Archives for May 2006

The state department of Economic and Community Development is hosting a seminar tomorrow, hoping to match small, minority and women owned businesses with government and private sector contracts. Tomorrow’s event will be the first the department is holding in Nashville. Michelle Proctor is in charge of the so-called ‘match-making’ events, and says many small and […]

Citizens are having their say about what sort of site and design are needed for a new Nashville Convention Center. Earlier this year, a study group commissioned by Mayor Bill Purcell reported their opinion that the city needs a new, state-of-the-art facility big enough to compete for all but the largest conventions. The group estimates […]

Metro is seeking input about the three new nature centers scheduled to open May of next year. The centers will be built in Shelby Bottoms, Beaman, and Bells Bend parks as a part of Mayor Bill Purcell’s Master Plan for Parks and Greenways. Seventy-four-year-old Bill Coble has lived in Tennessee all his life and hopes […]

The 104th session of the General Assembly finished up its work this weekend, having passed major pieces of legislation, namely Cover Tennessee and the state’s 26-billion dollar budget in the final days. Both democrats and republicans are already focused running re-election campaigns for this year. House Minority Leader Bill Dunn said returning money to taxpayers […]

The end of session marathon at the state capitol that ended Saturday saw the defeat of many bills at the last minute, including a proposal to raise the minimum wage by one dollar. With November’s elections on the minds of lawmakers, partisan wrangling on the floor of the house nearly defeated the proposal, and the […]

For a decade, the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission has been requiring bartenders, waiters and waitresses to take a five-hour training class before they can legally serve alcohol in the state. Now the agency is handing out fines and keeping tabs on restaurant and bar workers, in order to crack down on over serving and underage drinking. Bartenders and servers, who make their money selling alcohol, find themselves in a tough spot. WPLN’s Jeremy Rush reports.

Travelers driving through Tennessee this Memorial Day weekend will save 7 cents on gas compared to the national average. Meal and lodging costs are also lower than the national average, putting Tennessee in the top ten least expensive travel destinations for 2006, according to AAA. AAA Spokesman Gregg Laskoski says Tennessee has an edge over […]

Tennessee’s 26-billion dollar budget received approval from the Senate today, after they concurred with the house version passed late yesterday. Governor Phil Bredesen’s budget coupled with 416-million dollars worth of appropriations emphasizes education, health care, and pay raises for state employees. Senate Minority Leader Jim Kyle says the 34-million in operating funds for higher education […]

Metro Council members got thier first peek at Mayor Bill Purcell’s 1-point-5 billion dollar budget this morning. While all departments had to present hypothetical budgets of ten-percent cuts, reductions weren’t made across the board. Metro Water Services were projecting a 22-percent rate increase this year to fund the current level of services, but Purcell told […]