LOCAL FOCUS

The Tennessee county-by-county report brings you news from each of the Volunteer State’s 95 counties every Sunday. Items are compiled by reporters and editors from across the USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee.

ANDERSON COUNTY: Oak Ridge and the American Museum of Science and Energy celebrate 75th anniversaries, the Oak Ridger reports. On March 19, 1949, 75 years ago, the four gates to the secret city of Oak Ridge opened to the public. The American Museum of Science and Energy opened on March 18, 1949. Both establishments held public celebration ceremonies.

BEDFORD COUNTY: The back of a Shelbyville building next to Bocelli’s and across from the Capri Theatre collapsed around lunchtime Feb. 23 on East Depot Street, the Shelbyville Times-gazette reported. Employees at Templeton Insurance nearby said they were heartbroken to see that happen to a beautiful building.

BENTON COUNTY: A summer camp for students countywide entering kindergarten through ninth grade for the 2024-25 school year will take place June 3-27 at Briarwood School. The focus will be on reading, math and STREAM fun. Contact Lori Cantrell at lori.cantrell@bcos.org.

BLEDSOE COUNTY: The Bledsoe County School System is working to provide a facility to equip and encourage future farmers, the Bledsonian-banner reports. Bids were awarded during a Board of Education meeting for an Agri-science Barn to help teach future farmers in the county.

BLOUNT COUNTY: The Blount County Sheriff’s Office plans to preserve the patrol cruiser of slain Deputy Greg Mccowan, the Daily Times reports. Officials plan to secure $70,000 to replace the cruiser in the fleet so Mccowan’s vehicle can be made into a memorial or used for training.

BRADLEY COUNTY: Amaero International plans to establish itself in the Spring Branch Industrial Park, having received a building permit in February, the Cleveland Daily Banner reports. The titanium alloy manufacturer announced in July 2023 it would be moving into Cleveland, with the possibility of bringing 105 jobs.

CAMPBELL COUNTY: Cove Lake State Park received new all-terrain wheelchairs. Governor Bill Lee has stated the goal of having the “most accessible park system in the nation.” The General Assembly appropriated $1.2 million for all-terrain wheelchairs to be placed in the parks.

CANNON COUNTY: Cannon County High School’s website recently recognized Jake Rogers for winning a “Good Citizen Award.”

CARROLL COUNTY: Approximately 200 people gathered in front of The Dixie to celebrate the second annual Designing Women Curated Market. The event highlighted female-owned businesses across Tennessee.

CARTER COUNTY: Roan Mountain Utility will receive $58,353 from the Infrastructure Planning Grants Program. The IPG Program aims to assist communities and utility districts with long-term planning for water and sewer systems.

CHEATHAM COUNTY: Locker’s Southern View Luxury Motorcoach Resort, the region’s first luxury motorcoach resort, is expected to create more than 30 jobs, generate $60 million in economic development and include nearly 200 deeded ownership lots, the Cheatham County Exchange reports.

CHESTER COUNTY: Zach Hannis of Casey Realtors and Dustin Warren were the winners in the Chester County Independent’s 2024 Big Game contest. Warren is a maintenance technician at Lonnie Cobb Ford.

CLAIBORNE COUNTY: The Claiborne County Sheriff’s Office executed a narcotics search in Speedwell, the Claiborne Progress reports. Detectives recovered methamphetamine, marijuana, Gabapentin and Suboxone pills, scales, repackaging bags, a large amount of currency, and other paraphernalia.

CLAY COUNTY: The March 5 election in Tennessee, in which Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, and Democratic candidate Joe Biden cruised to primary wins, saw voter turnout in Clay County of just over 13%, the Citizen-statesman reports.

COCKE COUNTY: Gov. Bill Lee and Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Stuart Mcwhorter have announced $11 million in Infrastructure Planning Grants to assist communities and utility districts with long-term planning for water and sewer systems. The city of Newport will receive $339,150.

COFFEE COUNTY: Coffee County Industrial Board Executive Director Stephen Crook left his position with the county to take a job with the state, the Manchester Times reports. Crooke will be a project manager with the Tennessee Department of Economic Development.

CROCKETT COUNTY: Emergency crews in Crockett County responded to a vehicle crash with entrapment. According to a social media post by the Crockett County Sheriff’s Department, multiple agencies responded to the crash at Highway 412 and Crossroads Road. Air Evac was called from Jackson for a critical patient.

CUMBERLAND COUNTY: Tennessee State Parks announced the availability of new all-terrain wheelchairs at seven state parks, including Cumberland Mountain State Park. The installment will enhance accessibility for visitors and bring the total number of parks with the wheelchairs to 12.

DAVIDSON COUNTY: In a rare bipartisan move, Republican and Democratic representatives filed joint legislation to move investigations and resolution of harassment complaints outside of the legislature and to the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office. The bill comes after several recent sexual harassment complaints.

DECATUR COUNTY: Decatur County Schools recently participated in National School Breakfast Week. The theme was “Surf’s Up with School Breakfast.” Each cafeteria decorated with theme posters, pictures and students got involved and colored some pictures to display.

DEKALB COUNTY: The Dekalb County High School website recently recognized two student athletes with college opportunities: Will Farris for signing to play football at Cumberland University and Kaleb Spears to run track for Gilligan University.

DICKSON COUNTY: Rep. Jody Barrett, R-dickson, proposed a bill to expand the penalty for those intentionally blocking roads, the Dickson Post reports. The bill would elevate the current punishment from a Class A misdemeanor to a Class D felony.

DYER COUNTY: Behind a strong effort on both ends of the floor, Dyersburg High School beat defending Class 3A state champion Jackson South Side, 59-47, in the TSSAA girls basketball state tournament quarterfinals.

FAYETTE COUNTY: The Tennessee Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that left one man dead on I-40 near the Shelby/fayette County line. The crash took place just west of the Hickory Withe Road. THP says two vehicles were involved.

FENTRESS COUNTY: A Jamestown Police officer who shot an armed man in January will not face charges, WATE reports, citing a decision by

Eighth Judicial District Attorney General Jared Effler. The TBI investigated the Jan. 28 shooting.

FRANKLIN COUNTY: The Tennessee Department of Education has named Cowan, Sewanee and North Lake Elementary schools as reward schools. This distinction shows significant emphasis on high levels of performance or improvement of performance of students’ success from the year prior.

GIBSON COUNTY: The Gibson County Leadership Alumni will meet April 18 at the Greater Gibson County Chamber of Commerce, 110 South College Street, Suite 102.

GILES COUNTY: The University of Tennessee Southern in Pulaski has received more than $4 million aimed at helping enhance safety and security on the college’s main and east campuses, the Pulaski Citizen reported. The funding comes after a detailed needs assessment in November.

GRAINGER COUNTY: Bean Station Utility District will receive $190,000 to help with long-term planning. Governor Bill Lee and Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Stuart Mcwhorter recently announced a total of $11 million in Infrastructure Planning Grants for communities and utilities.

GREENE COUNTY: Tonya Carlton seeks the heirs of an antique family bible in Greene County, the Greeneville Sun reports. The births and deaths of the White family were recorded, and Clara Mable, Edgar G., Margaret, and Selena White are written inside. The copyright date of the bible is 1892. Carlton can be reached at tcarlton087@gmail.com.

GRUNDY COUNTY: The dispute over Mack Lake is on hold after a judge postponed a hearing in the lawsuit between neighbors, the Grundy County Herald reports. Lake owners want to drain the lake to make repairs to a dam, while neighbors fear the work will have a negative impact on the area.

HAMBLEN COUNTY: Rich’s Products donated 200 birthday cakes for children for Food on Foot, the Citizen Tribune reports. Food on Foot delivers approximately 5,000 food bags every month to schools in Hamblen County for distribution so children will have ready-to-eat food over the weekend when school is not in session.

HAMILTON COUNTY: The U.S. Department of Transportation announced the City of Chattanooga has earned $4 million in two federal grants, the Chattanoogan reports. The funds will help the city improve pedestrian safety and connect communities.

HANCOCK COUNTY: The Sneedville FFA Agriculture Mechanics Team placed first in the East Tennessee Region at Grainger County High School. Jackson Stapleton, Ethan Cantwell, Matthew Smith and Mckynzie Roberts placed in various individual categories and will compete for a State Title on April 26 at Tennessee State University.

HARDEMAN COUNTY: Middleton High School announced its Top 10 seniors for the class of 2024. Recognized (in order of rank) were Madison Doyle, Caitley Mott, Brianna Smith, Gage Nixon, Kayleigh Maxwell, Lance Roberts, Julie Townsend, Hannah Riffle, Alexus Walker and Caden Bizzell.

HARDIN COUNTY: The Hardin County Library is offering evening GED/ HISET classes in partnership with

Southwest Tennessee Adult Education, according to a post on the library’s Facebook page.

HAWKINS COUNTY: Warriors’ Path State Park, along with other Tennessee State Parks, received new all-terrain wheelchairs. All-terrain wheelchairs are designed to navigate a wide range of terrains. The chairs are free to the public and available for both children and adults.

HAYWOOD COUNTY: A unique convention drew pop culture and comic fans to the College Hill Complex in Brownsville. The Haywood Comic Convention was a two-day event featuring appearances and panels by various actors, authors, and cosplayers.

HENDERSON COUNTY: A person narrowly escaped a house fire after being awakened by a passer-by. The Henderson County Fire Department says the fire started on Pleasant Hill Road Saturday afternoon.

HENRY COUNTY: The Henry County Medical Center held its “Dining Out with Senior Stars.” Members of the Senior Stars Club as well as individuals 55 and older attended the event.

HICKMAN COUNTY: Late fees on delinquent solid waste accounts will be waived as part of a two-week amnesty period, beginning April 1, the Hickman County Times reports. The amnesty period will last until April 15, as the county seeks to collect $1.1 million in unpaid residential fees.

HOUSTON COUNTY: The Houston County Board of Education met in a regular session to review the eight candidates up for the soon-to-bevacant director of schools position and schedule interviews with the finalists, the Houston County Herald reports.

HUMPHREYS COUNTY: The Waverly Board of Mayor and Aldermen congratulated Police Chief Grant Gillespie on the Waverly Police Department having received accreditation from the state for the fourth time, the News Democrat reports.

JACKSON COUNTY: Changes are underway for a number of streets in Gainesboro. The town’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved sidewalk updates and voted to make Quarles Avenue and Maple Avenue both one-way streets, the Jackson County Sentinel reports.

JEFFERSON COUNTY: The New Market Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue team’s annual Easter parade and egg hunt is March 30. The parade will line up at 3:30 p.m. at the old Andrew Johnson Highway at

Lost Creek Golf Club. The egg hunt will follow at the roadside park beside the fire department.

JOHNSON COUNTY: Only 20% of registered voters in Johnson County cast ballots in the March 5 presidential primary, but Republican votes were up 48% over 2020. Democratic votes, by contrast, were down 77%. While President Joe Biden ran unopposed, an analysis by The Tomahawk newspaper cited “an overall lack of enthusiasm among Democrats.”

KNOX COUNTY: The Hazen Historical Museum Foundation got an $8,400 grant to install interpretive signage at Bethel Cemetery in East Knoxville, the final resting place of several hundred Confederate and Union soldiers. The Tennessee Wars Commission fund supports preservation of sites related to the French