Latest news with #DenzelGrant
Yahoo
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Turn Up Knox director announces he's leaving to focus on his city council campaign
Denzel Grant is resigning as executive director of the violence intervention organization Turn Up Knox to focus on his campaign for the Knoxville City Council's District 6 seat. Officially, Grant will step down from the violence intervention program as of Aug. 31. "This has always been part of a larger plan," Grant said in a news release. "When Turn Up Knox was founded in 2022, I made a three-year commitment to help get the organization off the ground and make a lasting impact. I always knew this day would come - not because the mission was complete, but because my service was meant to evolve." Grant told Knox News he was concerned about being perceived as having a conflict of interest if he ran while leading an organization that applies for money from the city. Since 2022, the city had paid Turn Up Knox almost $1 million for violence interruption work before cutting ties with the organization early this year. "I'm stepping down to focus on the campaign and, if elected, to champion this work from a policy level, without any conflict of interest," Grant said in the release. "Running for city council has been a dream of mine since I was a kid growing up in East Tennessee." Grant said that Turn Up Knox would continue to operate under a new director. The Turn Up Knox board of trustees is considering two candidates to replace him. Grant said "no matter what," the work to reduce gun violence in Knoxville will be ongoing. If Grant wins election to the city council, he and the organization could cross paths again to collaborate on reducing gun violence in Knoxville, he said. "District 6 deserves leadership that understands both the pain and the promise of neighborhoods. If I'm fortunate enough to earn the trust of the people, I will take that seat not just as a candidate, but as a neighbor, a veteran, and a son of East Knoxville who's lived the challenges and carries the solutions." After its split from Turn Up Knox, the city contracted with the California-based National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform in May for more than $500,000 to manage violence interruption work. District 6 includes downtown and adjacent neighborhoods to the east and west. The other candidates running for the District 6 seat are Charles Frazier, Stan Johnson, George "Cat Dad" Raudenbush and Lawrence "Man" Williams. Knoxville City Council primary elections are Aug. 26, with early voting open Aug. 6-21. The top two candidates in each district will advance to the general election on Nov. 4. This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Turn Up Knox director leaving to focus on his city council campaign Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Knoxville City Council candidates keep violence interruption front and center
Knoxville violence interruption workers and advocates are making sure their mission stays in the public eye by running for city council this year. The neighborhoods that have been harmed by youth gun violence are in District 6, where Councilmember Gwen McKenzie is term-limited. Candidates Denzel Grant, director of Turn Up Knox; Stan Johnson, executive director and co-founder of SEEED; and Lawrence Williams, a pastor, all work in the violence interruption space. they're joined in the race by Sam Brown, Charles Frazier and George Raudenbush III. Making room at the table: The race for District 6 is crowded, with six candidates stepping up to run for the open seat. Several have been advocates for the city council to pressure Mayor Indya Kincannon to allocate more money for local violence interruption groups. Why it matters: Three of the six candidates said they're running to uplift community voices in violence interruption spaces. Presumably, it'll be a prominent talking point during the primary campaign, especially after the Knoxville City Council allowed the mayor to pay the National Institute of Criminal Justice Reform to spearhead violence interruption here instead of local nonprofits. Why the election change will have an impact: The new election system endorsed by voters in 2024 means only residents of a district can vote in that district's elections. Whatever voters decide is a priority will dominate the race. The top two candidates in the primary election will move on to the Nov. 4 general election. Get prepared: There's still a few months until the August primary, and Knox News will have voter's guides out before early voting so you can study up. In the meantime, you can get familiar with the candidates in your district the list at If you don't know which district you live in, put your address in at For conservative Knox County, no news is good news on the budget. That's reflected in Mayor Glenn Jacobs' proposal for the coming year, where the main highlights were $5 million in increased funding for the Knox County Sheriff's Office and Jacobs supporting Knox County Schools' full budget request. Property tax rates will not change if it's approved as proposed. The increased funding for KCSO will pay for overtime, funding for officers' pensions, raises, increased contract costs, new body cameras, new tasers and new vehicles. Body camera funding increases: The budget increase for body cameras comes as KCSO's policy is under scrutiny. Knox News was first to report the SWAT team members who shot and killed the South-Doyle High School student were not wearing bodycams during the raid on 18-year-old Daevon Montez Saint-Germain's home. SWAT team members shot and killed Saint-Germain. Neighbors and elected officials put pressure on KCSO to require body cameras, which Spangler told community members he did a month after the Saint-Germain's killing. What's happening this week: The Knox County Commission will listen to public input on the budget 4 p.m. May 19 in the main assembly room of the City-County Building, 400 Main St. The Knox County Commission will vote on the budget at 5p.m. May 19 in the main assembly room of the City-County Building, 400 Main St. Want to study up? Knox County's budget is at Click the finance option under the government tab. The proposed budget is at the top of the page. The Knoxville City Council is analyzing its own rules as part of a process it hopes to repeat regularly, similar to how the county commission reviews its' rules routinely. Why its relevant: The public comment section of meetings will be reviewed later this month. It loomed large last year, as demonstrations at meetings arose periodically, and were an ongoing point of friction between council members and pro-Palestinian demonstrators who effectively used the council's rules to redirect the focus of meetings from agenda items to the Israel-Hamas War. Council members grew exasperated by meetings that stretched for hours. Demonstrators pointed out that if the council refused to address their concerns about what could be done locally to influence the war, they would use the legal means available to them to make their points. Setting up a debate: Council member Amelia Parker, who represents the whole city, was an advocate for expanded public forum during the demonstrations, while most other members were quiet or supported Kincannon's efforts to keep the meeting moving. Now, Parker is on the council committee that's set to examine how public comment works. Happening this week: Parker is hosting an information session to talk about public forum rules from 6:30-8 p.m. May 27 via Zoom. Registration is required at the QR code on Parker's Facebook page. A couple weeks ago, I mentioned an effort by Knox County Commissioner Andy Fox to add an extra layer to the county's applications for federal grants. Fox's proposal: The county's grants department applies for state and federal help and then seeks the commission's approval before accepting the money. Fox wants commissioners to know before the department even sends in the application. Commissioners would be able to approve or deny the application, and they could also postpone it (potentially past the deadline). Why it's back The commission voted to delay a vote on Fox's proposal, so now its on their agenda again for this month. Important date: The commission will meet at 5 p.m. April May 19 in the main assembly room of the City-County Building at 400 Main St. Here are some news highlights from last week: Tyler Whetstone, Myron Thompson and Kelly Puente broke the news the the Tennessee Highway Patrol is now partnering with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement through the federal agency's most aggressive program Keenan Thomas wrote about former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam's new role Hayden Dunbar highlighted the history of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center on its 50th anniversary Allison Kiehl explained the new "Junk Fees Rule" I caught up with former supporters of Knox County Trustee Justin Biggs and politicos to talk about his spending Allie Feinberg reports on politics for Knox News. Email her: and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @alliefeinberg. This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Knoxville City Council candidates keep violence interruption out front
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Turn Up Knox receives outside funding after city contract terminated
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A local violence prevention nonprofit has secured outside funding after the City of Knoxville decided to end its partnership with the organization. Turn Up Knox's contract with the city was canceled in February, and the nonprofit received over $100,000 of outstanding payments from the city in April. The city partnered with the organization in 2022 to launch violence prevention and intervention initiatives following an increase in gun violence. 18-year-old charged with attempted murder after shooting in Knoxville Executive Director Denzel Grant said the city funding helped build the organization from the ground up, but Turn Up Knox will continue to operate despite losing this funding. 'We do have our 501(c)(3) status now. Currently, we've received funding from the Gene [and Florence] Monday Foundation. The Appalachian Fund has been a great resource for us as well, and we're continuing to have conversations with other philanthropists who are out here supporting the work,' said Grant. Knoxville 311 launches 'Rocky Bot' AI tool launched to help residents 6 News conversation with Denzel Grant continues Sunday at 9:30 a.m. on Tennessee This Week. He and Bo Williams talk more about violence prevention in the community, and the Knoxville City Council District 6 race which Grant announced he was running. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Turn up Knox director to run for Knoxville City Council
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — As the 2025 Knoxville election nears, several people are beginning to announce their candidacy, including Denzel Grant. Grant is a familiar face in the community, and he is running for the District 6 City Council seat currently held by Gwen McKenzie. Grant has been in the headlines recently after the City of Knoxville decided to terminate its contract with Turn Up Knox. The organization is a violence prevention nonprofit focused on youth outreach efforts. Grant is the group's executive director, and he criticized the city's decision to terminate the contract. 50 years on from Fall of Saigon, East TN veterans look back on Vietnam War fallout As Grant makes his pitch to voters, he says his top priorities include violence prevention, affordable housing, and equity for East Knoxville. He has also appointed a treasurer for his campaign. Stan Johnson, the founder of SEEED, is also running for District 6. McKensie cannot run again due to being term limited to two terms. Knox County Register of Deeds Nick McBride launches bid to unseat Trustee Justin Biggs Districts 1, 2, 3 and 4 will also be on the ballot this year. The primary election is set for August 26, and the general election will take place on November 4. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
City of Knoxville refunds $112k to nonprofit after contract termination
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — The City of Knoxville agreed to reimburse a local nonprofit over $100,000 following a decision to terminate their contract for violence prevention and intervention initiatives. Knoxville will refund Turn Up Knox a total of $112,129.21 for services provided during August 2023, September 2024, and October 2024. The reimbursement request from the nonprofit said that the refund would allow the organization to continue youth outreach efforts through the summer. How dark is too dark for car window tint in Tennessee? The city partnered with the organization in 2022 to launch violence prevention and intervention initiatives following an increase in gun violence. Despite expressing satisfaction with the group's effort and helping it secure additional grant funding, the contract was terminated by the city in February. City officials cited management issues and inconsistent communication. Turn Up Knox Founder and Executive Director Denzel Grant criticized the decision to terminate the contract without input from City Council and pointed to recent decline in crime rates as evidence of the group's impact. 'In 2019, Black and Brown men and women made up 75% of the city's homicide victims. By 2024, that number had dropped to 39%,' Grant said in a statement. 'That's not a coincidence—that's the result of intentional, community-driven violence interruption.' ▶ See more top stories on In 2024, a Knoxville Police Department report showed that crime was down in nearly every category for 2024. This included a drop in homicides and non-fatal shootings. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
