Page 2 - Steve Highlander News Today

Enough safeguards appear to be in place to safely allow Hamilton County to raise — in fact, double — the amount of money for which public advertisement and sealed, competitive bids for purchases will be required.

Opting to commit the remaining funding set aside for the group in late 2021, Hamilton County commissioners decided Wednesday to distribute $200,000 of federal pandemic relief funds to a local youth mentorship organization called the Lighthouse Collective.

Arguing that it could set a poor precedent, Hamilton County commissioners narrowly denied a request by residents of a Montlake subdivision to accept Terrace Falls Drive as a county road, with an official stating that the roadway doesnt meet existing county standards.

The cracks in the Hamilton County Commission that Hamilton County Mayor Weston Wamp said had been present from the outset of his dispute with County Attorney Rheubin Taylor became more evident Wednesday.

The Tennessee Comptrollers Office has written a letter to Hamilton County commissioners asking them to revisit a pair of budget amendments the board passed last week that approved future legal fees associated with the dispute between Mayor Weston Wamp and County Attorney Rheubin Taylor. The letter points out that the commission did not define specific dollar amounts.

Hamilton Countys new director of parks and recreation, Matt Folz, is a self-styled "parkie."

After the Hamilton County auditor identified expenses with four legal vendors that she said didnt receive proper signoff from county officials, commissioners are asking County Attorney Rheubin Taylor to provide them with more regular reporting on those agreements.

Finally — finally — the Hamilton County Commission put aside most of its acrimonious pandering and voted unanimously Wednesday to put $50,000 toward helping rehouse the families put out on the street just before Thanksgiving when the Budgetel in East Ridge was closed by court order.

The Hamilton County Commission has unanimously approved a broadband deal that will benefit more than 1,000 county residents, part of a broader effort to expand high-speed Internet beyond Chattanooga's Gig City.

District 9 School Board Candidates Favor Local Search For Superintendent Applicants; See Pandemic Recovery, Elimination Of Social Issues As Critical Tuesday, July 27, 2021 - by Dennis Norwood Prior to Tuesday evening’s District 9 School Board Forum, County Commissioner and former school board member Dr. Steve Highlander iterated that he was looking for someone who will work with the district’s families and the community. As it turned out each of the eight candidates vying for the posi...