posted May 16, 2008
Mayor Ron Littlefield told the Civitan Club on Friday he was saddened by the arrest of City Councilman John "Duke" Franklin on money laundering charges in connection with a cocaine ring.
Calling it "a dark day" for the city, he said, "I turned in early that day - I was so wrung out by the stress of it all."
He said whether or not the fifth District councilman stays on the council "is a matter for the other council members to decide."
The next council session is a meeting of the legal and legislative committee on Tuesday at 3 p.m. The issue is likely to be discussed there.
Mayor Littlefield told the club that despite the dark national economic picture that the city expects to get through another year without a tax increase.
He said that is being accomplished while at the same time giving many city workers a pay increase under a new pay plan.
The mayor said the new Chattanooga Outdoors headquarters by the Walnut Street Bridge in Coolidge Park will be an attractive redesign of an old floorcoverings building.
He said the initial bids came back too high, so the city asked for new bids that included making the building LEED certified. He said the bids were lower, and the building will include many environmental features, including a "green" roof.
"We want this building to be attractive when you look down on it from the bridge," he said.
He said a "state-of-the-art" city animal care facility opens this weekend, and he said Warner Park is getting a major facelift that will turn the Chattanooga Zoo into more of a tourist destination. It will have a new entranceway from Holtzclaw Avenue and a new carousel with carved figures of endangered animals.
Mayor Littlefield told of the Summit of Softball being built next to the old Summit Landfill on 75 acres that had been used for topping for the old dump. He said it will initially have eight fields.
He said the cost will be $10 million, but it should pay for itself within five years because of the large tournaments it will draw.
Mayor Littlefield said there is a continuing need to provide for the local homeless, and he said there should be a central location where various services can be provided.
He noted that the Union Gospel Mission has lost its Main and Market location. He said it had been caring for about 100 homeless each night.
He said that mission will apparently have to find a temporary location.
In the meantime, he said the Salvation Army will help take up the slack.
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