Southern Middle TN Today News with Tom Price 10-17-25

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Daily News from MuleTown to Music City and beyond. Listen to Tom Price read the news of the day from Kennedy Broadcasting, WKOM & WKRM Radio.

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Southern Middle Tennessee Today
News Copy for October 17, 2025

All news stories are aggregated from various sources and modified for time and content. Original sources are cited.
We start with local news…
Hatcher to Primary Ogles (WilliamsonScene)
Former state Agriculture Commissioner Charlie Hatcher is prepping a campaign to primary Republican U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles in 2026.
Hatcher retired as commissioner at the beginning of October after seven years in the role, in what he said was “the honor of my life.”
A 10th-generation farmer and livestock veterinarian from Williamson County, Hatcher also previously served as the Tennessee Department of Agriculture’s State Veterinarian. He is also well known for his College Grove-based Rock-N-Country Veterinary Services and Hatcher Family Dairy.
Hatcher has not yet officially started his campaign, but would bring a renewed and likely tougher challenge to the incumbent Ogles, who in 2024 defeated Republican challenger and sitting Nashville Metro Councilwoman Courtney Johnston.
Hatcher's campaign website www.charliehatcher.com has few details regarding his political positions and priorities, but calls Washington D.C. "one insurmountable problem" while pitching himself as "Pro-gun. Pro-life. Pro-Trump." It also takes a subtle swipe at Ogles.
“Trump would have been a fantastic farmer because he has that work ethic. But it might not be enough money for him! He gets things done. Think what President Trump could do if our congressman spent less time talking and more time doing," the website reads.
Ogles was later re-elected in the 2024 general election despite a slew of controversies, including an ongoing Federal Bureau of Investigation case and questions regarding campaign finance.
Ogles is also facing several Democratic challengers, most notably Columbia Mayor Chaz Molder.

Sewer Capacity Forces Moratorium in Spring Hill (MSM)
A resolution to temporarily pause the acceptance of development applications that are not exempt under state or local guidelines until Nov. 17 was approved by the Spring Hill Board of Mayor and Aldermen last week. 
The restriction was issued by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), which cited a lack of available sewer capacity. The city will stop accepting and processing new applications that are not vested, except for projects that are near completion, qualify as critical infrastructure or hold previous granted vested rights.
City Administrator Carter Napier and Development Services Director Dara Sanders introduced the proposed resolution. The sudden increase in development applications raised concerns for them and the sewer capacity, which led to the resolution. 
Board members expressed frustration and hesitation about the resolution as several noted its unfairness to the community and investors. The main concern was lack of certainty of when the applications would resume, how staff would choose projects to move forward with, and next steps.
During public comment, developers shared their concerns and offered suggestions on the matter. Patrick Pitts, a land acquisition manager and Spring Hill resident, said he worries about both community safety and the amounts of money that he and his team have. Pitts also added that he and his team, alongside other developers for the Harvest Pointe project, are designing and funding an on-site sewer system to help relieve the capacity issues. 
The executive vice president of the Homeowners Association of Middle Tennessee also voiced concern, saying that while home construction carries risks, homeowners and developers should not face the risk of losing sewer capacity after receiving capacity letters. He also noted the lack of end date, which could extend if the issue remains unsolved. 
To help address the situation, Vice Mayor Trent Linville amended the resolution to require that the suspension to expire on Nov. 18, unless extended by the board. The amendment also requires staff to report back with next steps at the time. The amendment and final resolution both passed unanimously. 
Linville said the community deserves clear and transparent answers, not uncertainty. 
Until the suspension ends, staff will provide the board with weekly reports detailing active building permits, development types and available sewer capacity. This information will also be published on the City of Spring Hill’s website dashboard for public access. 
On Nov. 17, staff will present their report to the board which includes estimated sewer capacity across all active building permits, development sites, approved and pending plans and sewer reservations. 
In other Spring Hill news…At last week’s meeting, the Spring Hill Board of Mayor and Alderman discussed an agreement to upsize the June Lake sewer trunk line from 18 inches to 24 inches to accommodate future growth and development. 
CSDG, in partnership with Southeast Venture, is leading the design of the line, which will extend from the southern boundary of June Lake development to the north of the existing lift station near June Lake Pond. The proposed alignment follows Aenon Creek and spans approximately 6,000 linear feet. 
The new trunk line will serve June Lake development and allow the existing lift station to be taken offline. Assistant Spring Hill City Administrator Dan Allen recommended upsizing the line to 24 inches rather than the original proposed 18-inch line. The city will cover the cost difference. 
The library is expecting an upgrade as Library Director Dana Jurview presented an update on the conceptual design proposal, including a detailed fee breakdown and scope of work.  
Following the Aug. 18 BOMA meeting, contractors resubmitted a proposal for a basic conceptual design after completing geotechnical and environmental surveys to determine feasibility for construction adjacent to City Hall.
The costs include:  Architectural/interior design: $45,000; Site and Civil Planning: $11,000; Geotechnical and Phase I Environmental: $10,300; Total: $66,300
Contractors plan to conduct workshops with library stakeholders to define key program needs and develop site and exterior conception plans based on massing studies and plan diagrams. 
Staff will request board approval at the Oct. 20 meeting for a resolution to accept the proposed plans and designs. 
An update on the Kedron Square project performance bond was provided by CIP Director Missy Stahl, regarding an extension request for Kedron Road delays due to an AT&T light pole removal.  
A resolution to call performance bonds for Kedron Square and School Street on Oct. 14 was approved at the previous meeting due to inactivity. Developers have made significant progress, with some projects almost to completion. 
The developers are requesting a new performance bond for Kedron Road, while converting the existing performance bond into a maintenance bond. The turn lane needed for Kedron Road can’t be installed due to conflict with an AT&T pole, delaying the progress on the project. This could be extended into 2026 due to the pole removal and winter-weather conditions. 
With the board’s approval, resolutions for these changes will be presented at the Planning Commission’s Nov. 10 meeting to formalize a new performance bond and reduce the existing bond into a maintenance bond.

Culleoka’s Holt Inducted into Hall of Fame (Press Release)
A big honor this weekend for one of Maury County’s own. Casey Holt, a 2003 graduate of Culleoka Unit School and proud product of Maury County Public Schools, will be inducted into the University of North Alabama Athletic Hall of Fame this Saturday during Homecoming festivities in Florence.

Holt was a TSSAA Mr. Basketball finalist in 2003, wrapping up a standout high school career at Culleoka before heading to North Alabama, where he became one of the most decorated players in program history.

From 2004 to 2008, Holt set school records for games played and started in a season, and scored more than 640 points his senior year — leading the Lions in both scoring and rebounding. He helped guide UNA to a 27–9 record and a trip to the Division II Elite Eight.

Following his collegiate career, Holt went on to play professionally overseas before returning home to Tennessee, where he and his wife, Ashley and 3 children live. He currently works as an insurance agent at Farm Bureau of Tennessee located in Spring Hill.

The induction ceremony will be part of UNA’s Homecoming celebration this Saturday in Florence, Alabama.

City to Spend $2.4M on Sports Complex (CDH)
Columbia City Council has approved a grant application valued at $2.4 million to expand the Columbia Aquatics and Recreation Center (ARC) and construct a new sports complex.
The city is competing for the grant funds for the fourth time.
The expansion would include the addition of two indoor sports courts, sized for basketball, volleyball and pickleball, with the courts surrounded by a 0.10-mile walking track.
The BlueCross Healthy Place Grant, if awarded to the city, would provide the funding, with no matching funds required, Parks and Recreation Director Mack Reagan said.
"Anything that can be done indoors, we can do," Reagan said. "Basically, we are doubling the size of our facility so we can have indoor sports and recreation. It would provide a lot of needed opportunities."
This is also the fourth time Columbia has applied for the grant, though it is the first time for this project, Reagan said.
Reagan added that the two new courts would be located next to the current facility, but the walking track would connect both the new and existing areas as one big unit.
"Especially with our senior population, which is 300-plus [members], it is a place for when it is too hot, too cold or too wet, they can walk inside," Reagan said. "It just provides a lot of services and quality activities that we can increase."
Vice Mayor Randy McBroom said the walking trail would also provide an added activity for parents to utilize as their kids are playing.
"When you watch the competitions, you can still walk and watch your kids play," McBroom said.
Mayor Chaz Molder commented on the project and the ARC's success since the city's acquisition of the former Muletown Rec for $4.6 million in January of this year.
"This is, yet again, another example of this center being such an opportunity," Molder said. "There is sufficient space for this. I really hope we can do whatever we can to put our weight behind getting this grant.
"This could be just a huge game-changer for that facility and what it can do for the community in terms of hosting tournaments and having other events there that most people would not have thought we had the ability to do."

Pipeline Solution Cost Prohibitive (CDH)
Constructing a pipeline from the Cumberland River to Columbia appears to be an unrealistic solution to Maury County's water needs, following a recent letter issued by the Mallory Valley Utility District.
The proposed project's comprehensive study, conducted by Mallory Valley in partnership with Columbia Power & Water Systems, Spring Hill, Mt. Pleasant and Maury County Water, determined such factors as cost, an estimated timeline and long-term required maintenance, if it were to be pursued.
However, on Friday, Sept. 26, Mallory Valley Utility District General Manager Jenny Clarke sent an email to the participating entities expressing that recent conflicting interests have rendered the pipeline project "non-viable".
The reason, she wrote, was due to the issue becoming "too political," and less about how such a project would affect customers.
She explained that during a recent presentation to the Duck River Planning Partnership's subcommittee, "a surprising and concerning situation arose."
"The subcommittee chair, Randal Braker, explained that he had been personally informed by key outside stakeholders that they had privately and recently expressed positions to him that would render our project non-viable," she said.
"The information presented by Mr. Braker directly contradicts what those entities have told us in conversations, in meetings, and what we have included in our study. We were shocked by the information presented in the meeting and told the committee that we would have follow up conversations to confirm his statements."
Clarke continued saying a successful, viable solution would require "a unified purpose" and a shared consensus, stating, "Without that common ground, our project—or any other under this framework—will be difficult."
"Unfortunately, as conversations about possible solutions to the region's water supply have increased, the issue has become increasingly political, seemingly at the expense of our good-faith efforts," Clarke stated in the email. "The actions of certain partners, who are openly attempting to discredit our viable options to advance their own solution, have created an environment that we believe is neither productive nor trustworthy. We will not engage in anything other than transparent, honest, and accurate conversations about how we can work together to help our communities."
The purpose of the study is to explore a long-term solution, she said.
"Our comprehensive study was designed to provide a complete picture of a long-term water solution, from the water's source and treatment to its transmission and long-term maintenance costs and ultimately addressing long-term water needs," Clarke wrote.
"We want to exemplify 'utilities helping utilities' and be a model that our citizens and leaders can be proud of and replicate elsewhere."
CPWS CEO Johnathan Hardin told The Daily Herald the letter is not necessarily Mallory Valley's resignation from the partnership, but that other options should be pursued, and that in the end "it is about the rate payers."
"The letter is reminding everyone that conversations should be centered around rate payers and what keeps rates the lowest, making sure due diligence and rigor uncover what is best for our rate payers, because those are the most important people we serve," Hardin said. "I think a lot of folks realize that an idea like the Cumberland pipeline could pay dividends down the road, but it's not something that can meet needs within the next three years,
And even if the pipeline project doesn't seem likely, at least in the short-term, the study itself could prove useful in the future as the information will be readily available for planning purposes.
"When you learn to pump water across great distances like from the Cumberland down to here, what you learn is applicable in any direction you end up going," Hardin said.
"When you learn to pump water over a hill, you've learned how to pump water over any hill. You are learning things that inform what's most effective to use, as well as being mindful of cost, and when you solve a technical challenge that's not wasted knowledge, but important knowledge we will have forever. What we learned coming from the Cumberland could also be applied to the Tennessee River, or some other water source."
The pipeline, while a potential solution to Maury County and Southern Middle Tennessee's increasing water needs, the project had also drawn many concerns from opposing sides calling for another option to be considered.
One of these voices is the nonprofit grassroots group Columbia Dam Now, who has been actively pursuing efforts to revitalize the long-abandoned Columbia Dam project, which was halted in the 1980s and fully dismantled by 1999.
"When the Mallory Valley Ulitilty District feasibility study came back, it was at a cost of $1.7-$1.9 billion," Columbia Dam Now founder Jason Gilliam said. "The reason there was a lack of interest is, like I have been saying for the last five months or so, it is too expensive and we are not going to be able to afford it. That pipeline option is not going to happen, and for obvious reasons."

Mt. Pleasant Citizens’ Police Academy (MSM)
The Mt. Pleasant Police Department is making plans to start a Citizens’ Academy program. The department hopes to consolidate their relationships with the people of the city they serve and give them more understanding of daily police operations.
“I feel like we have a good rapport with the citizens of Mt Pleasant currently, based on mutual trust and respect,” Officer Cory England said. “Ideally, both the citizens and the police department should see each other working towards the same goals: a safe and supportive community.”
The Citizen’s Police Academy is a four-week program that meets at the police department from 6-8 p.m. on Nov. 3, 10, 17 and 24, and one Saturday which hasn’t yet been picked. At classes, participants will learn about the responsibilities of law enforcement, from fieldwork like patrolling and criminal investigations, to clerical work including hiring, communications and law. Participants will also get familiar with police equipment and do hands-on activities; if the program is successful, they might start taking citizens on ride-alongs and other, more involved missions.
“This academy is by no means certifying anyone to be a police officer, only a small look into what we do,” England said. “[But] it may help recruit people who want to be officers in the long run, not only for Mt Pleasant but other agencies.”
The academy is open to everyone 21 years or older, though preference will be given to applicants who work or live in Mt. Pleasant city limits. A paper application form must be printed off the police department’s website and mailed to: Mount Pleasant Police Department, 100 Public Square, P.O. Box 426, Mt. Pleasant, TN 38483, Attn: Cory England
Questions about the Academy can be asked of Officer England at [e-mail] or [phone].

And now, Your Hometown Memorials, Sponsored by Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home…
Michael “Mike” Roy Looper, 69, a resident of Culleoka, died Friday, October 10, 2025 at TriStar Centennial Medical Center in Nashville.
Funeral services will be conducted Saturday, October 18, 2025 at 2:00 PM at South Gate Church of Christ. Burial will follow in Wilkes Cemetery in Culleoka. The family will visit with friends Friday from 3:00 PM to 8:00 PM at Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home and Saturday from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM at South Gate Church of Christ.

James “Jim” Harold Blackburn, 98, a lifelong resident of Maury County, died Tuesday, October 14, 2025 at The Bridge where he had made his home for the last year.
Funeral services will be conducted Sunday, October 19, 2025 at 2:00 PM at Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home with Randy Sprouse officiating. Burial will follow in Polk Memorial Gardens with military honors provided by Herbert Griffin American Legion Post 19. The family will visit with friends Sunday from 12:00 noon until 2:00 PM at Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home.

Barbara Anne Cox Roberts, 84, resident of Columbia, died Tuesday, October 14, 2025 at her residence.
No funeral services are scheduled at this time. Online condolences may be extended at www.oakesandnichols.com.
Now, news from around the state…
Wrongful Death Suit Filed for Explosion (Tennessean)
A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed on behalf of the 9-year-old daughter of one of the people killed in the Oct. 10 explosion at the Accurate Energetic Systems facility in Bucksnort.
The lawsuit was filed in Humphreys County Circuit Court on Oct. 16, on behalf of the daughter of Jeremy Moore. The child is identified only by his initials. The suit was filed against AAC Investments, which lead attorney Lee Coleman, from Hughes & Coleman, said owned the explosives plant.
The lawsuit is seeking $12 million in damages.
”This is a disaster of epic proportions,” Coleman said in a news release. “This explosion involved ultrahazardous materials, and the devastation it caused impacts dozens, if not hundreds, of lives. The loved ones will be in mourning for years, and our clients are still shocked by this horrible tragedy.”
Coleman said more defendants will likely be added as the case progresses. He said the lawsuit is based on the legal theory that the company had a duty to provide a safe working environment.
“If you provide a safe environment, the place doesn’t explode,” Coleman said in a phone interview.
Accurate Energetic Systems said it could not comment on pending litigation. It did, however, provide a lengthy statement expressing the company's devastation following the explosion and deaths of 16 employees, its thanks for the "overwhelming" outreach from people and organizations to provide support, and commitment to learning what caused the deadly blast.
Armstrong Lee & Baker and Terry Bryant, PLLC out of Texas, who both have a rich history in successfully litigating explosion cases. Together, these firms will analyze the defendant’s actions, the chemicals involved, and the events that led to the explosion. The firm is committed to devoting every necessary resource to uncover the truth and secure justice for the victims’ families.
The company said the employees who died "are our family, our friends, our neighbors – it is impossible to comprehend."
"Our top priority is to support our team, their families and our community as we grieve together," the statement said. "We would especially like to thank Compassion Church in Waverly, McEwen Church of Christ, World Central Kitchen, Red Cross, Salvation Army, and the Tennessee Disaster Mental Health Strike Team – these and numerous other organizations and individuals have been a light and provided strength for all of us during this devastating time. Ours is a close and incredible community."
AES said it dedication to high safety standards has been its "constant priority" for the company's 45-year history. It said it has "high industry standards and have regular reviews by state and federal regulators, and we also lead our industry with significant roles within national safety organizations," the statement said, which AES said is "another reason why this tragedy is so difficult to comprehend."

Final Story of the Day (Maury County Source)
It all started with a few scarecrows and has now grown into an annual Mt. Pleasant tradition.
The Mid-South BBQ Festival returns to Mt. Pleasant's downtown square, 100 Public Square, this weekend for two days of good eats, pep rallies, classic cars and more.
Friday night will kick off at 5 p.m. as Mt. Pleasant High School Senior Night, with a car show and pep rally, with the football game starting at 7 p.m., which will be projected on a big screen.
The festival kicks into high gear starting at 10 a.m. Saturday and will run until 5 p.m.