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Volume 107, Number 36, Wednesday, January 25, 2012
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We’re gonna rebuild...bigger, better By Jeff Whitten Head News Writer
The Saw Meal will be re-opening in a couple of months in the Old Butcher Shop location in Adamsville, according to co-owner Michelle Geiger. Geiger told the Independent Appeal last Monday they closed on the property last Thursday. She said that they had a lot of work to do, but hope to reopen the restaurant by April. She said last Thursday that her insurance company, Traveler’s had concluded its investigation the week before Christmas and concluded the cause of the Nov. 28 fire that destroyed the restaurant and damaged other businesses in downtown Adamsville was undetermined. This was because someone pushed things up in a pile and compromised the fire scene. The rest of downtown is already on the road to recovery, according to Adamsville Mayor David Leckner and City Administrator Steve Simon. “Each one of those spots...as far as rebuilding, that’s gonna be up to the landowner. What we’re hearing from them is they’re gonna rebuild and they’re gonna come back in those same spots,” Simon told the Independent Appeal Jan. 13.” Commerce Street was blocked and was preventing business owners from getting their deliveries. Chief of Police Bill McCall worked with the insurance companies to get the street cleaned up. The burned out buildings have become an eyesore and a source of smell. However, they are bracketed by two restaurants that are still suc-
cessful Simon said. Simon noted that the day after the Saw Meal burned; Ma Ma Fia’s had a grand opening increasing their capacity from 20 to 60 people. “Their business seemed to be good,” Simon said. Simon pointed out that Pappy’s Pizza opened around the first of the year at Ma Ma Fia’s old location. “We didn’t lose, we actually gained 60 places to eat,” Simon said. He said that he was unsure of the economic impact, but that it has not shown up in sales tax collections. “It’s hard to know where the balance is on that. It’ll probably be a couple of months from now in sales tax before we figure that effect. There’s gonna be some effect, but right now we can’t measure it,” Simon said. He said he was thankful because the damage to downtown could have been much worse. “They responded and responded very quickly from our neighbors from east to west and to the north…They responded in very high numbers, lots and lots of people and they also brought their tanker trucks, which greatly aided the situation. It could have been a lot worse. Without the response of all the different volunteers and all our neighbors, we could have lost our downtown area, entirely,” Leckner said. The prospects for rebuilding downtown are attributed not only to the firefighters, but to the business owners themselves.
See REBUILD, 4A
School fees deemed not mandatory By Megan Smith Staff Writers
Staff Photo by Christen Coulon
What remains of the Saw Meal Restaurant after a December 2011 fire. Adamsville has already taken steps to restore the downtown to its former glory.
Aqua Glass closes Sheriff’s Dept. recovers stolen guns Oregon plant By Jeff Whitten Head News Writer
The McNairy County Sheriff’s Department recovered four guns from a previous robbery. The three shotguns and one rifle were found in 2 ponds in the Mt. Vinson community, according to Investigator Robert Hitchborn. Found were a doublebarreled shotgun, a .22 rifle, a .12 gauge Remington Model 58, and a .20 gauge single shot New England Firearms shotgun, according
By Jeff Whitten Head News Writer
An Aqua Glass plant in Klamath Falls, Ore will close on March 30, according to various media reports. The plant employs 51 people. The facility makes bathroom and shower products, as does the Adamsville plant, which has seen several rounds of layoffs in the wake of the slow housing market. Kathleen Vokes, director of communications for Masco Corporation, cited tough economic conditions and the slow housing market over the past three to five years as reasons for the decision. This is an especially difficult decision because of the quality of the workforce, but necessary due to economic conditions,” said Vokes. Vokes declined to comment on whether the Adamsville plant will close. The Klamath Falls plant opened in 1994. Aqua Glass makes bathtubs and shower accessories.
Submitted Photo
John Pinto of ISR in Savannah uses an unmanned submarine to assist in the recovery of stolen weapons.
Patrons bid farewell to downtown cafe By Christen Coulon Editor
The City of Selmer lost one of its favorite downtown eateries last Saturday when the Village Coffee House, located at 141 W. Court Avenue, closed its doors for good. The coffee house, which was owned by Rose Creek Village and managed by Paul and Julia Hobbs, offered patrons a wide selection of gourmet coffees, sandwiches, desserts and more. Paul Hobbs said that when the business opened in December 2009 that he knew it would be a challenge to make it work. “We were aware it was going to be tough to be supported in a town of this size,” Hobbs said.
Hobbs said that he was glad to have been able to work in Selmer and said it is a great town. Despite the many loyal customers, he said there simply was not enough business to keep the doors open. Last Friday, as word got out that the coffee house was closing, customers flocked to the business to get one last serving of their favorite dish before it was too late. Hobbs said that he could not rule out another business venture in Selmer in the future if given the opportunity, but said that it was too early to discuss any specifics just yet. “I just want to sincerely thank everyone who supported us these last two years,” Hobbs said. “We’ve had a great time serving our customers and taking care of them.”
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to Sheriff Guy Buck. Buck said that a confidential informant told him where the guns were. He said that he asked the Hardin County Fire Department to send divers over, but that the water temperature was 45 degrees. A submersible vehicle from ISR proved to be the solution. This allowed the divers to stay in the water a much shorter time. Buck was familiar with ISR from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles when he served in Afghanistan. ISR brought in $100,000 in equipment. “We appreciate the cooperation of the Hardin County Fire Department and their professionalism. We were tickled to death to get them back,” Buck said.
Selmer mayor nixes Gilbert’s appointment By Christen Coulon Editor
To parents of school-aged children, the occasional school fee is no stranger, but according to a Tennessee Board of Education ruling, it should be. According to the State Board of Education Rules, mandatory fees are not acceptable in public schools in the state of Tennessee. In 2009, the Tennessee Board of Education responded to a case that originated in Williamson County. According to the letter sent out to Williamson County parents after the ruling, the state law regarding school fees reads, “The school shall not require any student to pay a fee to the school for any purpose, except as authorized by the board of education, and no fees shall be required of any student as a condition to attending the public school, or using its equipment while receiving educational training.” The ruling defined school fees as any fees for activities occurring during school hours including field trips, fees for activities and supplies needed for courses offered for grade or credit, including marching band and interscholastic athletics, fees or tuition for summer courses, graduation fees, fees for a copy of a student record, and refundable security deposits for the use of school properties for courses offered for credit or grade. The ruling reads, “School systems may request but not require payment of school fees. No fees may be required of any student, regardless of financial status (including eligibility for free or reduced price lunch), as a condition of attending public schools or using its equipment while receiving educational training. Before fees may be requested, they must be authorized by the board of education.” Assistant Director of Schools Brian Jackson said that no fees were charged for tuition except to students coming from another district. Such a charge was deemed acceptable in the ruling. However, he said students could be charged for other supplies needed in class if these supplies were consumables. “There may be fees for activity fees or supply fees or something like that that could be charged,” Jackson said. Jackson said that these fees would be waived for students who qualified for free or reduced lunch. However, other students could be prevented from participating in activities if the fees are not paid. “If it’s something that’s not related to classwork then possibly so, if it’s just some type of extracurricular,” Jackson said. Jackson said that students would be expected to pay fees for workbooks and lab activities, but that they were not necessarily required to do so. “Now as far as being required to do so, mandatory to do so, there’s no bases for that. But we would have the expectation that everybody shared the load in buying what’s necessary for those consumables that’s going to help their particular child,” he said. Jackson said that such fees would be requested more than mandatory, but he was unclear as to whether or not they would be clearly labeled as such. “I don’t know that there’s a distinction made that this is mandatory, this is requested. If a student is in my class, and I’m a science teacher, and we’re going to have an equipment fee, then I’m just going to say the equipment fee for this class is five dollars,” Jackson said. Jackson encouraged anyone who had questions about such fees to contact their school’s principal. Selmer Elementary Principal Carolyn Giesler said that fees are charged for things like the planner that every student receives and field trips students go on. “I don’t know that we call it mandatory. We just say it is not waived,” Giesler said. Giesler said that students are not prevented from participating in any school activities if they fail to pay the fees. “We have lot’s of students that do not pay for it. We don’t publicize it because obviously the school has to pay for it, and we don’t have the money to pay for everybody,” Giesler said.
Last Friday, Mayor David Robinson moved to veto the Selmer Board of Aldermen’s appointment of Michael Gilbert as a part-time police officer on a 90-day probationary basis for the city. The veto blocks the board’s Jan. 10 vote to hire Gilbert as an officer and claims that the hiring did not adhere to the established policies of the Town of Selmer. Robinson cited four reasons for the action in a prepared statement officially vetoing the board’s vote. The veto claims that hiring policy to select officers using a selection committee, after interviews had been conducted had not been followed and said that this procedure was in place to insure a fair and balanced approach to the hiring process, as well as identify the most qualified candidate for selection. The Mayor also cited the department’s need to maintain standards in hiring policies that will give the citizens of Selmer full confidence in their police force. Robinson is asking the board to allow the adopted hiring process to proceed as intended through documented administrative channels. He said that the hiring process used for new officers is also used for the utility and fire departments, and it allows for a fair and balanced decision on each candidate that takes politics out of the decision. “We just need to follow the process that the board established in 2005,” Robinson said. “I am hoping that the aldermen see it that way and understand that maybe the easiest resolution is to let the process take place.” Robinson said that he hopes this issue will come to an amicable resolution. This veto is the latest development in a political fray between the mayor and the board over the power to hire new officers. Previously, the board’s May 10, 2011 attempt to Bobcat swipe two from hire Gilbert was vetoed by Robinson who said at the
INSIDE THIS WEEK
Staff Photo by Christen Coulon
The Village Coffee House in Selmer closed its doors for good last Saturday.
See VETO, 6A
MCHS SWEEPS ADAMSVILLE
CIRCUS COMES TO SELMER
county rival PAGE 1B
The Stardust Circus plans performance Tuesday PAGE 2A
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