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Gov. Haslam presents $500,000 to Lafayette
by Tilly Cryar, Editor
Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam speaks at Lafayette City Hall
Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam speaks at Lafayette City Hall
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TN House of Representatives Speaker Beth Harwell
TN House of Representatives Speaker Beth Harwell
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L-R: Beth Harwell, Terri Lynn Weaver, Mae Beavers, Gov. Bill Haslam, Richard Driver, Shelvy Linville, and Kelly Keisling.
L-R: Beth Harwell, Terri Lynn Weaver, Mae Beavers, Gov. Bill Haslam, Richard Driver, Shelvy Linville, and Kelly Keisling.
slideshow

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam was in Lafayette on Tuesday, September 18, to present the city of Lafayette with a $500,000 grant for sewer system improvements. TN House of Representatives Speaker Beth Harwell was also in attendance, along with a handful of local officials and many community leaders who filled the room at Lafayette City Hall.

The $500,000 community development block grant (CDBG) will be augmented by $102,410 in local funds to complete the full project: replacing 6,050 feet of sewer line, 4,200 feet of which is near downtown Lafayette.

“Infrastructure” was the byword of the day, with speeches given by Lafayette Mayor Richard Driver, Haslam, Harwell, State Senator Mae Beavers, and State Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver.

“CDBG has such a huge impact on our rural communities where we have some of our biggest challenges in economic development,” Haslam said in an earlier press release, and reiterated in his speech. “Having the proper infrastructure in place can lead to additional jobs and investments for a community and enhance the quality of life for its residents.”

The CDBG program is administered in Tennessee by the Department of Economic and Community Development—funds are allocated through a set procedure authorized by the Tennessee General Assembly. These are focused on small towns under 50,000 residents, according to Haslam, and on infrastructure needs specifically. The funds are intended to improve a city’s economic and physical state from the inside out, in other words.

The grant was approved following an application by the City of Lafayette and is supported by state Sen. Mae Beavers (R-MT. Juliet), state Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver (R-Lancaster) and City Mayor Richard Driver. U.S. Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and U.S. Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.) aided in securing the funds.

“There is so much involved with a project like this,” said Rep. Weaver. “Governor, thank you for keeping rural areas on your priority list.”

“Community development block grants allow communities to complete projects that will ultimately lay the ground work for future economic development opportunities,” Haslam said. “I am pleased the state of Tennessee is able to partner with our local communities to make this project a reality.”

Additional CDBG recipients will be announced throughout September and October—Haslam said that he was currently on a “CDBG tour.” CDBG is a federal program that began in 1974. It was intended to provide annual grants community development needs like community livability, sewer lines, sewer systems, housing, water lines and water systems.

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Lafayette sex offender arrested for violation of terms
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 19, 2013 | 87 views | 0 0 comments | 10 10 recommendations | email to a friend | print
D. Coram
D. Coram
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A Lafayette resident was arrested by TBI on June 11 and charged with violating the terms of his status as a registered sex offender.

Coram, who was convicted of possessing child pornography in Wisconsin, was charged with one count of violation of residential restrictions, three counts of violation: offender registration-reg. forms, and one count failure to report-sex offender.

The affidavit states that on June 11, 2013, it was noticed by electronic monitoring that Coram had spent several hours per day at 101 Walton Avenue in Lafayette, for five days in a row. Coram’s registered place of residence is 605 John Street in Lafayette.

Sex offenders are required by law to give notice when they change residences. According to the Tennessee Sex Offender registry, a secondary residence is a place where an offender regularly abides for at least four days in a row.

It was then discovered that Coram had purchased this new residence at Walton Avenue, and he was seen working in the yard there by several law enforcement officers.

During a search, it was found that Coram had created two email addresses, anthony64tn@gmail.com and silvertoungedevil21@gmail.com, which had not been placed on the TN Sex Offender Registry as required by law.

Coram was held without bond for a June 12 General Sessions court appearance.

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download June 18, 2013
Hwy 10 project fully funded
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 18, 2013 | 1728 views | 0 0 comments | 14 14 recommendations | email to a friend | print

The Macon County Mayor’s Office received a letter on Friday stating that the Highway 10 construction project has received full funding and is formally scheduled for bid opening in spring of 2014.

The letter, sent from TN Commissioner of Transportation John Schroer to all local representatives at the state and county level, states that funding for the project has been officially allocated from a state safety program.

The letter cites a public meeting held on May 23 at the Macon County Chamber of Commerce, during which TDOT’s Paul Degges gave an update on where the project stood.

“I understand that Mr. Degges… discussed that the right-of-way acquisition is underway,” writes Schroer, “and that from a schedule perspective, the project will be ready for a bid opening in the spring of 2014, should the funding be available.

“The department has been monitoring crash reports occurring on SR-10 in this vicinity and working with the local Division Office of the Federal Highway Administration, and I am pleased to report that we have been able to identify funding under one of our safety programs to deliver the project.

“I can certainly appreciate your position and share your goals in wanting to provide the safest roads possible for all Tennesseans. I have directed my staff to accelerate the schedule from the fall of 2014 and ready this project for construction in a spring 2014 bid opening.”

County Mayor Shelvy Linville had written TDOT urgently in May complaining that the Hwy 10 project had been put on a backburner, because it did not appear on a three-year budget plan released by TDOT in April.

More recently, Linville said he cut out a front page article from the Macon County Times (June 13 edition) about an accident involving a mother and three minors on Hwy 10, and sent it to TDOT.

“I highlighted ‘mom’, ‘3 children’, and ‘Hwy 10’, and I wrote underneath, ‘This time we were lucky’ and I sent it to them,” said Linville.

Ironically enough, Degges reports that this recent accident contributed to the final numbers necessary to qualify a project for the safety funds that Hwy 10 just received.

“I hate to say it that way… but it’s true,” said Degges. “That this project just barely qualified for safety funds, by the numbers. I know it can seem like this road is the most dangerous stretch in TN, but it simply is not.”

Linville, who admitted after the public meeting that he may have misunderstood the meaning of the three-year plan, stated that he was “cautiously optimistic” about the project moving forward on the schedule that Degges had outlined. Now, he says, “this is good news. That 4th paragraph [in Schroer’s letter] is a sure commitment… I feel good about it now.”

Linville said that he believes the saying ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease’ and added, “I regret not being squeakier earlier.”

Linville also prepared a written statement, thanking the Commissioner and Governor for their commitment to the project: “I believe the commissioner realizes the danger that the highway 10 hill poses, and has found a way to help us sooner rather than later… I certainly look forward to seeing orange barrels and bulldozers on that hill.”

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Lafayette sex offender arrested for violation of terms
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 19, 2013 | 87 views | 0 0 comments | 10 10 recommendations | email to a friend | print
D. Coram
D. Coram
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A Lafayette resident was arrested by TBI on June 11 and charged with violating the terms of his status as a registered sex offender.

Coram, who was convicted of possessing child pornography in Wisconsin, was charged with one count of violation of residential restrictions, three counts of violation: offender registration-reg. forms, and one count failure to report-sex offender.

The affidavit states that on June 11, 2013, it was noticed by electronic monitoring that Coram had spent several hours per day at 101 Walton Avenue in Lafayette, for five days in a row. Coram’s registered place of residence is 605 John Street in Lafayette.

Sex offenders are required by law to give notice when they change residences. According to the Tennessee Sex Offender registry, a secondary residence is a place where an offender regularly abides for at least four days in a row.

It was then discovered that Coram had purchased this new residence at Walton Avenue, and he was seen working in the yard there by several law enforcement officers.

During a search, it was found that Coram had created two email addresses, anthony64tn@gmail.com and silvertoungedevil21@gmail.com, which had not been placed on the TN Sex Offender Registry as required by law.

Coram was held without bond for a June 12 General Sessions court appearance.

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download June 18, 2013
Hwy 10 project fully funded
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 18, 2013 | 1728 views | 0 0 comments | 14 14 recommendations | email to a friend | print

The Macon County Mayor’s Office received a letter on Friday stating that the Highway 10 construction project has received full funding and is formally scheduled for bid opening in spring of 2014.

The letter, sent from TN Commissioner of Transportation John Schroer to all local representatives at the state and county level, states that funding for the project has been officially allocated from a state safety program.

The letter cites a public meeting held on May 23 at the Macon County Chamber of Commerce, during which TDOT’s Paul Degges gave an update on where the project stood.

“I understand that Mr. Degges… discussed that the right-of-way acquisition is underway,” writes Schroer, “and that from a schedule perspective, the project will be ready for a bid opening in the spring of 2014, should the funding be available.

“The department has been monitoring crash reports occurring on SR-10 in this vicinity and working with the local Division Office of the Federal Highway Administration, and I am pleased to report that we have been able to identify funding under one of our safety programs to deliver the project.

“I can certainly appreciate your position and share your goals in wanting to provide the safest roads possible for all Tennesseans. I have directed my staff to accelerate the schedule from the fall of 2014 and ready this project for construction in a spring 2014 bid opening.”

County Mayor Shelvy Linville had written TDOT urgently in May complaining that the Hwy 10 project had been put on a backburner, because it did not appear on a three-year budget plan released by TDOT in April.

More recently, Linville said he cut out a front page article from the Macon County Times (June 13 edition) about an accident involving a mother and three minors on Hwy 10, and sent it to TDOT.

“I highlighted ‘mom’, ‘3 children’, and ‘Hwy 10’, and I wrote underneath, ‘This time we were lucky’ and I sent it to them,” said Linville.

Ironically enough, Degges reports that this recent accident contributed to the final numbers necessary to qualify a project for the safety funds that Hwy 10 just received.

“I hate to say it that way… but it’s true,” said Degges. “That this project just barely qualified for safety funds, by the numbers. I know it can seem like this road is the most dangerous stretch in TN, but it simply is not.”

Linville, who admitted after the public meeting that he may have misunderstood the meaning of the three-year plan, stated that he was “cautiously optimistic” about the project moving forward on the schedule that Degges had outlined. Now, he says, “this is good news. That 4th paragraph [in Schroer’s letter] is a sure commitment… I feel good about it now.”

Linville said that he believes the saying ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease’ and added, “I regret not being squeakier earlier.”

Linville also prepared a written statement, thanking the Commissioner and Governor for their commitment to the project: “I believe the commissioner realizes the danger that the highway 10 hill poses, and has found a way to help us sooner rather than later… I certainly look forward to seeing orange barrels and bulldozers on that hill.”

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Lafayette sex offender arrested for violation of terms
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 19, 2013 | 87 views | 0 0 comments | 10 10 recommendations | email to a friend | print
D. Coram
D. Coram
slideshow

A Lafayette resident was arrested by TBI on June 11 and charged with violating the terms of his status as a registered sex offender.

Coram, who was convicted of possessing child pornography in Wisconsin, was charged with one count of violation of residential restrictions, three counts of violation: offender registration-reg. forms, and one count failure to report-sex offender.

The affidavit states that on June 11, 2013, it was noticed by electronic monitoring that Coram had spent several hours per day at 101 Walton Avenue in Lafayette, for five days in a row. Coram’s registered place of residence is 605 John Street in Lafayette.

Sex offenders are required by law to give notice when they change residences. According to the Tennessee Sex Offender registry, a secondary residence is a place where an offender regularly abides for at least four days in a row.

It was then discovered that Coram had purchased this new residence at Walton Avenue, and he was seen working in the yard there by several law enforcement officers.

During a search, it was found that Coram had created two email addresses, anthony64tn@gmail.com and silvertoungedevil21@gmail.com, which had not been placed on the TN Sex Offender Registry as required by law.

Coram was held without bond for a June 12 General Sessions court appearance.

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download June 18, 2013
Hwy 10 project fully funded
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 18, 2013 | 1728 views | 0 0 comments | 14 14 recommendations | email to a friend | print

The Macon County Mayor’s Office received a letter on Friday stating that the Highway 10 construction project has received full funding and is formally scheduled for bid opening in spring of 2014.

The letter, sent from TN Commissioner of Transportation John Schroer to all local representatives at the state and county level, states that funding for the project has been officially allocated from a state safety program.

The letter cites a public meeting held on May 23 at the Macon County Chamber of Commerce, during which TDOT’s Paul Degges gave an update on where the project stood.

“I understand that Mr. Degges… discussed that the right-of-way acquisition is underway,” writes Schroer, “and that from a schedule perspective, the project will be ready for a bid opening in the spring of 2014, should the funding be available.

“The department has been monitoring crash reports occurring on SR-10 in this vicinity and working with the local Division Office of the Federal Highway Administration, and I am pleased to report that we have been able to identify funding under one of our safety programs to deliver the project.

“I can certainly appreciate your position and share your goals in wanting to provide the safest roads possible for all Tennesseans. I have directed my staff to accelerate the schedule from the fall of 2014 and ready this project for construction in a spring 2014 bid opening.”

County Mayor Shelvy Linville had written TDOT urgently in May complaining that the Hwy 10 project had been put on a backburner, because it did not appear on a three-year budget plan released by TDOT in April.

More recently, Linville said he cut out a front page article from the Macon County Times (June 13 edition) about an accident involving a mother and three minors on Hwy 10, and sent it to TDOT.

“I highlighted ‘mom’, ‘3 children’, and ‘Hwy 10’, and I wrote underneath, ‘This time we were lucky’ and I sent it to them,” said Linville.

Ironically enough, Degges reports that this recent accident contributed to the final numbers necessary to qualify a project for the safety funds that Hwy 10 just received.

“I hate to say it that way… but it’s true,” said Degges. “That this project just barely qualified for safety funds, by the numbers. I know it can seem like this road is the most dangerous stretch in TN, but it simply is not.”

Linville, who admitted after the public meeting that he may have misunderstood the meaning of the three-year plan, stated that he was “cautiously optimistic” about the project moving forward on the schedule that Degges had outlined. Now, he says, “this is good news. That 4th paragraph [in Schroer’s letter] is a sure commitment… I feel good about it now.”

Linville said that he believes the saying ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease’ and added, “I regret not being squeakier earlier.”

Linville also prepared a written statement, thanking the Commissioner and Governor for their commitment to the project: “I believe the commissioner realizes the danger that the highway 10 hill poses, and has found a way to help us sooner rather than later… I certainly look forward to seeing orange barrels and bulldozers on that hill.”

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D. Coram
D. Coram
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A Lafayette resident was arrested by TBI on June 11 and charged with violating the terms of his status as a registered sex offender.

Coram, who was convicted of possessing child pornography in Wisconsin, was charged with one count of violation of residential restrictions, three counts of violation: offender registration-reg. forms, and one count failure to report-sex offender.

The affidavit states that on June 11, 2013, it was noticed by electronic monitoring that Coram had spent several hours per day at 101 Walton Avenue in Lafayette, for five days in a row. Coram’s registered place of residence is 605 John Street in Lafayette.

Sex offenders are required by law to give notice when they change residences. According to the Tennessee Sex Offender registry, a secondary residence is a place where an offender regularly abides for at least four days in a row.

It was then discovered that Coram had purchased this new residence at Walton Avenue, and he was seen working in the yard there by several law enforcement officers.

During a search, it was found that Coram had created two email addresses, anthony64tn@gmail.com and silvertoungedevil21@gmail.com, which had not been placed on the TN Sex Offender Registry as required by law.

Coram was held without bond for a June 12 General Sessions court appearance.

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download June 18, 2013
Hwy 10 project fully funded
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 18, 2013 | 1728 views | 0 0 comments | 14 14 recommendations | email to a friend | print

The Macon County Mayor’s Office received a letter on Friday stating that the Highway 10 construction project has received full funding and is formally scheduled for bid opening in spring of 2014.

The letter, sent from TN Commissioner of Transportation John Schroer to all local representatives at the state and county level, states that funding for the project has been officially allocated from a state safety program.

The letter cites a public meeting held on May 23 at the Macon County Chamber of Commerce, during which TDOT’s Paul Degges gave an update on where the project stood.

“I understand that Mr. Degges… discussed that the right-of-way acquisition is underway,” writes Schroer, “and that from a schedule perspective, the project will be ready for a bid opening in the spring of 2014, should the funding be available.

“The department has been monitoring crash reports occurring on SR-10 in this vicinity and working with the local Division Office of the Federal Highway Administration, and I am pleased to report that we have been able to identify funding under one of our safety programs to deliver the project.

“I can certainly appreciate your position and share your goals in wanting to provide the safest roads possible for all Tennesseans. I have directed my staff to accelerate the schedule from the fall of 2014 and ready this project for construction in a spring 2014 bid opening.”

County Mayor Shelvy Linville had written TDOT urgently in May complaining that the Hwy 10 project had been put on a backburner, because it did not appear on a three-year budget plan released by TDOT in April.

More recently, Linville said he cut out a front page article from the Macon County Times (June 13 edition) about an accident involving a mother and three minors on Hwy 10, and sent it to TDOT.

“I highlighted ‘mom’, ‘3 children’, and ‘Hwy 10’, and I wrote underneath, ‘This time we were lucky’ and I sent it to them,” said Linville.

Ironically enough, Degges reports that this recent accident contributed to the final numbers necessary to qualify a project for the safety funds that Hwy 10 just received.

“I hate to say it that way… but it’s true,” said Degges. “That this project just barely qualified for safety funds, by the numbers. I know it can seem like this road is the most dangerous stretch in TN, but it simply is not.”

Linville, who admitted after the public meeting that he may have misunderstood the meaning of the three-year plan, stated that he was “cautiously optimistic” about the project moving forward on the schedule that Degges had outlined. Now, he says, “this is good news. That 4th paragraph [in Schroer’s letter] is a sure commitment… I feel good about it now.”

Linville said that he believes the saying ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease’ and added, “I regret not being squeakier earlier.”

Linville also prepared a written statement, thanking the Commissioner and Governor for their commitment to the project: “I believe the commissioner realizes the danger that the highway 10 hill poses, and has found a way to help us sooner rather than later… I certainly look forward to seeing orange barrels and bulldozers on that hill.”

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Lafayette sex offender arrested for violation of terms
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 19, 2013 | 87 views | 0 0 comments | 10 10 recommendations | email to a friend | print
D. Coram
D. Coram
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A Lafayette resident was arrested by TBI on June 11 and charged with violating the terms of his status as a registered sex offender.

Coram, who was convicted of possessing child pornography in Wisconsin, was charged with one count of violation of residential restrictions, three counts of violation: offender registration-reg. forms, and one count failure to report-sex offender.

The affidavit states that on June 11, 2013, it was noticed by electronic monitoring that Coram had spent several hours per day at 101 Walton Avenue in Lafayette, for five days in a row. Coram’s registered place of residence is 605 John Street in Lafayette.

Sex offenders are required by law to give notice when they change residences. According to the Tennessee Sex Offender registry, a secondary residence is a place where an offender regularly abides for at least four days in a row.

It was then discovered that Coram had purchased this new residence at Walton Avenue, and he was seen working in the yard there by several law enforcement officers.

During a search, it was found that Coram had created two email addresses, anthony64tn@gmail.com and silvertoungedevil21@gmail.com, which had not been placed on the TN Sex Offender Registry as required by law.

Coram was held without bond for a June 12 General Sessions court appearance.

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download June 18, 2013
Hwy 10 project fully funded
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 18, 2013 | 1728 views | 0 0 comments | 14 14 recommendations | email to a friend | print

The Macon County Mayor’s Office received a letter on Friday stating that the Highway 10 construction project has received full funding and is formally scheduled for bid opening in spring of 2014.

The letter, sent from TN Commissioner of Transportation John Schroer to all local representatives at the state and county level, states that funding for the project has been officially allocated from a state safety program.

The letter cites a public meeting held on May 23 at the Macon County Chamber of Commerce, during which TDOT’s Paul Degges gave an update on where the project stood.

“I understand that Mr. Degges… discussed that the right-of-way acquisition is underway,” writes Schroer, “and that from a schedule perspective, the project will be ready for a bid opening in the spring of 2014, should the funding be available.

“The department has been monitoring crash reports occurring on SR-10 in this vicinity and working with the local Division Office of the Federal Highway Administration, and I am pleased to report that we have been able to identify funding under one of our safety programs to deliver the project.

“I can certainly appreciate your position and share your goals in wanting to provide the safest roads possible for all Tennesseans. I have directed my staff to accelerate the schedule from the fall of 2014 and ready this project for construction in a spring 2014 bid opening.”

County Mayor Shelvy Linville had written TDOT urgently in May complaining that the Hwy 10 project had been put on a backburner, because it did not appear on a three-year budget plan released by TDOT in April.

More recently, Linville said he cut out a front page article from the Macon County Times (June 13 edition) about an accident involving a mother and three minors on Hwy 10, and sent it to TDOT.

“I highlighted ‘mom’, ‘3 children’, and ‘Hwy 10’, and I wrote underneath, ‘This time we were lucky’ and I sent it to them,” said Linville.

Ironically enough, Degges reports that this recent accident contributed to the final numbers necessary to qualify a project for the safety funds that Hwy 10 just received.

“I hate to say it that way… but it’s true,” said Degges. “That this project just barely qualified for safety funds, by the numbers. I know it can seem like this road is the most dangerous stretch in TN, but it simply is not.”

Linville, who admitted after the public meeting that he may have misunderstood the meaning of the three-year plan, stated that he was “cautiously optimistic” about the project moving forward on the schedule that Degges had outlined. Now, he says, “this is good news. That 4th paragraph [in Schroer’s letter] is a sure commitment… I feel good about it now.”

Linville said that he believes the saying ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease’ and added, “I regret not being squeakier earlier.”

Linville also prepared a written statement, thanking the Commissioner and Governor for their commitment to the project: “I believe the commissioner realizes the danger that the highway 10 hill poses, and has found a way to help us sooner rather than later… I certainly look forward to seeing orange barrels and bulldozers on that hill.”

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by Tilly Dillehay
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Jun 19, 2013 | 87 views | 0 0 comments | 10 10 recommendations | email to a friend | print
D. Coram
D. Coram
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A Lafayette resident was arrested by TBI on June 11 and charged with violating the terms of his status as a registered sex offender.

Coram, who was convicted of possessing child pornography in Wisconsin, was charged with one count of violation of residential restrictions, three counts of violation: offender registration-reg. forms, and one count failure to report-sex offender.

The affidavit states that on June 11, 2013, it was noticed by electronic monitoring that Coram had spent several hours per day at 101 Walton Avenue in Lafayette, for five days in a row. Coram’s registered place of residence is 605 John Street in Lafayette.

Sex offenders are required by law to give notice when they change residences. According to the Tennessee Sex Offender registry, a secondary residence is a place where an offender regularly abides for at least four days in a row.

It was then discovered that Coram had purchased this new residence at Walton Avenue, and he was seen working in the yard there by several law enforcement officers.

During a search, it was found that Coram had created two email addresses, anthony64tn@gmail.com and silvertoungedevil21@gmail.com, which had not been placed on the TN Sex Offender Registry as required by law.

Coram was held without bond for a June 12 General Sessions court appearance.

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download June 18, 2013
Hwy 10 project fully funded
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 18, 2013 | 1728 views | 0 0 comments | 14 14 recommendations | email to a friend | print

The Macon County Mayor’s Office received a letter on Friday stating that the Highway 10 construction project has received full funding and is formally scheduled for bid opening in spring of 2014.

The letter, sent from TN Commissioner of Transportation John Schroer to all local representatives at the state and county level, states that funding for the project has been officially allocated from a state safety program.

The letter cites a public meeting held on May 23 at the Macon County Chamber of Commerce, during which TDOT’s Paul Degges gave an update on where the project stood.

“I understand that Mr. Degges… discussed that the right-of-way acquisition is underway,” writes Schroer, “and that from a schedule perspective, the project will be ready for a bid opening in the spring of 2014, should the funding be available.

“The department has been monitoring crash reports occurring on SR-10 in this vicinity and working with the local Division Office of the Federal Highway Administration, and I am pleased to report that we have been able to identify funding under one of our safety programs to deliver the project.

“I can certainly appreciate your position and share your goals in wanting to provide the safest roads possible for all Tennesseans. I have directed my staff to accelerate the schedule from the fall of 2014 and ready this project for construction in a spring 2014 bid opening.”

County Mayor Shelvy Linville had written TDOT urgently in May complaining that the Hwy 10 project had been put on a backburner, because it did not appear on a three-year budget plan released by TDOT in April.

More recently, Linville said he cut out a front page article from the Macon County Times (June 13 edition) about an accident involving a mother and three minors on Hwy 10, and sent it to TDOT.

“I highlighted ‘mom’, ‘3 children’, and ‘Hwy 10’, and I wrote underneath, ‘This time we were lucky’ and I sent it to them,” said Linville.

Ironically enough, Degges reports that this recent accident contributed to the final numbers necessary to qualify a project for the safety funds that Hwy 10 just received.

“I hate to say it that way… but it’s true,” said Degges. “That this project just barely qualified for safety funds, by the numbers. I know it can seem like this road is the most dangerous stretch in TN, but it simply is not.”

Linville, who admitted after the public meeting that he may have misunderstood the meaning of the three-year plan, stated that he was “cautiously optimistic” about the project moving forward on the schedule that Degges had outlined. Now, he says, “this is good news. That 4th paragraph [in Schroer’s letter] is a sure commitment… I feel good about it now.”

Linville said that he believes the saying ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease’ and added, “I regret not being squeakier earlier.”

Linville also prepared a written statement, thanking the Commissioner and Governor for their commitment to the project: “I believe the commissioner realizes the danger that the highway 10 hill poses, and has found a way to help us sooner rather than later… I certainly look forward to seeing orange barrels and bulldozers on that hill.”

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Willie Don Barrett
Willie Don Barrett
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D. Coram
D. Coram
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Lafayette sex offender arrested for violation of terms
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 19, 2013 | 87 views | 0 0 comments | 10 10 recommendations | email to a friend | print
D. Coram
D. Coram
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A Lafayette resident was arrested by TBI on June 11 and charged with violating the terms of his status as a registered sex offender.

Coram, who was convicted of possessing child pornography in Wisconsin, was charged with one count of violation of residential restrictions, three counts of violation: offender registration-reg. forms, and one count failure to report-sex offender.

The affidavit states that on June 11, 2013, it was noticed by electronic monitoring that Coram had spent several hours per day at 101 Walton Avenue in Lafayette, for five days in a row. Coram’s registered place of residence is 605 John Street in Lafayette.

Sex offenders are required by law to give notice when they change residences. According to the Tennessee Sex Offender registry, a secondary residence is a place where an offender regularly abides for at least four days in a row.

It was then discovered that Coram had purchased this new residence at Walton Avenue, and he was seen working in the yard there by several law enforcement officers.

During a search, it was found that Coram had created two email addresses, anthony64tn@gmail.com and silvertoungedevil21@gmail.com, which had not been placed on the TN Sex Offender Registry as required by law.

Coram was held without bond for a June 12 General Sessions court appearance.

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download June 18, 2013
Hwy 10 project fully funded
by Tilly Dillehay
Editor
Jun 18, 2013 | 1728 views | 0 0 comments | 14 14 recommendations | email to a friend | print

The Macon County Mayor’s Office received a letter on Friday stating that the Highway 10 construction project has received full funding and is formally scheduled for bid opening in spring of 2014.

The letter, sent from TN Commissioner of Transportation John Schroer to all local representatives at the state and county level, states that funding for the project has been officially allocated from a state safety program.

The letter cites a public meeting held on May 23 at the Macon County Chamber of Commerce, during which TDOT’s Paul Degges gave an update on where the project stood.

“I understand that Mr. Degges… discussed that the right-of-way acquisition is underway,” writes Schroer, “and that from a schedule perspective, the project will be ready for a bid opening in the spring of 2014, should the funding be available.

“The department has been monitoring crash reports occurring on SR-10 in this vicinity and working with the local Division Office of the Federal Highway Administration, and I am pleased to report that we have been able to identify funding under one of our safety programs to deliver the project.

“I can certainly appreciate your position and share your goals in wanting to provide the safest roads possible for all Tennesseans. I have directed my staff to accelerate the schedule from the fall of 2014 and ready this project for construction in a spring 2014 bid opening.”

County Mayor Shelvy Linville had written TDOT urgently in May complaining that the Hwy 10 project had been put on a backburner, because it did not appear on a three-year budget plan released by TDOT in April.

More recently, Linville said he cut out a front page article from the Macon County Times (June 13 edition) about an accident involving a mother and three minors on Hwy 10, and sent it to TDOT.

“I highlighted ‘mom’, ‘3 children’, and ‘Hwy 10’, and I wrote underneath, ‘This time we were lucky’ and I sent it to them,” said Linville.

Ironically enough, Degges reports that this recent accident contributed to the final numbers necessary to qualify a project for the safety funds that Hwy 10 just received.

“I hate to say it that way… but it’s true,” said Degges. “That this project just barely qualified for safety funds, by the numbers. I know it can seem like this road is the most dangerous stretch in TN, but it simply is not.”

Linville, who admitted after the public meeting that he may have misunderstood the meaning of the three-year plan, stated that he was “cautiously optimistic” about the project moving forward on the schedule that Degges had outlined. Now, he says, “this is good news. That 4th paragraph [in Schroer’s letter] is a sure commitment… I feel good about it now.”

Linville said that he believes the saying ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease’ and added, “I regret not being squeakier earlier.”

Linville also prepared a written statement, thanking the Commissioner and Governor for their commitment to the project: “I believe the commissioner realizes the danger that the highway 10 hill poses, and has found a way to help us sooner rather than later… I certainly look forward to seeing orange barrels and bulldozers on that hill.”

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Willie Don Barrett
Willie Don Barrett
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