East Ridge Finally Puts Lottery, Rules In Place For Prized Election Tent Spots At City Hall

  • Friday, October 7, 2016
  • Gail Perry

East Ridge finally has a lottery and rules in place to help control the mad dash for getting the best spots for political tents around city hall each election.

 

During past elections, it had become common for those running for office to stake out a site for erecting their campaign tent earlier and earlier in hopes to get the best location.

Despite being notified of the time prior to the election that the city allowed candidates to begin putting up tents, some candidates ignored the rules and set up earlier in order to claim the place they wanted.  To put an end to the frenzy, a proposal was put forth to establish a lottery for choosing locations and set up enforceable rules. That was two months ago, and it had been discussed repeatedly but not decided until the council meeting Thursday night. A vote on the lottery was taken at the last meeting on Sept. 22, but with only four councilmen in attendance, the vote was tied. Councilman Jacky Cagle opposed, saying he had not seen a problem in the past, and Denny Manning agreed with him.

 

Discussion to take action on the lottery and rules was again on the agenda Thursday. Councilman Cagle came with a list of questions challenging the new rules. Vice Mayor Marc Gravitt asked him why he was opposed. “I’ve got questions tonight, I might change my vote,” answered Councilman Cagle.

 

During the citizens’ participation portion of the meeting, resident Frances Pope addressed the council saying it has been a waste of law enforcement resources delivering notices of the rules to those they may affect and that adults should follow the rules. Mayor Brent Lambert said “It’s crazy we have to deal with this. It should be common sense and decency.”  The vice mayor told Councilman Cagle that the council was just trying to set up an orderly process, and then added, “If we don’t have rules, let’s just eliminate tents.” The mayor and Councilman Larry Sewell agreed on that possibility.

 

After a break and around 45 minutes talking about the tent lottery, Vice Mayor Gravitt proposed an addendum to the original lottery rules for placement of tents on city property during elections. In addition to the lottery, conditions were added that would allow only one spot for a tent per candidate and that the police have authorization to remove any structure from the city’s property if anyone is in violation of the rules. The motion passed with a vote of three for and Councilman Cagle abstaining.

 

Approval was given to rezone property at 1016 Greenslake Road from C-2 commercial district to R-3 residential apartment district. When the property was bought 10 years ago, it contained apartments and one commercial building. When that business closed, the owner turned that building into five apartments. He has recently discovered the residential use is considered to be non-conforming to the city code. In order for the structure to be insured, the zoning would need to be changed. The Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency recommended approval as did Kenny Custer, the city’s chief building inspector. The vote was unanimous for the zoning change.

 

The council approved a resolution to enter an agreement with ASA for engineering the multi-modal and sidewalk paths for Ringgold Road between Tombras Avenue and Moore Road that will be built with the Transportation Alternatives Program Grant that the city received.

    

Allen and Hoshall was awarded the job to engineer the sidewalk for East Ridge Elementary along Belvoir Avenue and John Ross Road. It is made possible because of the Safe Routes to School Grand received by the city.

 

The Exit 1 interchange is in the process of being reconfigured. Construction is expected to begin next spring. This is the gateway to Hamilton County and East Ridge, said Mayor Lambert. The redesign of the interchange will allow the city the opportunity implement new landscaping as part of the project. The engineering firm ASA was chosen to draft the landscaping plans at a cost not to exceed $9,500. This will include the concept, large format graphics and providing construction and design estimates.

 

A resolution was approved to participate in the TVA Energy Right Solutions Program to install more energy efficient lighting at the Camp Jordan Arena. The only cost to the city will be $3,072 out of the total cost of $10,241.

 

The city also will take advantage of three other grants.

 

The Tennessee American Water Firefighting Support Grant for $500 with no match required will be used to buy personal protective Nomex hoods for the fire department.

 

The Holidays Wishes Grant from Petco is a 100 percent grant for the city’s animal shelter. The shelter can be nominated by people submitting adoption stories about their pets. The more adoption stories that are shared, the better the chance is to receive this award. The council agreed to apply for the grant.

 

The application was authorized for a Coca-Cola Keep America Beautiful Public Space Recycling Bin Grant. If received, it would provide recycling containers that can be placed at various locations throughout the city.

 

The gift of fitness equipment from Planet Fitness was accepted for the East Ridge Fire Department. The city also has received seven AEDs (Automatic External Defibrillators) from Fire House Subs. Councilman Cagle thanked Assistant Police Chief Stan Allen for pursuing this grant for the $10,000 worth of public safety equipment.

 

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