Category: News

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation announced recently 50 grants to go out across the state, including a $175,000 matching grant to go to Manchester to develop soccer fields at the recently purchased Manchester Sports Park. The grant is a 50-50 match, meaning Manchester needed to come up with $175,000 for the application process. But the cash is coming from Park Partners, a local nonprofit, and the Coffee County Youth Soccer League – not the City of Manchester. Park Partners is putting up $120,000 towards the match and the soccer league is putting up $5,000. The other $50,000 will come in the form of in-kind labor matches. Director of Manchester Parks and Recreation Bonnie Gamble told WMSR last week that originally, soccer facilities were planned to go on land donated by the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival. But a wetlands issue put a snag in that process. “The wetlands meant not as much usable acreage as the Manchester Sports Park. Gamble said she hopes construction can begin by springtime.

Tullahoma Police are investigating the burning of an office trailer that was parked at a local business. According to a report by Officer Jim Tate, Wednesday morning Wallace Baker arrived at his business Baker Auto Sales located at the corner of Anderson Street and East Carroll and found that a temporary office trailer had been set fire. According to the officer’s report, the insulation had been burned off of the bottom of the trailer. The damage was listed at $1,500. Baker told the officer that the office trailer was parked at the south end of his car lot waiting to be moved to another job site.

A Warren County High School senior was killed in a single-vehicle crash Thursday night on Highway 30 just east of McMinnville. According to a report in the Southern Standard, the crash happened around 11:45 p.m. near the Shellsford Road intersection. The Tennessee Highway Patrol said Caitlyn Talley, 17, was a back-seat passenger in a four-door Chevy pickup truck. The driver of the truck, 23-year-old Cory Tate, reportedly failed to negotiate a curve and ran off the road. The pickup struck several trees and flipped. Talley was ejected and died at the scene. Tate and his younger brother, 20-year-old Dakota Tate, suffered non life-threatening injuries. The Tennessee Highway Patrol is investigating whether alcohol was a factor in the crash.

National Democratic groups have begun to target a Tennessee race rocked by revelations that the Republican incumbent, a doctor, once discussed abortion with a patient who was his mistress. The House Majority PAC, the campaign committee associated with House Democratic leaders, on Friday announced it is spending $100,000 on TV ads criticizing Rep. Scott DesJarlais. Meanwhile, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has added DesJarlais’ challenger, state Sen. Eric Stewart, to its “Red to Blue” list of 55 candidates to receive campaign cash, though it didn’t say how much. DesJarlais, a physician from southeastern Tennessee, doesn’t dispute the contents of a transcript of the recorded conversation, but says he used stark language to push the woman to admit she wasn’t pregnant. He claims there was no pregnancy and no abortion.

A request for a grant that would build the first phase of an access road from Ledford Mill Road to Tullahoma Regional Airport’s northwest section, where an industrial/airpark is being developed, should be in the Tennessee Department of Transportation’s hands soon. The Board of Mayor and Aldermen unanimously have given gave the go-ahead to make the request. Daryl Brady, Tullahoma Area Economic Development Corp. executive director, told the board that the information has been forwarded to the South Central Tennessee Development District, which specializes in grant applications, and will be sent on to TDOT to be considered. Brady said the process to get the stated funded road built could take 12 to 24 months, depending on the request back-load at the state level.

The Tullahoma Board of Mayor and Aldermen will consider an engineering package to go toward a major downtown rehabilitation project during the meeting tonight. The city has also been trying to improve its appearance to attract new residents and businesses. There are plans to refurbishing the downtown area with the State of Tennessee paying 80 percent of the construction costs. The city was notified last year that the state is going to fund the project. The board will consider paying $58,000 in engineering costs to design the construction phase that will include new sidewalks, building new concrete ramps and replacing landscaping with improved islands that will include trees and shrubs that will compliment the city’s greenway system and the downtown business district. New pedestrian lighting will be added along the sidewalks, and overhead electrical wires will be located underground. The work will extend on both sides of West Lincoln Street, from Jackson Street to Atlantic Street and extend around the corner on Atlantic to Grundy.

Last night at the Coffee County Administrative Plaza a debate was held between 47th District State Representative candidates incumbent Judd Matheny and challenger Scott Price. The event was put on by WMSR Radio to better inform voters on several issues. The debate featured discussion time on jobs, TennCare, education, tort reform and more.
Remember early voting is going on now; In Tullahoma voting is taking place at the C D Stamps Center from 9 a.m. to 4:30 pm Monday through Friday and from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturdays. In Manchester early votes may be cast at the Coffee County Election Commission office in the county office building. Voting there will be from 8 a.m. to 4:30 pm Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Early voting will continue through November 1 at both locations. Remember those casting ballots must have a photo ID, such IDs may be obtained from the Tennessee Department of Safety.

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A convicted violent sex offender was arrested Thursday in Franklin County and is being held in the Coffee County Jail under a $1 million bond.
Jason Blake Holt, 22, of Woodbury had been missing Oct. 6 when he allegedly cut off his GPS monitoring device while at Hullett’s Shell Station in Manchester while he was with he’s wife.
According to Manchester Police Investigator Billy Butler, Holt had been convicted of three counts of attempted rape of a child.
According to Butler, the couple was arrested in Franklin County by deputies there. They had been living in an area near the Walls of Jericho natural area, which is located near the Tennessee/Alabama state line.
“She convinced Holt to give up,” Butler stated. “They had been camping and trying to live off of the land, and not doing very well.”
The couple then turned themselves in.
After cutting the monitoring device off he and his wife Sara Holt fled the area and had been the object of a number of searches in the Coffee County area. He had been thought to be in the company of his wife’s children but they were not with the couple.
Butler along with Coffee County Sheriff’s Investigator Danny Ferrell have spent several hours tracking down leads in search of the Holts.
Jason Holt has been charged with violation of sex offender registration act and intentionally tampering or removing of a GPS Device. He is being held in the Coffee County Jail under the $1 million bond. He is to appear in Coffee County General Sessions Court Oct. 29.
Sara Holt was charged with permitting or facilitating the escape of a felon. Her bond was set at $5,000. Her court date Nov. 13.