Lewis County Herald - Serving Hohenwald, Lewis County Tennessee Since 1898

by Amanda Curtis,

Staff Reporter

The Lewis County Commission met on January 23 to discuss the following items.

All minutes from the last meeting were approved by all, and the floor opened to anyone in the audience wanting to address the board.

A group of community members came before the board regarding the rollout of on-house wireless meters by MLEC. The concern is regarding the dangers of aggressive electronic frequencies. 20 year citizen, Mrs. Rosemary, told the story of two friends who became cancerous after having been exposed to the meters. She pleas to, “not return to the old days, but at least slow down.” Others’ concerns include the lack of safety tests, non-stop surveillance, algorithms and the outcome of analyzed data. Community member, Jeannie, said,”It’s like having a search of your perimeter everyday without a search warrant.” Peters Road resident, Ron, states, “we don’t understand an assault from these invisible energies, we only understand guns and bombs and such.” He then provided a pack with 271 official reports of negative health outcomes due to the result of using the smart meters. A. Connor, mother of two small children, is renting a home here with her family, “but with MLEC not even allowing an opt out, we’re now having to look elsewhere to plant our roots.”

The concerned citizens brought thousands of pages, hundreds of studies that speak about the issues of the wireless smart meters, both health and surveillance. A resolution, previously signed by some of the committee members, was presented stating, “Lewis County will not accept a 5G network until adequate research has been done.” “And, we’re going to hold you to that,” a citizen said. When asked how to follow up with their research and decision, Lewis County Mayor advised the group to come to the committee meeting on February 6th.

In other business, it was reported that we currently have 89 inmates with over 40 of them housed in other facilities where we are paying $20,000 to house them.

A presentation by the South Central Tourism Agency informed the board of changes within the organization as well as served as an introduction. “Our focus is on working with Destination Marketing Organizations in counties to make sure we are helping small businesses take advantage of the opportunities that tourism brings to the area, as tourism is the number two largest industry in Tennessee.

During the quarterly report of the Mayor, it was made known that the general fund currently sits at $2,984,658. Mayor Keltner also presented Joyce Holt, who retired from the Highway Department, with a plaque of appreciation for her 26 years of service. “Let it be known that Joyce Holt has run probably the most efficient highway department there is,” said Mr. Peery.

During the Director of Schools report, Dr. Tracy McAbee reported the positive feedback regarding the keyless entries installed at two of the four education locations. He also praised the work of Trina Weaks getting grants for both middle and high schools. The $500,000 middle school grant will go toward getting AG in the school system. The $1,000,000 high school grant will make way for added courses such as welding, cosmetology, criminal justice and home economics, among others.

Danny Atkinson praised Dr. McAbee for his swift work and attention to putting the safety of the children first as he gave the report of the EMA Director, “Thank the Lord, you’re prioritizing the safety of our schools. We’ve been hollering it for 20 years.” In addition to keyless entries, the EMA office is also working toward the safety of our schools. “With this month’s roll out of the new security system,” said Atkinson, “we are now able to monitor the school halls 24/7 from inside the E911 building.

The quarterly report of the Library and Archives began with librarian Crystal Nash thanking the commission for getting the heater installed. She proceeded with updates made to the facility that include a solar charging bench, parking lot updates and new free resources. “We have partnered with Blue Cross Blue Shield and will now have a free library box outside filled with health and wellness information. The library has also added an access out for vans for ada patrons. The total of the build project currently sits at $377,000 with several fundraisers planned for the year.

Don Barber gave the report of the Park Preservation board, making the commission aware of the shape of areas of the park. He then shared a vision for the park, providing ways to expand, yet save money. He invited the commission to make a trip to see the areas. The commissioners asked about vandalism to which Mr. Barber replied, “they love to stop up the toilets at the Community Building and destroy fire extinguishers. The cameras have helped tremendously, and we have caught a lot of the ones doing this. Most are young teenagers.”

The commission voted to switch the lighting in the War Memorial Building to LED. The only two rooms it will not include are HCTEC and DCS/DHS.

A memorandum of understanding between the Lewis County Government and the High Forest Humane Society was approved by all and puts in writing the verbal agreement between the two. Todd Montgomery was in attendance to answer questions on behalf of the Humane Society.