Alexandria has a new mayor.
Bennett Armstrong defeated Tony Tarpley by a vote of 60 to 35 to fill the remaining two years of an unexpired mayoral term in the Alexandria Municipal Election Thursday. Tarpley has served as mayor since October, 2013 when he was appointed mayor by the aldermen. Jim H. York, Jr. had been elected mayor that year but resigned three days after taking office in a dispute with the aldermen.
Armstrong has been serving in an appointed alderman position.
Also in the election Thursday, Kelly Pyburn, David Cripps, and John F. Suggs each ran unopposed for four year alderman terms. Their vote totals were as follows: Pyburn 71 votes, Cripps 61, and Suggs 46.
Those running unopposed for two year aldermen positions were Danny Parkerson and Matthew Boss. Parkerson led the ticket with 78 votes. Boss received 63 votes.
A total of 95 people voted in the election including 86 on election day and nine during early voting.
Here’s how the vote breaks down for each candidate:
Mayor: (2 year unexpired term)
Bennett Armstrong: 52 election day and 8 early votes
Tony Tarpley: 34 election day and 1 early vote
Aldermen (four year terms)
David Cripps: 53 election day and 8 early votes
Kelly Pyburn: 62 election day and 9 early votes
John F. Suggs: 39 election day and 7 early votes
Aldermen (2 year unexpired terms)
Matthew Wayne Boss: 54 election day and 9 early votes
Robert D, (Danny) Parkerson, Jr.: 69 election day and 9 early votes

A school bus was involved in a sideswipe accident with a semi tanker truck this morning (Thursday) on Highway 70 east near the Lake Motel and the Amvets Club.
There were no injuries.
Trooper Sean Tramel of the Tennessee Highway Patrol told WJLE that bus #08-26, driven by 34 year old Shara Cowan of Smithville, was east on Highway 70 and had just begun her route. Other than her own two children who were aboard, Cowan had not yet picked up any other students.
The semi tanker truck, driven by 52 year old Jeffery Stoglin of Sparta, was heading west on Highway 70. According to Trooper Tramel, Stoglin, who works for the Atlantic Bulk Carrier Company of Virginia, was enroute to Murfreesboro hauling pellets.
The cause of the accident remains under investigation but foggy conditions at the time may been have a contributing factor, according to Trooper Tramel
The bus has damage on the driver side. The side mirror was torn off and windows were broken on both sides of the bus near the front, including by the driver.
The semi has damage to a side mirror and a broken glass.
School Transportation Supervisor Jimmy Sprague said bus #14 substituted for bus #26 this morning and another bus will substitute on the route this afternoon.

The Smithville Police Department is turning to the public for help in solving a rash of recent automobile burglaries.
One of the crimes was captured on a surveillance video Sunday morning, August 30 at a residence on Golf Club Lane.
Captain Steven Leffew is asking for the public’s help in identifying this man (shown in the video below)

If you have information that could lead to the arrest of this individual call the Smithville Police Department’s Crime Stoppers number at 615-464-6046 or contact Lieutenant Matt Holmes at 615- 597- 8210. You may also visit the department’s facebook page.
While only one man is shown in the video, Captain Leffew said police believe there is a second suspect in both this crime and others which occurred Saturday night, August 29 and Sunday morning, August 30 in the area of Golf Club Lane, Riley Avenue, and Love Lane.
According to Captain Leffew, the burglars primarily target unlocked vehicles. After gaining entry, the thieves grab up whatever they can get their hands on, keep any valuables, and then discard what they don’t want.
After the burglaries last weekend, some of the victim’s belongings were found in wooded areas near their homes.
Although the latest crimes occurred in the Golf Club Lane area, Captain Leffew said similar crimes have been taking place throughout the city.
Captain Leffew is renewing his plea for residents to be vigilant; to keep all car doors locked; and not to leave valuables inside your automobile in plain sight. “It appears that unlocked vehicles are being targeted. We would encourage citizens not to leave valuables such as purses, wallets or purchases in plain sight as this may encourage thefts,” he said.

It’ll soon be chili time and time for you to again support a great cause and decide who makes the best chili in DeKalb County! Come out and cast your vote on Friday, October 2 on the Courthouse Square when Habitat for Humanity of DeKalb County hosts its 12th Annual Chili Cook-off and Bake Sale.
Chili will be served from 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on the north side of the Courthouse on the Smithville Town Square. In case of rain, the Chili Cook-off will be held at the County Complex.
Make a donation to Habitat and eat all the chili you want from all the teams and vote for your favorite. A limited supply of handmade pottery bowls will be available for $ 20.00. Enjoy delicious baked goods too!
Take out available.
All proceeds will go to Habitat for Humanity of DeKalb County, a locally run affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian housing organization.
Habitat for Humanity builds and renovates houses in partnership with volunteers and families in need, regardless of their ethnic or religious background. The houses then are sold to those in need at no profit and with no interest charged.
For more information on the Chili Cook-off and Bake Sale, contact Tecia Puckett Pryor at 615- 597-7370.

The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development is now giving students who left high school before graduating the opportunity to earn their high school equivalency diploma at no cost.
“This is a real game changer for those who need this credential to get a job,” said Jason Beard, Administrator of the Adult Education Program. “Our target is to have diplomas in the hands of 5,000 graduates by the end of the year, and we know removing the test fee is a great incentive to meet our goal.”
The state of Tennessee offers two test options to earn a high school equivalency diploma. The HiSet is managed by the nonprofit organization Educational Testing Service, and the GED is administered by Pearson Education. The HiSet’s original cost is $75 compared with $125 for the GED.
In order to reach as many potential graduates as possible, the HiSet will be the only test offered at no cost by the Adult Education program. Once a student passes either the HiSet or GED, an official state high school equivalency diploma is issued that does not make reference to which test was taken.
According to the American Community Survey, approximately 700,000 Tennesseans have less than a high school diploma. National figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (graphic below) show employment opportunity and income increase significantly with educational achievements.
Anyone interested in earning their Tennessee High School Equivalency Diploma should contact their local Adult Education office to get started. Free preparatory classes are available throughout the state of Tennessee and online resources are also available.
For more general information on eligibility and testing, visit Adult Education’s website at http://www.tn.gov/workforce/topic/high-school-testing or call 800-531-1515 for assistance in finding a local program.

DeKalb Telephone Cooperative (d/b/a DTC Communications) will host its annual meeting on Sept. 19, 2015, at the DeKalb County Fairgrounds in Alexandria.
Directors will be elected in the Alexandria, Liberty, and Smithville exchanges. The Nominating Committee has qualified the following candidates by nomination: Bennie “Buck” Curtis – Alexandria, Randy Campbell – Liberty, and Ronnie Garrison – Smithville. Those candidates who qualified by petition are: Mark Willoughby – Alexandria, Danny Lynn Hale – Liberty, and Paul Cantrell – Smithville.
Voting for directors will take place at the cooperative’s annual meeting on Saturday, Sept. 19 and during early voting Monday-Wednesday, Sept. 14-16. The last day to make changes to your membership for the 2015 election is Thursday, Sept. 10.
Hours and locations for early voting include:
Early Voting Hours
Mon., Sept. 14 – 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Tues., Sept. 15 – 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Wed., Sept. 16 – 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Early Voting Held at DTC Store Locations
111 High Street – ALEXANDRIA
126 JMZ Drive – GORDONSVILLE
200 Walmart Drive – SMITHVILLE
106 West High Street – WOODBURY
On Saturday, Sept. 19, gates to the DeKalb County Fairgrounds in Alexandria will open at 11:45 a.m., with voting from noon until 4 p.m. The business meeting will begin at 4 p.m. or once the last person in line at that time has voted.
Only DTC members may vote, and each member must present identification. For a single membership, only that individual may vote. Either member of a joint membership may vote, but not both. In the case of a business membership, a business affidavit is required.

The DeKalb County Election Commission will extract and store the November 14 election results because of a pending legal challenge to the passage of amendment 1
The State Election Commission has ordered all of Tennessee’s County Election Commissions to extract all the November 14 election data from voting machines, and store in an external device.
DeKalb County Voting machine technicians, County Election Commissioners representing both parties and a technician from the voting machine company, Microvote, will be present for the extraction, which is set for 4 p.m. September 10 at the election office.
“The extraction became necessary because the lawsuit has yet to be resolved, and at some point, those machines will have to be loaded with the March 1 Presidential Preference and DeKalb Democratic Party Primary candidates,” said Dennis Stanley, Administrator of Elections. “Because we have no concrete date on when the litigation will be resolved, we have no choice but to extract that data, preserve it should it be needed as evidence in the lawsuit, and make plans for the March elections.”
The lawsuit is challenging how the state calculated the votes for Amendment 1- a Constitutional Amendment giving the Tennessee General Assembly more leeway in enacting abortion regulations.
It is argued that the state’s constitution says for an amendment to pass, voters of the state have to “approve and ratify such amendment or amendments by a majority of all citizens voting for Governor, voting in their favor.”
The lawsuit, filed on November 7, 2014, claims because of how the State Constitution is worded, the state should have only counted the votes of those who case a ballot in both the Governor’s race as well as Amendment 1.
However, State Election officials maintain Tennesseans have a right to vote or not vote for Governor and any other way “would not make sense.”
According to the final election totals from November, about 30,000 more people cast ballots for Amendment 1 than cast ballots in the Governor’s race. However, the Amendment won by approximately 70,000 votes.

The Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission has granted approval for Smithville’s second liquor store.
During a meeting last Tuesday, August 25, the TABC acted on James E. Bradshaw’s request for licensing of a retail store to be located at 725 South Congress Boulevard, Smithville called “Center Hill Wine & Spirits” near Food Lion.
According to the TABC, Bradshaw is investing $200,000 of personal funds into the business, as verified by TABC staff. Mr. Bradshaw is leasing the premises from Bayview Holdings, LLC for an initial term of four years. The TABC staff recommended conditional approval of this request for licensing, subject to receipt of a TABC inspection and acknowledgement of TABC rules and regulations.
The Smithville Board of Aldermen in July voted to issue Bradshaw a certificate of compliance, which signified that he met all the city’s ordinance requirements to make application to the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission, the agency which has the sole authority to grant a liquor license.
The city’s first liquor store, Smithville Discount Wine & Spirits at 413 East Broad Street, opened several weeks ago after also receiving a license by the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission.