Southern Middle TN Today News with Tom Price 8-1-25

WKOM/WKRM Radio

Southern Middle Tennessee Today

News Copy for August 1, 2025

All news stories are aggregated from various sources and modified for time and content. Original sources are cited.

We start with local news…

Recycling Truck Catches Fire (MauryCountySource)

Spring Hill Fire crews responded Wednesday, July 30 to a neighborhood off Tom Lunn Road after receiving reports of a recycling truck fire.

When firefighters arrived, smoke was seen coming from the container area of the truck. Crews acted quickly to control the flames and prevent the fire from spreading.

To fully extinguish remaining hot spots, the truck was forced to unload its contents onto the roadway, allowing firefighters to thoroughly douse the fire.

Starlink Offers Arrow Mines as Park (MSM)

At the July meeting of the Maury County Commission, Chris Habel presented an offer from Starlink Logistics to donate their Arrow Mines property for public use. Many county commissioners were favorable to the proposition.

Habel, a partner-in-charge with Starlink’s legal firm Frost, Brown and Todd, explained that Starlink had acquired several properties in a portfolio it purchased in 2001, including Arrow Mines, a 1,425-acre tract near Mt. Pleasant where phosphate mining, ore processing, aluminum smelting and other operations took place since the 1890s.

Habel reported that a century of near-constant industrial chemical activity had left the place in awful environmental shape. Under the supervision of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, Starlink spent $20 million of their own money on surveys, environmental evaluations and clean-up for Arrow Mines, bringing it almost all the way up to TDEC’s recreational-use standards.

“We had the vision that someday this might make a great recreational park space,” Habel told the commission. “There’s no real use for this property from the company’s perspective, but [the public could] use it.”

He presented ground-level photographs of the park, showing wetlands, forests, ponds and walking trails where grass has grown on top of the “berm” which walls in the old industrial ponds.

All of the bodies of water have apparently been tested and are no longer contaminated, except for the 60-acre Arrow Lake, the centerpiece of the tract and a regional fishing destination in the days when it was open to the public. Habel reassured commissioners that Arrow Lake isn’t permanently contaminated, but only has levels of salt and ammonia that are too high for aquatic life. Starlink has offered to take care of draining, dredging and re-filling the lake, which would make the park fully usable.

A private citizen who lives nearby has even served as an informal game warden for Arrow Mines, calling the police on squatters and vagrants in the empty property. One lawsuit also remains to be resolved, in which Starlink alleges that the Associated Commodities Corporation was polluting Arrow Mines.

Habel transmitted Starlink’s wish to turn Arrow Mines over to the state government, who will manage and maintain it in perpetuity for public recreational use. They’re in talks with the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency (TWRA) to determine which activities would be feasible on the property, with hunting, horse-riding and recreational vehicle camping among those possibilities.

Some county commissioners seemed enthusiastic about the prospect, though others initially wondered why Starlink was willing to be so generous.

“We’re not looking to make money on this transaction, [just] to break even. The company is going to be very generous,” Habel explained. “We’d love to see [people] back on [Arrow] Lake… Everybody we’ve talked to wants to be back on the lake.”

“This could be a game-changer for Mt. Pleasant and Maury County as a whole,” said Mt. Pleasant’s Mayor Bill White, whose city has passed a resolution supporting the conversion to a state park. At the previous meeting where Mt. Pleasant’s City Commissioners voted to ask the state to take over Arrow Mines, Mayor White talked up the possible benefits of recreational tourism stemming from the park.

“Folks, this is a no-brainer,” said Danny Grooms, summing up the commission’s general sentiment.

The county commission voted in agreement with Mt. Pleasant’s resolution, which asked the state to look into an Arrow Mines state park and pledged to consider contributing county resources to the process.

Grand Opening Thrift Love (WKOM Audio 2:11)

Yesterday afternoon, Thrift Love Consignment store held a ribbon cutting celebrating an expansion that coincided with their 4th anniversary. Front Porch Radio’s Delk Kennedy attended the event and spoke to Thrift Love owner Gina Russell to learn more about what the store provides for the community.

Mt. Pleasant Names Soccer Coach (MSM)

Athletic horizons are broadening at Mt. Pleasant High School, as it was recently announced that Shane Smith has been hired to establish varsity girls and boys soccer programs.

“We believe if you offer the opportunity, you can build something,” said Smith, who headed the boys program at Fairview from 2015-23. “We’re starting off from the standpoint of offering opportunity and building from there.”

Smith, a 49-year-old native of Alaska who previously coached in the Colorado high school soccer ranks, said the idea of having his input in the initial stages of a program is appealing.

“It’s a different type of focus than where I was in my other couple of programs,” he said, referring to Rampart and Silver Creek high schools in Colorado as well as Fairview. “I was taking over programs where we had an eye on a state title. Here, while we look in that direction, we’ve got to start by first building the program.

“That was my interest in the program, getting to come in and build something, create a program that can be respected across the board.”

Mt. Pleasant assistant principal Philip Pelkey was familiar with Smith – currently a work-based learning instructor at Columbia Central and a Santa Fe resident – from the time they both spent in Williamson County.

“I coached against him a little when I was at Centennial, as assistant boys coach when he was at Fairview,” Pelkey said. “I’m not going to sit here and tell you I was the soccer wizard or anything, but I remember my coach spoke highly of Fairview. They’re a small school, but they can definitely handle playing with the big boys in Williamson County.

“Talking to him, he understands the process of building a team. We have no doubt he’s the right guy to lead us in building this program.”

Interest from the student body played a role in adding the sport, according to both Pelkey and Smith.

“Really, the students run this thing,” Pelkey said. “They got together and we told them, get us some names of people that would be interested (in playing). They came up with a pretty decent list of potential athletes.

“It’s something that was in the back of our mind for a while, just to give kids another opportunity to get involved in after-school athletics – anything we can do to get more kids involved. The students did a really good job of being at the forefront of this.”

With the girls soccer season looming, Smith and Pelkey both indicated that team will likely play some form of a hybrid schedule of primarily junior varsity contests and perhaps a handful of varsity games.

“We’re actively recruiting young ladies in the school to participate,” Smith said. “The numbers are probably going to be low on the girls side to start off. What we are looking at is probably the girls coming in with a kind of ‘JV’ schedule, not a full varsity schedule. 

“What the principal (Eric Hughes) and I have discussed is we want to be competitive in the games we play. We don’t want to come in and the first year put the kids in a situation that’s not competitive for them.”

Participation numbers appear to be a bit more favorable for the budding boys team – as is the calendar, with boys soccer taking place in the spring.

“We feel confident with the boys we have the numbers to field a varsity team,” Smith said. “Plus the boys season doesn’t technically kick off until February. We feel we can build those numbers. I’ve already started reaching out to other coaches within the school and my intention is, with a fall coach, sitting down and asking how can our program in the spring help your program in the fall; same approach with the winter coaches.

“It’s a small school. Athletes are going to be shared. Already a couple of boys that play tennis, they’re going to be doing multiple sports at the same time. We’ve got to be sure we’re playing nicely as coaches.”

• Coming off a 5-19 finish in her only season as girls basketball coach at Columbia Central, Johné Stewart has been named to succeed Eli Barnwell atop the Mt. Pleasant girls program.

“We’re really excited to have her come on. Obviously when you lose a coach this late in the year, you’re always worried if you’re going to find a good, credible coach or if you’re going to have to take what you can get,” Pelkey said, referring to Barnwell’s departure in early June after one year for a similar position at Marshall County. 

“We feel like we really lucked out getting her to come over.”

Stewart will become the ninth different Lady Tigers coach over the last 10 years, with only Amy Odom (2019-21) leading the squad in multiple seasons since Jessica Webb resigned in 2017 following a three-year tenure.

Mt. Pleasant was 3-22 in Barnwell’s lone season.

“We need stability in that program right now,” Pelkey said. “When you have (different) coaches every year, it’s hard to build anything. We’re hoping we’ll have her for the long haul, and we’re very confident – it’s not going to happen overnight, but it’s going to pan out.”

Kaylor and Swanky South Launch Whiskey (MSM)

Makky Kaylor wrote the new state song, “Tennessee In My Dreams” as a reflection of what it’s like for anyone who ever longed for home. 

Now,  Kaylor, Brenda Lynn Allen and their brand, Swanky South are coming together with a local event to celebrate Tennessee and its new song Saturday, Aug. 2. 

The event will begin with a whiskey launch and move to the launch celebration of a new cocktail at local restaurant, Prime and Pint where a live show, cocktail tastings and bottle signings are expected. 

Kaylor will sing and one member of the group from Sugarland will join the festivities. 

“It’s all to celebrate Tennessee and the new state song,” Kaylor said. “It’s beyond humbling to have the song go into the history books.” 

Kaylor laughs as he recalls writing the song he had originally called, “Louisiana In My Dreams.” 

He had written it for friends who were caught in the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and had to move to Tennessee, but found that he couldn’t deny the inspiration was coming from a love of his home state. 

“The song had a life of its own,” Kaylor said. 

In 2023, Kaylor was declared Tennessee Troubadour — a reference to a traveling musician and it was in 2024 that Gov. Bill Lee declared Kaylor’s song to be one among 14 other songs to represent the Volunteer State. 

Joining the likes of “Tennessee Waltz” and “Rocky Top,” the song has grown a life of its own, inspiring an event that will see the launch of a new brand of whiskey from Sugarland’s Distillery. 

Kaylor’s own sound, he describes as a combination of smooth soul, classic country and jazz. 

“If you listen to the song, it has that smooth soulful sound, but it’s still southern,” Kaylor said. “The heritage of Tennessee music is everywhere you go here.” 

Kaylor came from Memphis, where the soul sound abounds, and as such he describes himself as “city southern.”

Appropriately, Sugarland Distillery’s chosen name fits the troubadour’s title, with a pot distilled straight rye whiskey named Roaming Man. 

“The troubadour (traveling musician) title and Roaming Man label was a fun and unplanned coincidence,” Kaylor said. 

Local restaurant, Prime and Pint is also hosting part of the celebration, where they already serve the Tennessee Troubadour cocktail, named for Kaylor, created by bartender, Kayla Sims. 

Kaylor said he likes cinnamon, so the drink has some cinnamon bitters, orange zest and is mixed with a base of the Roaming Man whiskey. 

Sugarland Distillery invited Swanky South to the barrel pick for the whiskey and chose the batch from a three-barrel blind taste test. The result is a whiskey that was bottled and is now being sold exclusively around the area. 

Still, Kaylor said the event is meant to be an open invite, even for those who don’t drink. 

“Even if you don’t drink, you are wanted at this event,” Kaylor said. 

Co-host of their Swanky South radio show and also a local singer, Brenda Lynn “Brynn” Allen said the event was a very special one. 

“There is lots of synergy in this beautiful partnership,” Allen said. 

Local marketing team, Empower Collective is helping to organize the event that will kick off with the new whiskey launch at Parkway Wine and Spirits in Spring Hill. 

Elizabeth Gallegos and Corbin Davis who make up the team focus on bringing businesses together to amplify their presence. 

“We do this to highlight the local community,” Gallegos said. “This is a chance for people to come together on such a fun and rewarding moment. 

The whiskey launch will run from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m., Aug. 2 at Parkway Wine and Spirits and continue for the Tennessee Troubadour Cocktail launch at Prime and Pint from 4 p.m. – 5 p.m. 

Mayor Chaz Molder declared July 14 to be Makky Kaylor Day. 

Columbia 101 (Press Release)

The City of Columbia is excited to announce the return of Columbia 101, an interactive program designed to connect residents with local government and community services. Following a successful inaugural session in the Fall of 2024 and a well-received spring session, Columbia 101 is now accepting applications for its third installment taking place on Tuesday, September 30 and Wednesday, October 1, 2025.

Developed to strengthen transparency between citizens and their city, Columbia 101 offers participants a comprehensive, behind-the-scenes look at how municipal departments serve the community. Over the course of two consecutive days, participants will start each morning at City Hall before engaging with all 12 city departments and touring select municipal facilities, such as the Police and Public Works Departments.

“Columbia 101 plays an important role in building trust, transparency, and collaboration between the city and the public,” said Mayor Chaz Molder. “By opening our doors and sharing our processes, we aim to create a more informed and engaged citizenry that can actively contribute to Columbia’s continued success. The strong participation and positive feedback from our first two sessions confirm the value of this program, and we’re thrilled to offer it again this fall.”

A Spring 2025 participant shared their experience, saying, “This course will give you even more reason to love living in Columbia, Tennessee. You will be delighted to see how much the City of Columbia employees are eager to come to work every day, how they do so much while staying within their budgets, how they innovate improvements in each department, and are encouraged to do so! All around, this is such a worthwhile expenditure of your time!”

Applications for Columbia 101 are available now and will close on Friday, August 22nd at 4:00 PM. The program is open to all City of Columbia and Maury County residents and is held twice per year. There is a $25 program fee for all accepted applicants to cover program costs, including food and transportation.

“Educating the public about city operations encourages meaningful civic participation,” said City Manager Tony Massey. “This program provides residents with direct access to the work being done on their behalf every day and strengthens the shared commitment we have to our community.”

Lexi Dearborn, Program Director, added, “We look forward to welcoming a new class of participants this fall. Columbia 101 offers a valuable opportunity to foster awareness, build relationships, and promote active involvement in the future of our city.”

Columbia 101 applications are available at www.ColumbiaTN.gov or at the reception desk on the 3rd floor of City Hall. Follow the City of Columbia on Facebook and Instagram at “CityofColumbiaTN” for updates. For questions, please contact Lexi Dearborn at LDearborn@ColumbiaTN.gov.

And now, Your Hometown Memorials, Sponsored by Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home…

Amy Mae Ingram, 80, died Wednesday, April 30, 2025 at Levine and Dickson Hospice House in Charlotte, North Carolina after a brief battle with cancer.

A graveside service will be conducted Saturday, August 23, 2025 at 11:00 AM at Bryant Cemetery in Mooresville, Tennessee. Oakes & Nichols is in charge of arrangements and online condolences may be extended at www.oakesandnichols.com.

Now, news from around the state…

School Cell Phone Policy Takes Effect (WPLN)

Middle Tennessee school districts are rolling out new cellphone policies to comply with a new state law. While the law gives latitude to local school boards, educators and policy experts insist that restricting cellphone use in schools improves social skills and keeps students safer in the event of an emergency.

Last March, Tennessee lawmakers from both sides of the aisle overwhelmingly passed a bill banning the use of cellphones and other wireless devices during classroom instruction time. It allows exceptions for students with disabilities or other medical needs and those who rely on wireless devices for educational purposes.

The law went into effect on July 1 and allows school districts to determine their own level of cellphone restriction. In recent weeks, school boards have been revisiting their policies and making various updates.

Wilson County will allow students to use their phones in between classes, during lunch and restroom breaks.

Students in Rutherford County will have to part with their cellphones for the entire day. School board members said in a July 21 policy meeting that the phones should be stored away, but teachers don’t have to check if the phone is actually turned off because that would be too time-consuming. Students are allowed, however, to use their phones during special events like pep rallies and homecoming.

Cellphones are already banned during classroom instruction in Metro Schools, so a district spokesperson says there won’t be significant changes in light of the new state law. Still, the school board will consider any revisions at its meeting August 12.

Similarly, Cheatham County Schools already has a cellphone ban in place but will review its policy at an upcoming board meeting.

One public charter school in Antioch is taking the all-day ban approach to the extreme – by requiring that students put their phones in locking Yondr pouches. The point is to help students build community and improve their social skills, said Emily McDonald, director of college access and success at Independence Academy,

“I just noticed a huge difference in the lunchroom where students are talking to each other,” she told WPLN News. “They’re playing chess. They’re interacting as opposed to walking by a table of silent kids all just watching TikTok.”

Final Story of the Day (Maury County Source)

Though the summertime might be winding down, there is still plenty of fun to be had as another month rolls in with First Fridays and Strolling on 6th.

First Fridays events will run from 5-8 p.m. in downtown Columbia, featuring live music, vendors, food trucks and more, with this month's theme "Ready, set, school!"

Celebrate by wearing your school's colors for what is bound to be a true back to school bash with mascots, meet-and-greets and more.

First Fridays will also have street closures to allow safer pedestrian access throughout the event.

In addition, the monthly Strolling on 6th block party will also be taking place along West 6th Street, featuring more music, food and fun.