Knox County #69N
    A suburban enclave where polo is possible, golf is assured and the politics are Republican.
    Read more.
  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found #4
    Knox Found again! Every week, we post a photo of something or some place in Knox County, and we ask you to identify it.
    Read more.
  • Lawyer Herb Moncier addresses Chancellor John Weaver.
    Unresolved Issues
    In a sometimes fractious meeting, County Commission confronts lingering questions and pension tensions.
    Read more.
  • Sidewalk plan
    County Cancels Sidewalk Plan
    Mayor Glenn Jacobs has scrapped a contract for a countywide sidewalk master plan, but other efforts to identify needs are underway.
    Read more.
  • BMX meeting 11-6-18
    Off Course
    County delays action on proposed BMX track again, pending cost and benefit analysis.
    Read more.
  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found #3: Public Art
    Knox Found again! Every week, we will post a photo of something or some place in Knox County, and we will ask you to identify it. The first person to send a correct answer to info@compassknox.com will be recognized and celebrated in the next day’s email newsletter and the next week’s Knox Found.
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  • Precinct Profile: Knox County #82
    Rutledge Pike serves as a transition from urban East Knoxville to rural East Knox County.
    Read more.
  • Election Day Arrives
    Heavy early voting in Knox County and across Tennessee makes election predictions a precarious proposition.
    Read more.
  • City County Building
    Case Dismissed
    A hearing Monday makes it official -- the county's pension lawsuit is done. What happens next?
    Read more.
  • Slipped Gears
    As cost estimates climb, Knox County takes a hard look at a proposed BMX track. South Knox representatives say the community wants what it was promised.
    Read more.
  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found #2
    A weekly mystery photo to test your knowledge of the local landscape.
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  • Stock Creek in South Knox County
    Stream Cleaning
    How Knox County works to keep failing septic systems from fouling the watersheds.
    Read more.
  • Lawyer Herb Moncier addresses Chancellor John Weaver.
    Attorney-Client Scrimmage
    A hearing in the county’s Byzantine pension lawsuit asks whether the law director can sue on his own behalf.
    Read more.
  • County Mayor Glenn Jacobs with lawyer John Valliant.
    Commission Sides With Mayor
    In a 7-1 vote, County Commission tells Law Director Bud Armstrong to drop his pension lawsuits -- but the final word will be up to the judge.
    Read more.
  • Back on the Table
    After months of no movement, Knox County takes another look at TVA’s East Tower as a possible home for the school system’s Central Office.
    Read more.
  • Behavioral Health Urgent Care Center
    Behavioral Health Center Off to Slow Start
    In its first 7 months, a jail diversion program to address mental health and addiction is running at low occupancy -- but shows some hopeful signs.
    Read more.
  • Knox Found logo
    Knox Found
    Introducing a new weekly photo contest! Every week, we will post a picture of something or some place in Knox County. Will you be this week's winner?
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  • Precinct Profile: Knox County #43
    West Haven leans slightly Republican, but its voters have an independent streak.
    Read more.
  • knox county detention facility
    Jail Rebate
    County Commission approves an unusual contract amendment with the firm that provides video visits for Knox County inmates.
    Read more.
  • Of Ethics and Inmates
    At tonight’s meeting, County Commission considers an amendment to the Sheriff’s video visitation contract and a vacancy on its Ethics Committee.
    Read more.
  • Creative Financing for Karns Valley Business Park
    The Development Corporation of Knox County is employing a TIF in a seldom-used fashion to help pay for a new business park in Karns.
    Read more.
  • A panel of criminal justice officials discusses the opioid epidemic.
    View From the Summit
    The city and county mayors convene community leaders to talk about a coordinated response to opioids and other drugs.
    Read more.
  • Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs with other county officials and lawyers outside Chancery Court.
    L’Etat, C’est Bud
    At a heated hearing, the Knox County Law Department says it can sue whomever it wants, whether the mayor likes it or not.
    Read more.
  • Rocky Hill Center
    Precinct Profile: Knox County #51
    From Nubbin Ridge to Rocky Hill, a district of single-family subdivisions and middle-class Republicans.
    Read more.
  • Glenn Jacobs press conference
    Resolution Denied
    Giving a win to Law Director Bud Armstrong, County Commission refuses to consider Mayor Glenn Jacobs’ proposed pension lawsuit settlement.
    Read more.
  • KUB property at Midway
    New Data on Midway
    MPC approves rezoning for KUB property adjacent to East Knox business park, which could be home to a new data center.
    Read more.
  • knox county detention facility
    Cell Blocked
    Sheriff Spangler shows the jail’s cramped quarters to county commissioners and makes his case for expansion.
    Read more.
  • Precinct #33: Becca's Attic
    Precinct Profile: Knox County #33
    An urban/suburban district includes a depopulated mall and leans Republican.
    Read more.
  • Sheriff's Office website
    In the Jailhouse Now
    Sheriff Tom Spangler invites County Commission to talk overcrowding at the county detention center.
    Read more.
  • Turkey Creek
    Precinct Profile: Knox County #66N
    Split between Knoxville and Farragut, the affluent suburban precinct is firmly Republican.
    Read more.
  • Glenn Jacobs press conference
    Who Is ‘Knox County’?
    A legal maneuver sets up a courtroom confrontation between the county mayor and law director.
    Read more.
  • Bethany Baptist Church
    Precinct Profile: Knox County #57
    In the county's northern reaches, a district full of goats, cows and pickup trucks leans heavily Republican.
    Read more.
  • Candoro Marble Works in Vestal
    Precinct Profile: Knox County #25
    Vestal is at the center of one of the city’s most politically mixed precincts.
    Read more.
  • City County Building
    Mayor’s Moves
    Glenn Jacobs makes another round of Knox County personnel shifts -- including hiring his chief of staff’s brother.
    Read more.
  • A.J. Hotel rendering
    Whither the A.J.?
    Another delay for a $6 million deal to redevelop the Andrew Johnson Building, as the new county mayor decides whether to go ahead with it.
    Read more.
  • Potluck organizers
    Potluck Politickin’
    A few snapshots from Sunday's legislative picnic.
    Read more.
  • Tooles Bend map
    Going Up Around the Bend
    The Metropolitan Planning Commission voted unanimously over neighbors' objections Thursday to approve a development on a peninsula off Tooles Bend Road.
    Read more.
  • Politicoachella poster
    Politicoachella
    A first-of-its-kind potluck brings together county, school, city and state officials to chew the fat.
    Read more.
  • Graph of drug-related deaths
    ‘More People Are Dying’
    Drug-related deaths in Knox and Anderson counties rose by 41 percent last year, from already record levels. A Forensic Center report details the toll.
    Read more.
  • Knox County Precinct #76, East Knox County
    Precinct Profile: Knox County #76
    A transitional East Knox County district between urban and rural where the entertainment is Cowboy Troy's and the votes are reliably Republican.
    Read more.
  • Energy consumption graph
    Cool Deal
    Energy efficiency may not be sexy, but it's cutting consumption and costs across Knox County Schools.
    Read more.
  • Darris Upton
    A New Mandate
    Darris Upton is feeling his way into his job as Knox County's first-ever diversity development manager. "This is a brand-new effort," he says.
    Read more.
  • Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs
    Jacobs’ Ladder
    From college athlete with a blown-out knee to wrestling superstar to chief executive of Knox County government, Glenn Jacobs has always believed in himself.
    Read more.
  • Knox County voting precinct #49
    Precinct Profile: Knox County #49
    Bearden Elementary School is the polling place for the 49th precinct. Situated near Homberg Place in the middle of what is traditionally considered Bearden, the school is where a surprisingly diverse segment of the population votes.
    Read more.
  • Michelle Carringer and Hugh Nystrom.
    Nystrom, Carringer Tapped to Lead Commission
    As expected, Webb School administrator and 4th District County Commissioner Hugh Nystrom was elected the new Commission chairman by his colleagues Tuesday evening. 2nd District Commissioner Michele Carringer was named vice chair.
    Read more.
  • Black Wednesday Main Assembly Room
    Black Wednesday: The Compass Primer
    The Black Wednesday scandal still reverberates through Knox County political culture, even though most of those involved are no longer in office.
    Read more.
  • Glenn Jacobs' swearing-in.
    Knox 2018: Knox County
    In Knox County politics, the stage was set for this year to be mostly an encore performance, with lots of familiar faces in slightly different roles.
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  • City County Building main floor
    How It Works: Knox County Government
    Knox County government has a mayor, a sheriff and a whole bunch of other independently elected officeholders. So who's in charge?
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