Mayor Pays Tribute to Outgoing Alderman Donnie Crook

August 27, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

Smithville Alderman Donnie Crook attended his last meeting as a member of the city council Thursday night.

During a special meeting, Mayor Josh Miller presented Crook a plaque in appreciation for his service to the city as Alderman for the last two years. Crook was unsuccessful in a bid for his first elected term as Alderman in the municipal election earlier this month. Crook was appointed to fill a vacancy on the city board two years ago when then Alderman Josh Miller was elected Mayor. Crook’s term expires August 31. He will be succeeded by Jessica Higgins.

The aldermen-elect, Higgins and longtime incumbents Shawn Jacobs and Danny Washer will be sworn in to begin their new four year terms in a special meeting on Friday, September 4 at 5 p.m. at city hall.

In making the plaque presentation, Mayor Miller paid tribute to Crook.

“Two years ago when I became Mayor, we appointed Mr. Donnie Crook. When I became mayor I had a lot of phone calls from a lot of people wanting me to appoint them to the city council. I had a lot of good qualified people that would have done a great job. Mr. Crook did not call me. I called him. Mr. Crook I appreciate you filling my position. You have done a great job. Thank you for your service. This plaque says ‘Donnie Crook in appreciation for your two years of loyal and dedicated service to the City of Smithville as Alderman’”.

“Thank you I have enjoyed it,” replied Crook.

August 27, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

DeKalb County Volunteer Firefighter Blake Cantrell has been promoted to the rank of Lieutenant.

Chief Donny Green made the announcement during Monday night’s county commission meeting. Joining Chief Green in making the Lieutenant helmet presentation to Cantrell were Captain Jay Cantrell and Lieutenant Dusty Johnson.

“Blake is one of our firefighters at the Cookeville Highway Station. We have a promotion process in the fire department where firefighters have a pathway to be promoted to rank. This involves written testing, practical skills testing, and leadership development. Blake has been a candidate for the office of Lieutenant. He has been working on that for a few years now. He has previously served as our department’s communications officer. He spends a lot of his time programming our pagers and radios, working on radios and getting stuff into the shop, etc. He demonstrated some exceptional leadership skills even before he got here for this promotion. He officially began as Lieutenant July 15. We wanted to share this with you. This is your fire department and I want you to know who your leaders are. This team does a tremendous job in leading our fire department across the 12 stations in our county,” said Chief Green.

Green also updated the commissioners on a $427,360 Assistance to Firefighters Grant the county has been awarded for the fire department. The AFG Program is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.

The funding award will be used to purchase Self-contained Breathing Apparatuses (SCBA’s) and associated equipment to serve all 12 of the department’s stations across the county. The Federal share of this award is $407,009.52 and the local matching share, to be provided by the DeKalb County Government, is $20,350.48.

“We got this grant about two weeks ago in the amount of $427,000 to replace our self contained breathing apparatus. To tell you what that means, those have 15 year life cycles on them and ours are 15 years old. Had we not gotten this grant we would have been coming to you (county commission) for 427,000 for this life saving equipment. The county’s part of that is 5% so we’re paying $20,000 for $407,000 worth of equipment. We’re proud to get this federal money to help us out on these local expenses,” said Chief Green.

August 27, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

The Smithville-DeKalb County Chamber of Commerce is excited to share the recently released tourism report from U.S. Travel Association showing DeKalb County hitting a record-high of $51.20 Million in direct tourism expenditures. Chamber Director Suzanne Williams was overjoyed upon reviewing the recent report. “Tourism dollars are vitally important to DeKalb County’s economy,” Williams said.

“We are so fortunate to have Center Hill Lake, Edgar Evins State Park, Appalachian Center for Craft, and our many diverse businesses that fuel our tourism revenues including our annual events such as the Smithville Fiddlers’ Jamboree and Crafts Festival, DeKalb County Fair, Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour, and other local music and art events. Our small-town charm, friendly people, and scenic beauty make DeKalb County a desirable place to live, work, play, and raise a family and all these factors keep our visitors coming back year after year.”

The report’s findings also show tourism’s value to DeKalb County taxpayers. Travel in DeKalb County generated 336 jobs, $3.00 Million in state tax revenue, and $6.62 Million in local tax revenue in 2019. On an average day in DeKalb County in 2019, tourist spending generated $140,268 in daily expenditures, produced $30,267 in daily payroll, created $18,140 daily in local tax revenues and $8,214 daily in state tax revenues. Without tourism, each DeKalb County household would have to pay an additional $885 in local taxes and $400 in state taxes each year. Those tax dollars support education, health and human services, public safety, business, and economic development “Although we will likely see a decline in next year’s numbers due to the COVID-19 crisis, we are still very happy and optimistic with this report prior to the pandemic” says Williams. DeKalb County ranks 34 out of 95 counties for tourism dollars in Tennessee.

Tennessee hit a record-high $23 billion in domestic and international travel spending in 2019, marking a decade of consecutive growth. Tennessee also saw 126 million domestic person stays in 2019, up 5.7 percent from 119 million the previous year. Tennessee tourism was on a record track in the first three months of 2020 before COVID-19. The Coronavirus pandemic is the largest crisis to hit the travel, leisure and hospitality industries in history, shutting down almost all travel activities and threatening the security of businesses and employees the industry supports.

“Tennessee is a world-renowned destination, and I look forward to the time when we can gather together again at our festivals, sporting events and more,” said Gov. Bill Lee. “Tourism is our state’s second largest industry. Coming off another record year, this data underscores the tremendous positive tourism impact on our state’s revenue. As we’ve seen now more than ever, travel and tourism are vital to restoring economic health and recovery in Tennessee.”

In 2019, Tennessee outpaced the nation in all areas of travel; including tax revenue, expenditures, payroll and employment. The leisure and hospitality industry produced more jobs than any other industry. Last year, travelers in Tennessee spent an estimated $64 million per day. Tourism generated over $75 million in new state and local tax dollars in 2019, approximately half of which directly supports public education. Those tax dollars also support public safety, health and human services, business and economic development. Travel in Tennessee generated 195,000 jobs and $1.92 billion in state and local tax revenue. Revenue generated saved each household in the state $748 in taxes, an increased savings of almost $40 compared to 2018.

“With our businesses taking the Tennessee Pledge, our restaurants, businesses and attractions are ready for safe travel,” said Commissioner Mark Ezell, Tennessee Department of Tourist Development. “I encourage travelers to safely explore, support local businesses and attractions, create family memories, discover outdoor scenic beauty where social distancing is a natural, take road trips, explore rural destinations and hidden gems that drive visitation. Our goal is to become the best non-beach tourism state in America. We’re constantly exploring new opportunities to inspire growth across the state, drive jobs and economic growth, including in rural, at-risk and distressed counties.”

“Tourism is a significant economic driver for our state; ensuring we are able to maintain a safe environment for both visitors and residents is necessary to the livelihoods of the many people who depend on this industry,” said Craig Ross, Chairman of Tennessee Tourism Committee and President of Dollywood.

The Tennessee Department of Tourist Development received $25 million in CARES Act funding to remarket the severely devastated industry to aid in its recovery, promote safety and inspire responsible travel. Funding will be used to demonstrate how travelers can safely enjoy activities and attractions; promote outdoor activities; a campaign with messaging around masks, social distancing and sanitization; and safety messaging, digital screens and infrastructure at all 16 Tennessee Welcome Centers. $15 million in grants is available for Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) in all 95 counties. Additional funding will support Tennessee State Parks and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.

The Smithville-DeKalb County Chamber will be applying for CARES tourism funding to further promote our beautiful area and support safe travel with messages of social distancing, face coverings and sanitization.