April 13, 2015 www.knoxfocus.com NeedPAGE A1 Cash? Turn unwanted household items into money! Call Fountain City Auction at (865)604-3468 for all of your auction needs. FREETake One! April 13, 2015 PHOTO BY DAN ANDREWS. Mayor Rogero delivers opening remarks welcoming Chad Pregracke and Living Lands and Waters. The Living Lands and Waters barge is composed of four barges: one for carry- ing the trash, one for sorting recyclables (85 percent of what Living Lands and Waters removes at cleanups is recycled), a “floating classroom” where water quality education work- shops are held, and full solar-powered living quarters used to house the staff when they are away at long-distance cleanups. Tennessee River Tour Kicks Off In Knoxville By Dan Andrews [email protected] Living Lands and Waters fleet trash has on the shoreline as put up at Holston River. I have TONIGHT at Volunteer Landing through she is an avid canoe paddler. paddled from Ned McWhert- Stephen Lyn Bales, Senior Naturalist at As fire, police, and emer- April 14. Mr. Pregracke and Rogero even held a “Paddling er’s up to Ijams. I have pad- Ijams Nature Center, will speak in the Living gency service boats flanked his crew are assisting with for Madeline” event to high- dled down to Sequoya. I con- Lands and Waters floating classroom on the a large environmental the Ijams River Rescue as light her support for the river- tinue paddle quite a bit.” barge at Volunteer Landing, at 6:30 p.m. on barge, the Mayor of Knox- well as a host of other envi- ways and a clean shoreline. This first-hand knowledge Monday, April 13. His lecture will cover wild- ville beamed with pride as ronmental projects during his “It’s important to have a that led the Mayor to create life species that are now returning to the Ten- she welcomed the crew from time in Knoxville as part of clean community and sup- funding for a year-round river nessee River as the river’s health and ecolo- Living Lands and Waters his Tennessee River Tour. port to preserve our natu- keeper. “We have a contract gy continues to improve following decades of Thursday afternoon. Chad For Mayor Rogero, main- ral resources, blueways and with Ijams that we bid out and concerted efforts. Pregracke, Living Lands and taining the Tennessee River greenways,” she said. “I love they hire someone who rides The event is free and open to the public but Waters founder and presi- is not a photo opportunity, it getting out on the Tennessee up and down the river mainly space is limited, and will be open to the public dent and 2013 “CNN Hero is a way of life. She observes River. I put in (my canoe) at on a first-come, first-serve basis. of the Year,” has docked his firsthand the impact that different places. Sometimes I Continue on page 2 Sign ordinance passes, sort of By Mike Steely [email protected] That vote split 5-4 with Stair, George Wallace, Mark After more than five hours Campen and Finbarr Saun- and dozens of speakers, ders voting No. debates and split votes, Councilman Marshall the Knoxville City Council Stair managed to have the picked apart and apparent- location of the signs desig- ly passed the language of nated as being next to inter- a new Sign Ordinance. The states, adjacent to inter- matter now goes back to states, on federal highways the MPC and will return to and all other streets. the council for final approv- Although the Task Force al. had recommended 10 The biggest debate came foot signs of 100 square while designating sign feet on Scenic Highways, PHOTO BY DAN ANDREWS. heights and where those Grieve took the recommen- Weary City Council members Nick Della Volpe, Marshall Stair, Duane Grieve and Finbarr Saunders spent hours heights would be applied dations of Scenic Knoxville Thursday night working on the sign ordinance. and enforced. Councilman and moved successfully to Duane Grieve, who chaired have those signs reduced report and these might not affect any existing legal window signs, signs on everyone that the public will a three-year long Sign Task in the future to 6 feet or 36 be addressed by the plan- signs. Most changes failed Scenic Highways, the height have three more chances to Force, managed to get a square feet. ning commission. The ordi- or passed in split votes. of various signs, abandoned have input: One at an MPC motion passed designat- Various changes were nance contains 15 different Involved are monument signs, etc. meeting and two meetings ing 40 and 30 foot signs. made to the Task Force aspects of signs and does signs, attached signs, Grieve reminded of council. 2012 HONDA ACCORD From $13,890 Several to Choose From * Auto * All Pwr * Cruise * CD RUSTY WALLACE HONDA 8886971272 I75CALLAHAN, N.KNOX www.rustywallacehonda.com PAGE A2 The Knoxville Focus April 13, 2015 Focus on the Law THE CHALK BOARD Asset Forfeiture Bits of News About Local Education Society tries forfeiture pro- enough connected to the to deter crime cess has been crime to be considered By Sally Absher by devising a commonly used an instrumentality or [email protected] begging for more of your “Starve the Beast” is variety of pun- in the “war of proceeds.” https://www. tax dollars this week. Working in Montclair, NJ. ishments for drugs” since law.cornell.edu/wex/for- BOE Called Meeting Tennessee House The Focus reported that individuals who the mid-eight- feiture TONIGHT to Vote on FY16 Approves Flow Motion to the School Board in Mont- commit those ies. “Any prop- Tennessee has a stat- Budget. The Knox County Speed Up Legislative Ses- clair, NJ approved a policy crimes. These By Sharon erty…acquired ute (Tenn. Code Annotat- Board of Education will hold sion. Steven Hale of the in February that recogniz- range from the Frankenberg, by or received ed Section 39-11-701) a called meeting to discuss Nashville scene reports es parental rights to refuse assessment of Attorney at Law in violation of which explains the intent and vote on the fiscal year that the state House voted standardized tests for their fines and proba- any statute, or of the general assembly 2016 general purpose, 97-0 last Wednesday in children. In part, the policy tion to incarceration and any property traceable to provide law enforce- capital improvement and favor of the Flow Motion, states: even the death penalty. I to the proceeds from the ment agencies and dis- school nutrition fund bud- a move they “make every “...The Montclair BOE rec- want to focus here on one violation, is subject to trict attorneys gener- gets on Monday, April 13 year toward the end of the ognizes that some parents method of attempting to judicial forfeiture, and all al the necessary tools at 5 p.m. in the Boardroom session in hopes of closing may choose to have their deter criminal acts com- right, title, and interest in to punish and deter the located on the first floor of up shop before an arbitrary, children decline to take one mitted for financial gain: any such property shall criminal activities of pro- the Andrew Johnson Build- self-set, meaningless dead- of more of such standard- the forfeiture of profits vest in the state upon fessional criminals and ing (912 S. Gay Street). The line.” ized tests. It is the policy and proceeds acquired commission of the act organized crime through full agenda and supporting Andrea Zelinski explained of the Montclair BOE that and accumulated as a giving rise to the forfei- the enforcement of effec- materials are available on the “FloMo” in the Nashville the parental decision to result of such criminal ture.” (Tenn. Code Anno- tive forfeiture and penal the website at knoxschools. Post, “The flow motion sus- decline testing should be activities. The current tated Section 39-11-703). laws. This intention is org. pends 12 aspects of the met at the district level with criminal law permits for- This means that in these balanced by the stated KCS Has a Spending House rules, like allowing educationally appropriate feiture as punishment for civil asset forfeiture pro- intention not to unduly Problem. TennesseePar- a floor calendar to exceed and non-punitive respons- a crime but there must ceedings, the owner of interfere with “commer- ents.org sent an interest- 25 bills, adding flexibility es. The superintendent is be a criminal conviction. the seized property does cially protected inter- ing email the other day, on when committees and directed to establish a pro- That means guilt must be not have to be convict- ests.” The civil asset for- listing salaries of Educa- the full house can meet, cedure in accordance with proven beyond a reason- ed or even charged with feiture process has been tion “Leaders” across the and sidestepping waiting this policy.” able doubt and all Consti- a crime. The owner is incredibly profitable for state. Among those includ- periods for bills or amend- Diane Ravitch reports tutional protections must entitled to certain forms law enforcement at both ed were: ments to be heard.” that 42.6% of students did be afforded the defen- of notice but may have the state and federal Chris Barbic (Superinten- Or, as Hale paraphrased, not take the PARCC test this dant, including the right to post a bond and the levels. According to the dent TN ASD) = $215,000 “it lets the House work spring. “That is quite a pro- to legal counsel. burden of proof falls Heritage Foundation’s Candice McQueen (cur- faster by tossing aside test against Common Core On the other hand, on the owner to prove website http://heritage.