Marble City Update

So some of you may have read a little tweet that leaked out a few weeks ago hinting that something was awry at Marble City. That blogger has since been fired and his family exiled to Siberia.

I had a chance to revisit our friends with the dream of delivering more delicious libations for our city not long after that snafu and let me just say that things are humming. I'm not a beer expert, manufacturing that is, so I had some fairly unrealistic expectations about when they would be ready to put out a product. Apparently the first keg takes something close to 18 months to produce, the second about 18 seconds.

The biggest hang up has been the permits, which just recently got in order.

Please see the story here.

I did have some of "their product" though. I put that in quotes because it is all small batch and not produced on site just yet. Let me just say that they will have a wonderful product to offer if the preview holds true.

The closer everything gets to opening the more details I'll have, but be prepared to see Marble City beer very soon, and get excited.

Fellini undergoing 'the change'

So, apparently the Fellini Kroger is going to be going through a bit of a change in the next year. (HT to Lady Entropy for bringing this to our attention).

The North Knoxville recycling center and Goodwill dropoff trailer in Fellini's parking lot are set to close Sunday in order to clear room for a Kroger gas station. The city is looking for a place to relocate the center, but in the mean time, the closest recycling dropoffs are at the old Fountain City Kroger site and on State Street downtown. (Allow me to once again plug the subscription curbside service.) Not sure what's going to happen to the Goodwill drop, but I'm guessing you can just take your stuff to the store located in the same shopping center for now.

And according to the Kroger managers, Fellini is going to get an interior remodel sometime in 2011.

So this brings up some mixed feelings for me on both accounts. On one hand, yay for cheaper gas. My fiance and I do all our grocery shopping at Kroger, so we really rack up the gas points, and it would be nice to actually get to use them.

But on the other hand, B and I used that recycling dropoff regularly when we lived in Fourth and Gill. In fact, lots of people use it regularly because there was ALWAYS someone else there dumping their recycling. I'd venture to guess that's one of the more popular dropoff sites.

Someone else also questioned whether the site itself was appropriate for a gas station and the large gas tanks that will come with it being practically on top of First Creek. Gas tanks leak. Leaking means a big pollution hazard for a creek that's already got its share of troubles.

And then the remodel: I know some people might say updating Fellini will cause it to lose some of its charm. I'm not one of those people. I say hooray for Kroger investing in what has felt like a seriously overlooked store. The crazy characters that shop there will still shop there.

Anyone got more dirt on the changes?

Rock For Haiti Aid

Most of you don't know this, but as well as being a renowned blogger, I am involved with a lot of work in Haiti. I just got back from working in Haiti a month ago, right before the earthquake hit. I've worked down there for a long time, and I can tell you they need all the help they can get. So I wanted to pass this along- Sapphire is hosting Rock for Haiti Aid to raise aid for earthquake relief. You can find more info here.

The low down:

Thursday, February 4th

three bands-

The Fine Line 8 - 9
Vera Noreva 9 - 10:30
Joe Dunn of Adoration 11 - 12

NO cover- 1% of bar sales go to relief efforts through the Red Cross.

I know 1% doesn't sound like much, but if you've ever bought a cocktail at Sapphire you know that those proceeds will pile up quick. If you're going out to drink or see live music anyways, why not do it for a good cause?

[edit: 10% of bar sales will be donated. even better!]

to hen, or not to hen

There's been a growing movement in Knoxville that might surprise you- to raise chickens legally in one's backyard. Many of you might not realize that raising chickens is illegal in our town. Fewer of you might know that this doesn't deter many Knoxvillians from doing just that. Lo has pointed out at least three coops that you can see from his back patio. A co-worker tells me she wakes up to rooster crows down on Sevier Ave.

Now, with the "Urban Hen Coalition" some of our townsfolk are seeking to make what's already happening nice and legal-like. And, improbably, our leaders are listening and testing the water. Nick Pavlis, the District 1 councilman, has joined the interweb era and actually has a poll on his website asking whether or not hens should be allowed in the city.

What do you think? Go tell Pavlis at his fancy website. As for me, I'm gonna start shopping around for a head-chopping block for my backyard.

the homeless: another downtowner's perspective

I wrote a comment on the Pol's latest dissertation, but it was so long I decided to make it a full fledged post. I want to preface this by saying I respect what The Pol is saying. I've known him for quite some time and I know he's a feather ruffler. He wants people to think, and he does a pretty dang good job at it.

I wanted to share my perspective on the issue as someone who lives near downtown and has interacted with a lot of homeless people since I've lived in Knoxville.

Call me a simpleton, but I've always thought the issue of homelessness runs a lot deeper than what government will do for the homeless. I think it's easy for downtowners to have a holier-than-thou attitude concerning the matter. The recent controversy about the County Commission's decision has made me realize that downtowners feel like we are bearing the brunt of this problem and are resentful about people who don't want to share the load. But if you are a downtowner, may I pose the question: How are you physically helping the problem aside from complaining about it or blaming others? I know I have to ask myself this a lot.

Homelessness has been a problem in Knoxville far longer than I've lived here, and I think downtowners can be just as negligent about this issue as people out West. There are probably just as many North Knoxvillians who want to transplant the homeless shelters from Broadway and Magnolia to a more desirable location- out of sight.

No matter where there is talk of building more shelters or homeless housing, nearby residents will complain. All this is to say, as downtowners we can't make a sweeping claim that we accept the homeless out of any love or care. Most downtowners accept homeless people just because we have no other choice.

I think the decision to refuse homeless housing out West reflects the opinions of most of Knoxville, not just people out West. Yes, as downtowners, we've learned to be cordial to the homeless when they panhandle us on our way to work, but that's not enough. Our cordiality isn't pulling anyone out of their hopeless state.

The homeless problem is not just where are we going to put these people. The problem is how, as citizens of Knoxville, are we going to love and care for the homeless to help give them the best life possible, whether they are grateful or not, whether they change or not. Then we change the question of "What are we going to do with them?" to "How is MY thinking and perspective wrong regarding the homeless? What can I do to help?"

I am a firm believer that you don't have to join the Peace Corps to help people in need. You don't need to move to a leper colony to help people the way Mother Teresa did. Knoxville has its work cut out for it. I personally don't think anyone should be allowed to make decisions on the homeless until they've hung out outside of Knox Area Rescue Ministry, but what is my opinion worth... I'm not in politics.

The Homeless? Not MY Problem!!

Seriously, why are West Knoxvillians being complete and total d-bags?

Ok so maybe not all of them wanted to keep the homeless, well, homeless. But enough of them did that the County Commission voted overwhelmingly to make sure that the homeless were not exposed to the horrors of suburban life. (Again why do we have dual government?)

It infuriates me to no end to know that two hundred people turned out at a meeting the other evening to talk about how the homeless didn't need to live at Lovell Rd. and Pellissippi, while these are probably the same people who donate to the Love Kitchen and KARM. Stop living your dual lives of not having to see anything unpleasant while pretending to care about the "sufferings of others"!

Heaven knows you wouldn't want you 8th grader to know that there are people who are trying to get their lives together living near them. No sir, lets build them a nice complex off Magnolia Ave. where people like THEM should live.

My favorite question from the forum the other night, "Don't we have any say where these people live?" And the response, "You don't have any say in where they live just a you don't have any say where African-Americans live."

It's time for a reality check for our suburbanite citizens. You don't get to have your cake and eat it too. You don't get to live 15 minutes from downtown, use city services and enjoy the benefits, without having to do you part in a joint effort to solve real problems (i.e. The Ten Year Plan).

No, the homeless aren't pretty, but we're not talking about putting the pan-handlers in Turkey Creek (Though they would do alot better) we're talking about housing for people who are taking steps to improve their situation in life. To no longer rely on handouts and to become "productive" citizens and maximize the abilities and talents that they have.

Time for some shame and guilt. I'm sick of hearing people I work with out west talk about how they don't like downtown because of the homeless people. Well guess what, here is an attempt to solve one of your complaints and if you would simply accept a mild amount of unpleasantness the 2 times a week you drive by some new apartments or see a KAT bus, it might not be as big a problem as it once was. I'm sure there would be some landscaping so maybe you wouldn't even have to see the buildings.

Or you can continue to be self-righteous navel gazers who think that if you build a big enough gate around your subdivision it will all be ok.

PS - Don't use the liquor store argument- it's not like alcoholics wouldn't just ride the bus to buy a drink anyways. It's just a cop out and again these people are trying to clean up their lives.

**Edit**

The liquor store argument was simply that there was a liquor store withing 2 minutes of the proposed location, which naturally made that site a "terrible" choice.

a few observations while walking

My delightful lunch bike ride came to an abrupt stop today with a flat tire. Sadly, yours truly has not gotten a new patch kit (depleted from so much glass on our streets) so I had to walk back to work. However, it did give an opportunity to observe and take some pictures. I came upon what might be my favorite architectural feature downtown:


Just up Church Street I saw something interesting:


I've heard rumors that there's a historic building hiding under that green brick travesty- is that exploratory demolition I see? Hopefully the owners find something worth saving and get rid of that awful skin.

Finally, I saw activity and a new sign at the woefully underused side of Koi on Market Square:


Looks like the "Dining District" will have yet another choice soon.

Because we're all in this together...

OK, so I commute west to Pellissippi every morning. In my daily comings and goings I have come to a realization that police are, at times, rather predictable. They tend to go back to their same spots in order to catch speeders and rarely deviate.

Then I realized, well if I notice this other people must too. So here it is. An interactive map where you, the reader can get the heads up before getting pulled over or "taxed" by a redlight camera.

Make comments as well if there is a specific tip that we should all know. But some detail in there as well. Times most likely to see the police and where. Also if you know of other locations of the afore mentioned "cameras" please note them too as I have a cute icon all lined up.


View A Cautionary Map in a larger map

Sorry, the pol is not really tech savvy so you have to zoom in.
[update: ck is, so no worries.]

A Bit of Potpourri from The Pol

Some thoughts, observations etc. from the past 24 hours.

#1 Some people just take laziness to new heights. (ps - that's a christmas tree on top of a car in April)















Because the disappointment of having to take down the tree after Christmas can be avoided by simply never putting it up.

#2 - Went to see State of Play last night at the Riviera, couple of sub points:

A. Ticket prices have jumped again. $9 a pop for a ticket (good thing we got free ones as a gift) and a small popcorn and drink alone set us back $10.25. listen I get that the theatres have to turn a profit, I respect that. I just think they may be overplaying their hand. I love movies, but not more than a love a good meal. If I have to chose between the two, which I would because full price for both is insane, the movies lose. That's why God invented Netflix.

B. State of Play reminded me of the big picture problem with the red light cameras. If we continue down a path of corporatizing law enforcement we will all soon be left without basic protections in our legal system. It truly will be "us vs. them".

#3 One my early morning walk this morning I went by the fountains at worlds fair. Deep breath... IF YOU WON'T PICK UP YOUR OWN BABIES DIAPER THAT YOU CHANGED ON THE PARK LAWN PLEASE, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL HUMANITY, LOCK YOURSELF IN YOUR HOME AND SPARE US ALL THE TROUBLE OF HAVING TO SUFFER YOU!!!!!
Seriously, there was so much trash on the ground I thought I was at a football game. Please don't litter, it's ridiculous and if you see someone doing it call them out. That's definitely something worth swinging a punch for.

Thank you for your time and attention.

S.O.S: save our Skybox

Friends of the Wigshop: It has come to our attention that our Wigshop HQ aka the Skybox at the Sunsphere has fallen on rough times. WBIR reports that Southern Graces, the company that caters all the private functions at the Sunsphere and operates the Skybox, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The story says Southern Graces will continue to operate, but the company owes about $204,000 to creditors and holds assets of less than $50,000.


We're asking you to throw some biznass their way. We know the drinks are a little pricey, but consider it to be taking one for the collective city of Knoxville team. How many other cities can say they have a gold disco ball hung in the sky WHERE YOU CAN DRINK? Let me repeat: gold disco ball sky drink.


Thank you in advance for your help with this urgent matter.

Tea Party Recap

Ok so I went to the Knoxville Tea Party. I got there at 5:30 and left around 5:50, so I was not involved as much as I would like but got to see alot and hear a good deal.

What struck me most was the broad range of participants that were at this rally. It wasn't just one group it was lots of different (and seemingly random) people. You had parents with children, bikers, business people, hippie-type students, working class, blogging class, and everyone in between.

What really stood out to me was just the overall sense of enjoyment and ease that everyone there exuded. Everyone I saw was smiling and happy even though the day was a bit chilly. Perhaps it was a common sense of purpose, though each person seemed to have their own.

Some people were protesting "Big Brother", some were protesting high taxes, some wasteful spending, some people just wanted to say they loved the principles the country was founded upon. One lady had a sign (which I posted below) equating Bush and Obama as one and the same, yeah I didn't see that one coming either.

Anyways, it was a really well attended rally by lots of different Knoxvillians and all in the shadow of the Sunsphere, a very worthwhile event, at least in this wigshoppers opinion.

Enjoy the Photos (see if you can pick out my favorite sign)















"The Approach"




















"What? It's the Sunsphere."















"Yeah it was packed in there"















"People of all political shades turned out"















"My that sign is witty"















"The ere mentioned sign."

You Say You Want a Revolution...

Last night I sent Uncle Sam my dues. It's a painful, but healthy exercise that keeps me interested in what my government does with my money.

Recently though, many people (me included) have started to think the government is doing too much. More than it is legally commanded, and more than is morally proper. In response, all over the country people have been holding "Tea Parties" and Knoxville is getting in on the action.

Tomorrow, Tax Day, a number of different groups will be holding a "Tea Party" in Worlds Fair Park. I use quotations because you really wont be able to dump your Jasmine China Green Loose Leaf into the Worlds Fair Reflecting pool... sorry.

Here's the website http://knoxvilleteaparty.com/

I'll be there towards the end since it is from 3:00 to 6:00.

I'll snap some photos and try to talk to some of the presenters and get a feel for the message.

update from .max:



update #2: Knoxville's own Glenn Reynolds gives his point of view in the WSJ.

Speaking of life on Gay Street ...

I was recently enjoying a little time off campus for lunch a Little Havana, and after finishing my plantain walked out onto Gay Street to find my car being towed by my good friends at Floyd's Wrecker Service.


Now, clearly I was at fault. I parked in the loading zone on the Viaduct. However, all this to say that functioning on Gay Street is a pain in the neck (read: wallet). After paying off Floyd's Wrecker Service, I was talking to the cops there and they said that they waited a while (30 min) before calling Floyds, and that the loading zone was full of cars. At which point I began thinking about how my $10 lunch was now going to be an $80 lunch, and that I probably should have just stayed on campus and eaten the turkey sandwich that now sat alone and uneaten at my desk. 


Sadly my pleas for more lenient parking enforcement during this crap time on Gay Street went unabated. 

Diners and residents beware!

Photocredit - Todd Sparks' iPhone

Pancakes for ALL!!!

I found this on the street last night... figured it was blog worthy, though apparently ck, the wife, and i are going to see the Big Lebowski at the bijou tomorrow night at 9.

Does anyone have any more details on the pancake dinner? I do like the flyers they made (maybe Yee-haw work??)

Just a little "about town" news.

music to my ears

Bela Fleck played at the Blue Plate Special today and it made my heart glad. He's been in Knoxville promoting his new cd and documentary Throw Down Your Heart, where he collaborated with musicians in Africa. If you missed BPS today, don't worry. He's coming back with some of the African musicians he met to play at the Tennessee Theater April 3rd.

Also playing at the Blue Plate today was a freshly formed, Knoxville-grown band called Shortwave Society. The band features some of the guys from "Same as it Ever Was" and two girls from Norwegian Wood, the String Quartet Tribute to the Beatles. They've put together their incredibly creative forces to produce a unique and engaging sound.

They're playing tonight at Barley's in the Old City if you'd like to check them out, but don't expect anything run-of-the-mill from 'em.

Red Light Cams Part LXXII

Here We Go Again


So there is one benefit to being an insurance salesman, I get an email with interesting stories and happenings relating to insurance stuff... ok so maybe that's not a benefit, but come on, I need some hope.

Well, I got an email the other day with an unsurprising, but always welcome story about that ridiculous and legally dubious practice of privatizing our law enforcement the city fathers refer to as "Red light Cameras".

If you have followed any of my previous rants you'll see my true feelings on these devices, which I won't go into again here.

Anyways, this article examines the inverse relationship between these cameras and safety, meaning they are a hazard and a nuisance, but hey they generate some hassle free money for the coffers so who cares right?

From the article:

“There is a significant decrease in right-angle crashes, but there is also a significant increase in rear-end crashes,” the summary concluded, finding a decline of 379 right angle crashes and an increase of 375 rear-end crashes in the period studied."

But you don't have to take... my word for it.

Finally, as some of you may know Red Flex (our own private big brother) did not get their contract renewed, but don't worry the city is in the process of installing some other companies equipment to help them make money off of us. More details on that as it comes to light.

New owners for Nama

So Gregg White appears to be out of the Knoxville restaurant business for the time being. I'd heard some rumblings about him selling Nama, and the News Sentinel says today that's the case.

The new owners plan to turn Nama into at least a regional brand and franchise it. Before the rumors that Gregg was going to sell Nama started floating, there was talk that he wanted to do something similar. Gregg is going to stick around in a consulting capacity while he pursues some sort of green business concept.

The new chief manager is Gale Huneycutt, whose group is in charge of all the local Puleo's Grilles.

According to Carly Harrington, he'll make a few changes like opening for lunch on Sundays and adding some non-sushi options to the Bearden menu.

I'm sure Gregg will still be around, it just seems strange that he won't actually own any of the places after being a fixture of Knoxville's downtown restaurant scene for so long. It's my understanding that business had taken a bit of a hit in recent months, so I would guess that had something to do with it.

Does anyone have any more details?

Post-Mardi Growl Post

In keeping with the recent theme of animals, I am here to do a quick post on Knoxville's most debaucherous canine event. I am of course speaking of the "Mardi Growl".

To think I took my precious puppy around that mass of sin and raucousness. There were all different breeds from hound to harlot roaming free in downtown Knoxville without a care as to the impact that they may have on the children.

WON'T SOMEONE PLEASE THINK OF THE CHILDREN!?!?!

Alas, I did go and covered Bella's eyes most of the time. The only redeeming point was the delicious Cafe au Lait we split and the plate of beignets (sp?).

Anyways I have a few pictures and a video from the event if you chose to look, though I recommend making sure your boss isn't around.

It's all a matter of perspective

Well I've been meaning to get this up for a few days now (but AT&T has screwed that up) and so unless it snows today this will seem a little behind the times.

I went to pick my wife up from her office on campus the other day, after it had snowed the 4 inches earlier only to discover this sad sight.

















This cat lives on this roof more or less. People who live in this house will daily put the cat out on the roof while they go to work, class, whatever, and leave the cat to fend for itself. Well thats ok when it's 70 and sun-shiney, but on snow days it's just a bit rude.

My wife said she had been watching that cat pace, then go over and relieve itself in the snow, the go back and sit by the window all day, just hoping that someone would come let it in.

All this to say, if you ever think your day is going bad, please make a copy of this picture and put it in your cubicle.

At least you're not this cat.

The End is Nigh

Well downtowners, it's finally upon us.

The 100 block of Gay Street is closing for renovation for (wait for it) ... 18 months. While this will be a big inconvenience to those who frequent the area, the work should make for a better 100 block, with trees, benches, bike racks and wider sidewalks along this very popular stretch of street. The 100 block is arguably one of downtown Knoxville's main centers, and this renovation will only further that growth.

This raises several questions for downtowners: how will those businesses on the block hold up? (Nama recently signed a 5-year lease, and what about the new Cuban resto?) Also, what about prices on all the apartments and condos? Will rents come down? Is now the time to buy?

Well whatever will happen come Monday, I think we should be sure to live it up on the 100 block this weekend, because it's gonna be a loooong time before it's back to the quiet block so many of us have come to love.