Latest news with #KnoxvilleCityCouncil
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
New speed cameras coming to Knoxville school zones following City Council approval
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — The Knoxville City Council approved several agenda items Tuesday night by either a unanimous or 7-1 vote. Among the items passed were two items addressing speed and noise cameras in school zones. The City of Knoxville aims to eliminating traffic fatalities on city roads by 2040, that plan is called 'Vision Zero.' Two items on Tuesday's agenda, one to acquire the products and services needs, the other to authorize the use of these automated enforcement systems were passed. They are two key pieces that city officials hope will help them reach their goal. 2025-26 Knoxville budget approved 7 to 1 by city council 'It's incredibly important. This was an item that was identified in our Vision Zero action plan. In the action plan, it identified 30 different action items,' Vision Zero Coordinator Cody Gentry said. 'Included in that 30 action items was to expand our automated enforcement program and that's exactly what we have done.' Gentry said speeding is one of the main causes of fatal and injury crashes. The new speed cameras will hopefully help reduce speeding in school zones. 'In these school zones, that's where we have a lot of our vulnerable users, that's where we have kids walking to school, that's where we have a lot of pedestrian activity,' Gentry explained. 'We want, not only those students that are outside of the vehicles, but we want people driving through the school zones, we want the drivers and pedestrians, maybe parents, we want all of those users to be safe.' Councilwoman Gwen Mckenzie echoed Gentry's thoughts. 'Safety in schools and for our children is paramount,' McKenzie said. 'We see speeding is really a bad habit that a lot of people have, so anything we can do to cut down on potential accidents happening and keeping our students safe, we're all about it.' Second Harvest continues to feel federal cuts impact ahead of summer months The implantation of the school zone speed and noise camera will happen in stages. The noise cameras will be placed first and the hope is to have some of the speed cameras up in a few areas by this Fall. This will all be prioritized based on traffic and speed studies in those areas. One other item on the agenda that drew a long discussion was the Magnolia Avenue and Chilhowee Park redevelopment plan. The item passed 7-1, McKenzie said this redevelopment will bring life back to a once vibrant area. 'There's been a lot of disinvestment in that part of East Knoxville for quite some time now, over a decade,' McKenzie said. 'This particular resolution is critical to be able to make sure that happens and happens in a very uniform and structural way where the community has input as well.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Knoxville City Council approves violence reduction contract with California-based group
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Working on lowering violence was a big topic during Tuesday night's Knoxville City Council meeting. With a large crowd looking on, Knoxville City Council voted to extend a contract with the California-based National Institute of Criminal Justice Reform. The proposal passed 6-3. Those in favor of the proposal said the work is important and there needs to be a collaborative effort to continue reducing violent crime in the city. Meanwhile, those against the contract said it could take away from the hard work local organizations have already put in. Knox County Trustee Justin Biggs releases statement amid state investigation 'It didn't have any support for the already existing efforts in the city,' said Rashaad Woods, Tennessee Director of ReNOUNce DeNOUNce Gang Intervention Program. 'Right now, you have organizations that are sacrificing, risking their life to be established in these communities.' The City of Knoxville first entered into a contract with the National Institute of Criminal Justice Reform in 2023. In that time, violent crime in the city has seen a continued downward trend. Terry Walker-Smith has lost two children to violent crime and says there's more to prevention than work in the street. 'I've had some of the training with NICJR, so to further that training for others as well as myself, to be able to help others and right now I do help others,' Walker-Smith said. 'Prevention is more than just on the ground. I've done prevention on a national level in Washington and at the state level.' For Woods, every organization like his has the same end goal but may have different ways to get there. He said their work is crucial for early intervention, while NICJR focuses mainly on ages 20-32. 'You can't just focus on that demographic because you're leaving that youth demographic out,' Woods said. 'Those individuals that are getting caught with guns at 14, 15 and 16, you want to make sure that you interact with them before they actually go out and commit a crime before they get 18 and 19, you don't want to leave them out. By saying that's the best model, you're leaving a gap. You're putting a Band-Aid over the current problem but you're leaving the wound to fester.' Tennessee State Veterinarian issues alert for flesh-eating parasite There was also heavy discussion among councilmembers. Councilwoman Amelia Parker voiced her displeasure with how this all came about. 'I'm very frustrated,' Parker stated. 'In my opinion, based on what we heard last night, this contract is insufficient to address the issues that we need addressing.' Councilwoman Gwen McKenzie said she wants there to be a time where all the organizations can come together to work on their common goal. 'I am going to stay encouraged and prayerful that our local organizations can come back together in that middle ground and have collaborative partnerships,' McKenzie said. 'I'm hopeful that each organization will come back to the table.' The discussion on this topic lasted just over two hours before the vote for approval was made. There were two other votes, one to deny the contract and another to postpone the vote until the next City Council meeting, both failed. ▶ See more top stories on We're told with the approval vote, the NICJR will add six positions in Knoxville. The contract is slated to cost the city $519,750 bringing the total payment to the institute to more than $800,000. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Contract will decide who handles Knoxville violence interruption: An outside agency or local groups
The National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform plans to hire local violence interruption experts if the Knoxville City Council hires the agency to help curb crime. The agency, if hired, also intends to establish an advisory board of local leaders and stakeholders to provide feedback and support its work to lower the number of murders in Knoxville. Mayor Indya Kincannon proposed giving the California-based group $519,750 to manage violence interruption work after the city ended its contract with the nonprofit Turn Up Knox. The council will vote on the contract May 13. "We are proposing that over the next twelve months, we focus on how we target the right people in the right way, and propose six local full-time violent intervention specialists, including a program manager," Keiland Henderson, the National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform associate director of violence reduction, said at a May 12 community meeting. The city held the meeting after pushback from council members over the need to hire an outside group when residents are already doing the work. Kincannon's administration stopped paying Turn Up Knox earlier this year after the nonprofit failed to meet the demands of its contract. Violence interruption targets those who are at risk of committing a crime, and it complements traditional policing. NICJR plans to improve data collection, provide training and hire full-time violent intervention specialists from Knoxville. The agency, if it's hired, will set up an application process for its specialists and will decide who to hire based on their background and experience. "We will turn no one away who is well-qualified for these positions," Henderson said. Henderson said most at-risk individuals have previously been arrested, have ties to recent shootings and are between the ages of 25 and 34. In the year of the proposed contract, the agency will help build up the capacity of individuals and organizations working on violence reduction. Denzel Grant, director for Turn Up Knox, hopes community members speak to council members about delaying the contract once again to buy more time for a different solution. Rashaad Woods, director for Renounce Denounce, wants to see a few modifications on who will be hired for the specialist positions. Both want to see local violence interruption groups get more assistance because, they say, they know who needs help from their time out in the community every day. Myron Thompson reports on public safety for Knox News. Email: This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform details plans for Knoxville
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
City of Knoxville files motion to dismiss lawsuit over firefighter pay
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — The City of Knoxville has filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a group of Knoxville firefighters. The lawsuit claims the new municipal pay scale negatively impacted long-serving department members and left them no recourse to address their grievances. The motion claims the lawsuit was filed after the statute of limitations had expired, the plaintiffs' claims were without 'any factual support,' and the plaintiffs failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. In response, the firefighters asked the court for 14 additional days to respond to the motion to dismiss. This would give them until May 19, 2025, to respond. Sevier County residents address developers at contentious meeting over 900-home subdivision proposal In 2022, the city proposed a tiered 'Step Pay Plan' for civil servants like police and firefighters. It consisted of 25 steps within each job classification corresponding to years of service, allowing uniformed employees to advance each year throughout their careers. An advisory committee of elected officials and representatives from the police and fire departments, one of whom is a plaintiff in the lawsuit, assisted in its creation before it was ultimately approved by the Knoxville City Council. The lawsuit claims the Pay Step Plan was not implemented as enacted and the system unfairly locks longer-tenured firefighters into lower classifications and lower wages. According to the complaint, the system largely affects older workers with the rank of Master Firefighter and above. Furthermore, it argues that there is no procedure to redress claims over compensation or misclassifications under the city's grievance process in violation of the constitutional right to due process. Kincannon proposes firefighter raises, housing investments in upcoming Knoxville city budget The plaintiffs request that the city reclassify all impacted firefighters retroactive to July 2022, and they be awarded back pay for all lost wages. They also seek additional damages in an amount to be determined by a jury trial and attorneys' fees. The new motion comes as one fifth of Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon's proposed budget was designated for police and firefighters. It includes a 4.2% step raise for police officers and firefighters, and $225,000 in targeted salary increases for firefighters. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon to give 2025 State of the City address
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon is expected to share her proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year during her sixth State of the City address Friday. The State of the City address is being held at Covenant Health Park beginning at 11:30 a.m. The address will be livestreamed in this story. Tennessee legislature approves $3.2M for civil rights monument in Oak Ridge During the State of the City address, Kincannon will be presenting her budget for the fiscal year beginning on July 1, 2025 to city and county leaders for the first time. This is a developing story. or for updates. The budget will also be presented to the City Council on Tuesday, April 29. Additionally, the proposed budget will be presented at a legislative budget hearing and a public hearing on May 13 before being presented to the Knoxville City Council for a second reading on May 27. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
