Michael Silence reports:

Bankruptcy court confirms to me it was filed yesterday.

So, will this affect their IPO?

This just in from AC Entertainment:

Added by popular demand! WIDESPREAD PANIC will perform a third night at the TENNESSEE THEATRE on Wednesday, July 16, 7:30 p.m. in addition to their sold-out shows on July 14 and 15. Tickets for this third show will go fast, so get 'em when they go on sale this Friday, May 16, 10 a.m. at the Tennessee Theatre box office, Tickets Unlimited outlets, by phone at 865-656-4444 or online at TennesseeTheatre.com.

The KNS has an update on the LED billboard "impasse" today.

The same issue is playing out in Nashville. Mike Byrd at the Enclave blog has been following it closely.

This is starting to sound like the AT&T cable bill. Wonder why the billboard industry hasn't gone to the Tennessee legislature to ask for statewide regulations allowing LED billboards?

UPDATE: Frost calls on UT to comply with billboard law

WBIR:

Because the suspect is dead, no charges will be filed.

OK, then.

The City of Knoxville has hired David Massey as the new Neighborhood Coordinator, replacing Jason Woodle who is joining TVA. Massey will report to Community Development Director Madeline Rogero.

More details...

It's finally going to be online.

(See also Tennessee This Week at the WATE website, which has also undergone a recent facelift.)

The next Blogfest is this weekend at VS a new business downtown. Meet other bloggers face to face and play video games! They have 2 Wiis, 2 xboxes, and 2 playstation 3s as well as Rockband and many many games for each system. There are 5 iMacs and wifi so you can blog. Downstairs is a congregating area away from the games with a stage which can feature live performances. Games are free to bloggers from 7pm to 9pm Saturday, May 10. VS is located just two doors down from the old Harold's. See you there!

As a side note, the wifi is free ALL the time so if you are ever downtown, needing a connection and a comfortable place to sit, slip into VS!

The Knoxville News Sentinel is following the Maryville Daily Times lead. Hopefully it won't also lead to this.

As part of Mayor Bill Haslam's budget proposal, the city is proposing an overhaul of its employee compensation plan.

The proposed compensation plan is the result of recommendations by a consulting firm hired to study the city's current system. It is intended to bring salaries in line with "market rates" and minimize "salary compression" where new hires are making close to the same as more senior employees, particularly in the police and fire departments.

Just over 5 years ago, a group of thoughtful folks got together to discuss an idea that sounded crazy to some...don't improve I-40 through downtown, remove I-40 through downtown. Some folks scoffed at the idea while TDOT said it wouldn't work and that 640 could never handle 40's traffic.

Our idea was to simply to seek additional public input on a possibly more appropriate location for 40 rather than through downtown but increased public input was not a TDOT desire nor one of the Ashe administration.

Personally, I think that eliminating 40 through downtown would have made Knoxville's downtown more livable and visionary. Knox B.L.V.D. (Knoxville, building a livable & visionary downtown). Now that construction has begun, let’s examine what the potential would have been if 640 had been re-named “40” and the connection of 275 to 40 at 640’s western side could have been:

1. Knoxvillians entering downtown from the east would use a non-disconnected Magnolia Ave. which rather than being isolated from the city’s center would have begun to flourish.
2. Those entering downtown from the north and south would have used the same routes that they have now.
3. Those entering downtown from the west, would have followed the “abandoned” 40 spur from 640 which would have dropped down to a tree-lined boulevard making downtown much easier to navigate. (Turn right onto 17th for campus, turn right onto Henley for the Convention Center,t turn right onto Gay for Market Square, turn right onto Central to access the Old City, etc. etc.)
4. The footprint of the abandoned section of 40 from Fourth & Gill through Park Ridge would lead along an urban park to the Knoxville Zoo.
5. Huge amounts of land would be once again placed upon the tax rolls.
6. Through travelers seeking gas, quick dining or motels could purchase these from nearly any exit along the new “40” (Old 640) thereby creating increased tax revenues from the folks that now wait ‘til their through downtown to have their needs met.
7. Huge portions of urban neighborhoods would be reclaimed for appropriate expansion of housing stock thereby thwarting costly suburban sprawl.
8. The denser population might be able to support enhanced mass-transit options helping to relieve some of our air quality issues.
9. Struggling East Towne Mall (like Todd Steed, I can’t say Knoxville Center) would become an outlet mall and destination attraction…also increasing tax revenues.
10. There would be no need for the still un-needed James White Parkway which would be torn out to expose the underlying creek and create a greenway/river walk concept ala’ Greenville, SC.
11. The CBID would be accessible by foot from the contiguous neighborhoods.

Instead, we have the pleasure of a bigger version of something that shouldn't have been where it is in the first place. Since we didn't learn from our past mistakes, let's hope that our children do.

Scenic Knoxville is a citizen action group whose mission is to help preserve and protect the scenic beauty surrounding our city. More information about our mission and other goals can be found on our website, www.scenicknoxville.org.

Currently, we are focused on City Council’s consideration of digital billboards. City Council is having a workshop tonight, May 1st, at 5:00 pm, and the issue may be up for vote as soon as Tuesday, May 6.

In 2001, Knoxville enacted a ban on billboard construction at new locations within the City. In 2006, one of the billboard companies attempted to convert two traditional billboards to digital. This action was halted in court with an injunction filed by the City, and the City decided to revisit the billboard ordinance and decide whether or not digital billboards should be allowed. Scenic Knoxville believes that a decision to allow digital billboards in the City will have a far-reaching negative impact on the visual quality of our city and, to our knowledge, offers no benefit to the community.

CITY COUNCIL WANTS TO KNOW IF CITIZENS WANT DIGITAL BILLBOARDS IN KNOXVILLE

Please act today. Citizen input is the key element to influence our Council members. Thank you for your help.

Mayor Bill Haslam presented a $168.5 million budget for FY 2008-2009, up 3.3 percent from last year.

Mayor Haslam said during his budget luncheon address today at the new SYSCO distribution center that the budget includes funding to continue City operations at the current level, escalate redevelopment efforts, and bring city employee salaries in line with market rates in three years.

He also noted that the city's bond rating has recently been upgraded to AA+, the "highest in the city's history," that the reserve fund has increased from $18 million to $42 million and that the city's outstanding debt is 20% lower than it was when he took office.

Some budget highlights...

Speaking of traffic, here's the report on first quarter 2008 revenues from Knoxville red light cameras:

2008 Program Collections 010108-033108
Fines paid to City of Knoxville= 266,685.27
Payment to Redflex= 417,631.54
Program total= 684,316.81

Detailed report here, crash rate analysis after the jump...

In case you've been on vacation to Mars and hadn't heard, a traffic disaster of Biblical proportions is set to begin today when TDOT and local officials close I-40 through Downtown Knoxville.

Why our traffic geniuses decided to have two of the most heavily traveled Interstate Highways in the U.S. intersect on an elevated platform in the middle of Downtown Knoxville is beyond me, but that's neither here nor there.

And neither here nor there is where you will soon be going because the same traffic geniuses have decided that instead of blowing it up with dynamite and rerouting the traffic around town, they are going to close it for a year and rebuild it as part of the most expensive highway project in state history.

From the TDOT SmartFix40.com website, Dolly explains:

Here's some stuff from TDOT's website that might help you navigate the mess:

• I-40 Closure details map.
• I-40 interchange with Hall of Fame Drive map
• Hall of Fame/Neyland Drive map
• Knox Co. Detours map
• Driving directions for selected destinations
• Current traffic conditions
• City of Knoxville TDOT Traffic Cams

Local media has some helpful resources as well:

• KNS SmartFIX40 page
• KNS Navigating SmartFIX40 blog
• WATE Street Wise
• WATE TDOT Traffic Cams
• WBIR TDOT Traffic Tracker
• WVLT TDOT Traffic Cams
• KNS TDOT Traffic Cams
• WBIR Traffic Twitter

Good luck, and be careful out there!

From the City of Knoxville:

What: Unveiling of a historical marker honoring award-winning writer and Knoxville native, Nikki Giovanni. A reception will follow at the Beck Cultural Exchange Center.

When: 3 p.m., Tuesday, April 29

Where: Hall of Fame Drive across the street from the Cal Johnson Recreation Center

Who: Nikki Giovanni, Mayor Bill Haslam, Vice Mayor Mark Brown, Avon Rollins, director and CEO of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center will be among the speakers.

The City of Knoxville and the Beck Cultural Exchange Center are placing the historical marker near where the home of Giovanni’s grandparents, John and Louvenia Watson, once stood. Giovanni, a Knoxville native who later moved to Cincinnati with her family, spent her summers there as a child.

Knoxville's Farmers' Market starts back up today, April 26, 2008.

Market Square in Downtown Knoxville
10 AM to 2 PM.

Get there early for the best selections.

Don't forget, the rescheduled Dogwood Parade is tonight (Friday) at 7PM downtown.

(We won't be able to make it, so I hope somebody posts some pics.)

Mercy Health Partners is sponsoring a community meeting this Monday, April 21st, at South Doyle Middle School to discuss their plans for the Baptist Hospital site. The meeting will begin at 6:30 PM, and will be held in the Commons area of the middle school.

The Mercy Health Partners voted this week to make the Baptist Hospital campus the site for their new $400 million hospital. That hospital will replace both the present St. Mary’s Hospital’s main campus and Baptist Hospital’s main campus. This is a major investment in South Knoxville and the south waterfront, and should be of interest to anyone who lives in South Knoxville or has an interest or stake in the area.

Your Voice Is Key to Improving Healthcare
The Tennessee Health Care Campaign (Link...) is holding a town hall meeting This Friday from 6:30 to 8:30 pm.

Knoxville News Sentinel:

Mercy Health Partners will build a new downtown hospital on the site of the current Baptist Hospital of East Tennessee on Blount Avenue.

[..]

Demolition of older buildings on the site, which are located closer to Henley Street, could begin in the fall. But Ashin said the health system must still meet tough financial benchmarks before moving forward.

Pretty big news for South Knoxville.

Your Voice Is Key to Improving Healthcare
The Tennessee Health Care Campaign (Link...) is holding a town hall meeting This Friday from 6:30 to 8:30 pm. It will be held at the Cherokee Health Systems corporate office - 2018 Western Ave. Knoxville

Confirmed Legislators:
Sen. Tim Burchett, Rep. Stacy Campfield, Rep Doug Overby, Rep Harry Tindell.

Sen. Jamie Woodson had confirmed but is now stating she has can't attend.

From thcc:
Your Help is Needed NOW.

Sen. Jamie Woodson had confirmed several days ago that she would attend our forum.

Now she says another event has come up and she can’t come to our forum.

We want to respectfully ask her to keep her commitment to us.

Sen. Woodson needs to hear from YOU, her constituent.
Call her office in Nashville TODAY.
Toll-free:
1-800-449-8366, ext. 11648
It's OK to leave a message. Please make sure to state that you are her constituent.

In a respectful way, please do the following:

CALL Sen. Woodson and tell her – in your own words -- that you would like her to:
A) PLEASE keep her commitment to attend our Constituent Health Care Forum at Cherokee Health Systems Corp. Office in Knoxville on Friday, April 18th at 6:30 pm.

B) Help you and others avoid state policies that will create up to 200,000 new uninsured this year;

C) Help you and others increase the number of children who have health coverage;

Tell her that you and others have been looking forward to sharing your concerns and discussing solutions that she, as your elected representative, can help with.

Let her know that YOU and others are RELYING on her to care and help avoid another mass creation of uninsured. Together, we can avoid crisis.

Sen. Woodson needs to hear from you.
Call her office in Nashville TODAY: 1-800-449-8366, ext. 11648
It's OK to leave a message.

Visit Thcc2.org for more info.
I hope to see some of you there. I will be the nerdy guy with the unruly 5 year old.

The City of Knoxville will hold a public meeting to seek input on the renovations for the West Hills Park tennis facility. The meeting will be at Deane Hill Recreation Center at 7400 Deane Hill Dr. (off of Morrell Rd.) on Thursday, April 17, at 7:00 p.m.

ORNL Federal Credit Union is hosting a secure Document Shred Day. This event is free and is open to the public.

The event is Saturday, April 19th from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Secure documents such as bank statements and also film and data CDs will be accepted. All shredding will be done 100% on site by a commercial shredding service. Read more for locations...

Knoxville based LAGtv Network is an internet based TV network with international reach.

The brainchild of Shane Latham, LAGtv is a "live internet television station with shows focusing on video games, online tournaments, pro-gamers, casual gamers, product and game reviews."

According to producer and writer Jessie Greene, also of Knoxville, LAGtv broadcasts from its studio in Knoxville. The network’s inaugural broadcast aired on February 1, 2008.

Looking around the site and some of the show archives, the productions are slick and the on-air talent appears to be having a lot of fun even if I don't know what they're talking about most of the time. If you are an XBox 360 fan, I'm sure it will make sense to you and you'll like it.

Apparently gamers can also participate live by way of their XBox 360 video chat and messaging features. Or if your XBox-fu is weak, you can join in the online chat room, send a plain old email, or just call in on the phone. Shows air live every day at 9PM.

LAGtv looks like another high score for Knoxville's reputation as an evolving center for creative broadcast video and internet production. Check it out.

The Knoxville Juggler's Club is meeting this Tuesday!

Jan Sanders Hall at Cokesbury United Methodist Church will be open to jugglers from 7 to 9 p.m. on the first Sunday and the third Tuesday of each month.

Jugglers and non-jugglers alike are welcome to attend. For the answers to "What type of people attend juggling clubs?" "Why juggle?" and "Who can juggle?" see Knoxville Juggling Club relauches. The answer to who can juggle is anyone! I have even seen a one handed man juggle 5 balls!

I spent much of this morning and early afternoon in Market Square with my Fiancee. Wow! We had such a good time. It started around 10 with breakfast at Trio, then a hand-squeezed lemonade. Golden Girl bought a really nice silver iris pendant made from a spoon handle, and we got some homemade dog biscuits for our pooch. One of my favorite parts of the day was an extended conversation with a couple from Kentucky selling mosaic artwork. They were very nice people, and interesting to talk to. But, hey, that's pretty much the story of our entire festival experience. Good food, good times, good people. I love Knoxville!

We were out running some errands this afternoon, and took detours on a couple of Dogwood Trails. The dogwoods aren't quite ready in some places, past prime in others, and generally not looking all that great this year. The redbuds are very nice, and there are some spectacular azaleas. Photos after the break...

The Dogwood Arts Festival on Market Square is being held this week, April 11-13.

My Mother and I went yesterday to beat the crowds and the weather. It was a beautiful day even with the wind.

Good art, good food, good music, good people...

More photos after the break.

Enjoy!

Don Dare's on the job. WATE reporting the Cracker Barrel at Park West Boulevard (Cedar Bluff) received a 55 (out of 100) on the health department inspection.

Man, I shouldn't read these reports. It makes you want to never go out to eat again. It's been a long time since I've worked in a restaurant, and I've never worked in the kitchen, but I do have to wonder how many restaurants just miss getting bad scores depending on the day and time of the health department visits.

This just in from the City of Knoxville:

The Dogwood Arts Parade scheduled for 7 p.m., Friday has been postponed due to the threat of severe thunderstorms and possible damaging winds during the evening.

Officials with the Dogwood Arts Festival and the City of Knoxville made the decision after discussions on Friday afternoon.

“This is something we regret but the safety of the participants and the spectators was the most important consideration,” said Mickey Mallonee, the city’s director of special events.

The Dogwood Arts Parade has been rescheduled for 7 p.m. Friday, April 25.

The parade will now be the finale of the 48th Dogwood Arts Festival.