my two cents

I think it's good for the interests of Downtown to be represented in Knox County Government. While we hold on to our redundant two-government system here, we need to make sure that the whole county is fairly represented. Downtown Knoxville is well represented in City Government (as it should be) but very often District 1-A is overlooked or mishandled by the County Government.

The County has A LOT to do with Downtown. Let's use the County's State Street property as an example: the whole Baseball Stadium/Justice Center/Transit Center fiasco might have been averted if an educated pro-Downtown voice had been heard from within County Government. If someone who was really looking out for the interests of the center city had been in the 1-A seat, I might be able to walk down the street and catch a Smokies game this summer, ala the Chattanooga Lookouts stadium. Instead, our team is out in All-You-Can-Eat Pancake Buffet Sevier County.

The City, unfortunately, isn't the sole authority in the city. If it was, I think we'd have a stadium here as well as more projects like the Riviera. So while we have this flawed system, we need someone in County Government who understands Knoxville's central city and will work in harmony with the City Government. In my humble opinion, that someone should be John Spellings.

A Downtown Citizen Representing Downtown

A New Day in the District

As I sit here at one of my favorite haunts, Downtown Grill and Brewery, I think about how grateful I am to live in such a great, all-be-it small, community in downtown Knoxville. It's true that it's not huge, it's not the most cosmopolitan, and there are a number of problems we face in continuing the successes we have made in downtown, but there is no doubt that this area is heading in a great direction.

From Mechanicsville to Chilhowee Park, from the Fort to Gay St. there seems to be a steady progression of revitalization. Excitement about downtown and the central-city district is evident. We have a City Mayor who is committed to seeing success in District 1A, and the results are evident.

We all know the great things that are happening, but there have been problems as well, specifically with our county government. If you're reading this then you probably have been paying attention to the series of continual failures that is our County Commission. Not only have the Commissioners (many of them at least) failed to uphold the law (term limits), but they then had the gall to put in friends, relatives, and people who would owe them if they were put in place.

Listen, I'm not the smartest person in the world, I'm not the most knowledgeable about how to run a government, I don't have lots of money, and I'm not going to make a bunch of promises. What I will do is commit to promoting District 1A for what it is, a dynamic, exciting, and integral part of what makes Knoxville unique. I mean hey, we've got the Sunsphere.

Please, give me your consideration as we head to the polls this August. I'm fighting an uphill battle, but I think it's a battle worth fighting.

Write in Spellings, Write Out Nepotism