Southern Middle TN Today News with Tom Price 8-5-25

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Southern Middle Tennessee Today

News Copy for August 5, 2025

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

We start with local news…

Mt. Pleasant Reopens Bridge (MSM)

On July 24, on budget and more than two months ahead of schedule, the Tennessee Department of Transportation fully reopened the bridge over Sugar Creek north of Mt. Pleasant. Workers for the Dement Construction Company removed the old bridge and built a brand new one in its place, 157 feet long and 46 feet wide. At the end of the work, they installed guardrails and joint work, paved the bridge, painted stripes on the pavement and built up the ramps at the ends of the bridge.

Both lanes of the Sugar Creek bridge were closed in November to conduct the work, and traffic was redirected onto the Highway 43 bypass in the months between. Local business owners complained that the closure reduced their customer traffic, and a thrift store near the last exit to SR-43 was shuttered permanently soon after the bridge was closed. Tim Davis, the owner of the Pizza Place in Mt. Pleasant, was very vocal about the impact of the closure on his business; when the bridge reopened, he posted a celebratory Facebook reel which racked up more than 57,000 views.

“While TDOT understands that any full bridge closure can be an inconvenience, it’s important to note that fully closing the bridge — compared to a phased or partial closure — decreased the total construction timeline of this project by eight months to a year,” said Erin Zeigler, TDOT’s communications officer for Region 3. “This new bridge has a lifespan of 75 years. The department is thankful for the cooperation of Maury County residents and local leaders for their patience in this process… Bridges like this one connect communities, and TDOT is proud to improve these structures in ways that will benefit Tennesseans for generations to come.”

GM Expanding XT5 Production (Tennessean)

General Motors plans to produce the Cadillac XT5 past 2026, according to a UAW memo sent to workers at the automaker’s Spring Hill, Tennessee, plant. 

The change extends the life of the vehicle beyond what the Detroit automaker told employees this spring, that production of the five-seat SUV, initially slated to end in August 2025, would “continue into 2026” without confirming a timeline. 

“Today, we’re excited to share that the XT5 legacy will continue as a next-generation gas vehicle beyond 2026, proudly built at Spring Hill Manufacturing,” said the memo sent Aug. 1 from UAW Local 1853 to manufacturing staff. “A refreshed XT5 will launch in 2027.”

The Detroit Free Press obtained a copy of the document.

A refreshed vehicle may undergo changes to the interior and exterior redesign, but it is not necessarily considered a new model. An all-new vehicle, for example, may experience changes that impact performance or underlying architecture.

GM sold 12,727 Cadillac XT5s in the first half of this year, up 4% compared with 2024. Cadillac sales in total were up 16% in the first half of the year with 86,104 vehicles.

GM issued a statement when contacted by the Free Press.

“As Cadillac evolves, we will continue to make necessary adjustments to our portfolio to meet customer demand,” said the memo from spokesman Kevin Kelly. “The current-generation Cadillac XT5, an important part of our global portfolio, will remain in production until the end of 2026. The XT5 will continue to live-on as a next-generation gas powered vehicle beyond that timeframe.”

Additional details about the next version of the vehicle and its features will be shared later, the statement also said.

With the change, GM’s Spring Hill plant aims to construct the 2027 Chevrolet Blazer, 2027 Cadillac XT5, the Lyriq and Lyriq V, the all-new Vistiq and Acura ZDX.

Rotary Donates to One Generation Away (CDH)

Dozens of local families received fresh groceries during a free mobile food distribution hosted by One Generation Away in partnership with the Columbia Breakfast Rotary Club. 

The event began at 8:30 a.m. at the Columbia State Community College campus on Hampshire Pike, bringing neighbors together to help fight food insecurity in Maury County.

One Generation Away, a Franklin-based nonprofit, works to eliminate hunger by rescuing surplus food and delivering it directly to those in need through mobile pantries across the Southeast. 

Members of the Columbia Breakfast Rotary Club volunteered at the food distribution and presented One Generation Away with a $3,000 donation to support its mission of sharing hope through food.

Darrell Ailshie, Past Rotary District Governor, praised the turnout and the spirit of generosity on display. 

“We were thrilled to see so many families benefit from this event,” said Ailshie. “Our community really showed up, and it’s inspiring to see neighbors helping neighbors.”

Josh Lynch, Club Foundation Treasurer, emphasized the Rotary’s commitment to supporting local partners that make a difference. 

“The Columbia Breakfast Rotary Club is honored to stand alongside One Generation Away,” Lynch said. “We’re always proud to partner with organizations that do real, meaningful work here in Maury County,” he added.

Since 1997, the Columbia Breakfast Rotary Club has donated over $600,000 to local causes and charities. In addition to sponsoring food distributions, the Columbia Breakfast Rotary Club supports local education initiatives, youth leadership programs, and international service projects that reflect Rotary International’s mission of “Service Above Self.” 

The Club also awards scholarships to area students and hosts community fundraisers that directly benefit local nonprofits.

For information about the Columbia Breakfast Rotary Club and its community efforts, visit columbiaamrotary.org.

Spring Hill Development Includes Whataburger (MSM)

Spring Hill is aiming for growth as development proposals could reshape the city, starting with Whataburger, which may be coming to town. 

During the Spring Hill Planning Commission Work Session last week, officials reviewed a site plan proposing to build a Whataburger at 3004 Belshire Village Drive. 

The 4,990 square foot restaurant would include a drive-through and would replace the vacant restaurant on that site. While plans are in the works, high traffic volume is a main concern. The site rests in a high-volume area and includes two entrance and exit points, 47 parking spaces, but no bicycle spaces. To limit the congested area, developers have proposed turning the Belshire Way access into a right-in/right-out only, which would eliminate left turn problems. 

City staff and the applicant met in July to discuss revisions before the voting meeting. Whataburger and its representatives were not present at last week’s work session. According to the planning commission’s By-Laws, the application will be pushed to the September voting meeting. 

New Business 

Another proposal was a planned development for 91 townhomes and an 18,000 square foot two-story commercial building. The land is currently designated Agricultural, meaning developers must submit a rezoning approval to continue.

Planned developments are designed to offer creative and flexible land use, while enhancing public amenities. Planned development applications must enhance amenities or design features in the city. The sought-after property is located on the west side of Port Royal and the east side of Tom Lunn Road. 

However, board members expressed concerns about whether the proposal benefits the public. The non-voting item was given improvements and will require a development preliminary application before a final vote. 

Another developer has requested a dental office proposal for Pod K in the June Lake area; a one-story, 5,000 square foot building would be located east of Buckner Lane and feature associated parking. This proposal includes pedestrian connections to the multi-use trail along June Lake and landscaping, dumpster enclosure screening and tree-lined parking islands and parking screening. 

The applicant met with the city staff in February to revise firetruck access, a sufficient parking study and bike accommodations. WMG associate, Kathryn Smith, represented the proposal and presented the updated revisions to the board. 

In a move tied to Spring Hill Rising 2040, city officials are requesting to rezone 157 acres of recently acquired property — once part of Stone Creek — on the west side of I-65 and south of Derryberry Lane. The proposed zoning shift from R-6, Planned Unit Development and Traditional Neighborhood Development to Institutional Campus (IC) would pave the way for a future reservoir and water purification site, expansion for sewer and water capacity, as well as recreation and utility improvements.

Pooch Playhouse is seeking an expansion in hopes of growing. Developers submitted a site plan for a 4,108 square foot expansion of the existing facility. This would include six parking spaces, landscaping and a 12-inch-wide multi-use trail extension along Old Port Royal Road North. According to the agenda, the applicant also requested to demolish the existing surface and replace it with an artificial turf play yard. The Spring Hill Board of Zoning Appeals approved the variance in February, and additional revisions were presented in July to city staff and the planning commission. 

Another rezoning proposal was submitted by Spring Hill Development Services. The 63.26 acres near Hurt Road and Duplex Road could allow for a new residential neighborhood with a recreational area. The applicant is proposing to rezone the land from the Agricultural District (AC) to the Institutional Campus District (IC). 

Rezoning the land to Institutional Campus from Agricultural District would allow a range of growth to the city, such as businesses, retail stores and residential development. This request would benefit Spring Hill Rising 2040, which is the city’s comprehensive plan that outlines the strategies and plans for growth over the course of the next 25 years (2015-2040). 

The city believes that this will have a positive impact on public health and safety, as well as on surrounding neighborhoods. The city also states that the rezone aligns with objectives for Residential Neighborhood areas in Spring Hill Rising. 

The planning commission will reconvene on Aug. 11 for its regular voting meeting.

Morton Funeral Home Added to National Network (CDH)

The historic Mrs. A.J. Morton & Son Funeral Home in Columbia is now a member of the African American Civil Rights Network.

The recognition was achieved in 2024 and announced at the annual African American Heritage Society of Maury County meeting.

“The Morton property was placed on the AACRN because of its history during the modern-day civil rights movement (1939-1968)," said JoAnn McClellan, president of the county AAHS.

McClellan called the structure a "cultural institution," representing the impact of early Black business owners in Columbia and throughout the nation.

"But this family business is historic because it started during the Reconstruction Era (1861-1900)," she said. "Black-owned and operated funeral homes have a rich heritage, not only as businesses, but also cultural institutions. They were among the first family businesses established by Blacks after the abolition of slavery. Entrepreneurs entered this field often rising to leadership positions within their communities.”

The AACRN, a national organization, established through the African American Civil Rights Network Act of 2017, was created to serve as official recognition for the events, people and places with a verifiable connection to the Civil Rights Movement.

The Morton funeral home, located on East 8th Street, is where a portion of the "Columbia Race Riot of 1946" took place, a landmark incident that turned the nation's eyes to Columbia, laying an early foundation for the Civil Rights Movement.

The events that led to what is known as the Columbia Race Riot of 1946 started with a disagreement, turned altercation at a downtown Columbia repair shop over a radio.

A 19-year-old African American Navy veteran James Stephenson and his mother were accused of attacking a radio repairman, a white Army veteran, when they expressed dissatisfaction with the repairman's work. A fist fight ensued, and the Stephensons were arrested.

Later that day when tensions about the issue spread around town, police officers were wounded when they tried to enter the African American business district. The next morning, the Tennessee Highway Patrol took matters into their own hands when they violently invaded the business district, arrested and beat many Black men and business owners without warrants and destroyed properties, including the Mrs. A. J. Morton & Son Funeral. 

Then dubbed as the 1946 Columbia Race Riot, the incident was the first major outbreak of violence against African American veterans in the U.S. since the end of World War II.

McClellan described the events as an uprising of the Black community.

Almost 100 men from the Black business district in Columbia were arrested that day. Many were let go and later 27 were acquitted.

"The contradiction between fighting to sustain democracy throughout the world [during the war] and experiencing the humiliation of Jim Crow Laws at home was very troubling and called attention to the need for full civil rights for all Americans," McClellan said about the political climate of the time period in Columbia and the nation.

It was Mary Morton, co-proprietor of the Mrs. A .J. Morton & Son Funeral Home with husband James, who contacted, Z. Alexander Looby, a Nashville attorney and member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People national legal committee about the happenings in Columbia, according to McClellan.

Looby contacted Walter White, the executive secretary of the NAACP, informing him of the situation in Columbia. Looby, White, and Maurice Weaver, a white attorney and World War II veteran, were the first to arrive in Columbia to help with the case.

Later, Thurgood Marshall, the head of the NAACP Education and Legal Defense Fund, and Leon Ransom, Dean of the Howard University Law School, joined the team. With Looby serving as the lead attorney, 27 of 28 men charged with crimes were acquitted.

In September 1946, Walter White, with representatives from educational institutions, various church denominations, and labor unions met with President Harry Truman to discuss the violence against veterans and civil rights issues, McClellan said.

The political pressure to act led Truman to issue Executive Order 9808, creating the President’s Committee on Civil Rights. The committee’s report, “To Secure These Rights,” directly challenged all discriminatory practices in education, employment, housing, military and voting, setting a precedent for broader societal changes.

In 1948, Truman issued Executive Order 9981, which led to the integration of previously segregated military units and the federal workforce and paved the way for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"In addition to the civil rights history, the history of this building is crucial to understanding the role of African American women in creating commercial institutions in the challenging times of segregation," McClellan said.

"After the deaths of three generations of Morton men, their widows ran the family funerary business until their sons could take the lead. These women virtually dominated the African American funerary business in Maury County for almost 100 years."

The Mrs. A.J. Morton & Son Funeral Home was placed on the National Register of Historic Places because of its contribution to the historical significance of the Columbia Commercial Historic District.

“Plans are underway to renovate and repurpose this historic property for use as an African American museum and cultural center," McClellan said.

"The museum and cultural center will offer visitors an opportunity to learn how major historical milestones affected local history; and learn about the contributions of the 'hidden figures of Maury County,' or those untold inspirational stories of the challenges, resilience and accomplishments of the people who called Maury County home and fought for civil rights from the 1860s-1960s."

McClellan said the AAHS would also work to place the building on the Civil Rights Trail in the future.

The Civil Rights Trail is a collection of landmarks across 15 states that played a pivotal role in advancing social justice in the 1950s and 1960s.

"It will also provide economic opportunities for Columbia and local businesses,” McClellan said.

Founded in 2012, the African American Heritage Society of Maury County is a nonprofit organization with a mission to preserve the heritage and history of African Americans of Maury County.  

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

William Franklin Tankersley, age 98, a longtime resident of Columbia, died Saturday, August 2, 2025 in Lewisburg.

Funeral services will be conducted Saturday, August 9, 2025 at 2:00 PM at Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home. Burial will follow in Rose Hill Cemetery with military honors provided by Herbert Griffin American Legion Post 19. The family will visit with friends Saturday from 12:00 noon until 2:00 PM at Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home. Online condolences may be extended at www.oakesandnichols.com.

Now, news from around the state…

Blackburn Files Anti-Ed Lobbying Bill (Tennessean)

Shortly after filing previous legislation to revoke the congressional charter of the nation’s oldest teachers' union, U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., has doubled down on her efforts to limit the organization’s reach.

After filing a bill on July 16 to revoke the congressional charter of the National Education Association alongside U.S. Rep. Mark Harris, R-North Carolina, Blackburn has filed a second piece of legislation titled the Terminating Education Association Congressional Handouts (TEACH) Act.

The bill seeks to ban the group from “influencing the decisions of the federal government.”

The move comes amid a volatile few weeks for American public education, following a legal fight over billions of dollars in federal funding for public schools being withheld across the nation and a July 14 Supreme Court ruling that gave the Trump administration the green light to lay off more than 1,300 Education Department workers.

Blackburn’s bill would ban the NEA from lobbying activities, and require the organization to submit an annual certification to the secretary of education affirming that it is not engaging in lobbying.  

“The National Education Association has abandoned its mission of supporting America’s teachers and students in the name of pushing its far-left political agenda,” Blackburn said in a news release. “The NEA has become nothing more than a radical-left activist group, and it has no business using its status as a congressionally chartered entity to push woke gender ideology, antisemitism, and propaganda on America’s students.”

The NEA is one of around 90 congressionally chartered organizations in the United States, including organizations like the American Red Cross, Boy and Girl Scouts of America and the American Legion.

The NEA was granted a charter in 1906, and is the only labor union to be congressionally chartered.

In her news release, Blackburn cites multiple instances of alleged political bias as reasons to remove the education union’s lobbying abilities, stating that 98 percent of NEA political donations went to Democrats in 2024, and accusing the organization of “(standing) in the way” of reopening schools in 2020 and 2021.

In a statement to The Tennessean, a spokesperson for the NEA said politicians are trying to “silence the voices of educators and take away our ability to advocate for students.”

“Across the nation, public school educators dedicate their lives to helping their students thrive,” the spokesperson said. “We work to inspire their students and keep them safe. We deliver nutritious meals and ensure students have clean and healthy learning environments, and we partner with parents and families to empower students to reach their dreams. Educators deserve to have a voice through our union to advocate for better learning conditions, smaller class sizes, and stronger schools.

 “Let me be clear—public school educators will never stop advocating for our students and communities. And the National Education Association will never stop lifting the voices of the educators who dedicate our lives to the success of all students.” 

Blackburn’s new bill is the third bill this year taking aim at the NEA for its organizational activities.

Just days previously, U.S. Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, R-Wisconsin, and Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyoming), filed a much more thorough bill seeking to restructure its federal charter in a number of ways.

The bill, which includes many initiatives, includes items to prevent the NEA from calling for strikes or work stoppages, require all NEA members to be U.S. citizens, establish that assets belonging to the NEA would go to the Department of the Treasury if ever dissolved, and prohibits the union from “encouraging or requiring members to adhere to any critical race theory concept,” and more.

Final Story of the Day (Maury County Source)

Nashville Zoo’s Fall Zzzoofari Slumber returns Saturday, August 30 from 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. the next day. The annual fall event features a unique overnight camping experience where the wild things are! Guests will slumber under the stars just a short distance away from the snoozing animals. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased on the Zoo’s website.

Zzzoofari Slumber is recommended for families with kids ages 4-12 years old. Guests can enjoy select animal habitats, an animal show, the Jungle Gym, campfire treats, free 4D Theater, zip line, and carousel rides during the evening and breakfast the next morning. Campers also receive free entry to the Zoo on Sunday.

For more information about Zzzoofari Slumber and to register, please visit www.nashvillezoo.org/upcoming-events/event/fall-slumber.