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Marty Dickens confirms two Music City Center events cancelled; states 65 others booked

Chairman Marty Dickens, Music City Center Authority, gave Kiwanians a progress report on construction of the Music City Center. Marty Dickens, Music City Center Authority chairman, confirmed the Center won't be ready in time for two sizable conventions booked for 2013.

MartyDickensTwoConven2012Jan13

"Neither (the Grand Ballroom or Grand Atrium will) be at completion (by March 2013)," Dickens said. He noted the construction schedule was simply not complete when the two conventions were booked.  He said the construction company is working around the clock to remain on schedule because there's substantial financial penalty if they do not. Nashville's Convention and Visitor's Bureau is helping the  American Trucking Association's Technology and Maintenance Council and the Hearth, Patio and Barbeque Association find other venues for 2013.  Both conventions have already committed to return to Nashville in future years. "The largest convention we've booked is in 2015, the National Rifle Association. It is estimated they'll have 48,000 people," Dicken's told Crieve Hall News editor Pam Simmons.  "In 2014, we'll have the AA Womens Final Four that'll have 20 thousand people." Dickens said the Music City Center already has commitments from 65 conventions booked from 2013  through 2026 and there are serious negotiations with more than 100 more.  Nashville hotels have 600,000 "room nights" already reserved toward their goal of a million booked before opening day for the center. "We knew we'd get some bad press but that kind of goes with it," Dickens said, referring to a article in Nashville's daily newspaper.  "We get bad press all the way, that kind of goes with the game. We are trying to do the right thing for the city."  He said that overall, The Tennessean has been supportive of the Music City Center. Read recent Tennessean story here Music City Center Authority Chairman Marty Dickens (right) and Kiwanis President Betty Lou Burnett seemed to enjoy George Armistead's (left) poetic introduction of Dickens:  "Welcome please, a wonderful person, a Nashvillian extraordinaire, Kiwanians embrace smiling Marty, show him we really care.

Dru's Vues, Too: Changing The Lege district lines

[caption id="attachment_12791" align="aligncenter" width="538" caption="Green Hills News "Dru's Vues, Too" for Jan. 12, 2012"][/caption]

HASLAM UNVEILS LEGISLATIVE AGENDA TO MOVE TENNESSEE FORWARD

 Bills highlight governor’s focus on jobs, education, efficient government and lower taxes

 NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today announced his priorities for the 2012 legislative session during a press conference where he was joined by legislators in the Old Supreme Court Chamber of the Capitol. His legislative agenda is designed to move Tennessee forward by supporting his goal to make Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs through economic development efforts, meaningful education reform, a more efficient and effective state government and improved public safety. “The legislative leadership of the General Assembly is committed to a productive and efficient session, and I’m proud to support their efforts by introducing our legislation today, the first day of session, and presenting them with a budget in the next several weeks,” Haslam said during the press conference. “These bills reflect my priorities in moving Tennessee forward by focusing on issues that make a difference through performance, accountability and efficiency in state government.” The governor’s legislation: · Strengthens the Department of Economic and Community Development’s FastTrack program by budgeting more for the grants and giving the department more flexibility in utilizing them to attract and grow Tennessee jobs. · Gives local school districts more options in how they approach classroom instruction and teacher compensation by: o Maintaining maximum class size requirements but eliminating average class size mandates for each school, and o Eliminating the outdated requirement of state and local salary schedules based strictly on seniority and training, which will give districts flexibility to make decisions such as how to address hard to staff schools or subjects along with rewarding teacher performance. · Outlines Tennessee specific goals for measuring progress to replace the federal measurements as part of the state’s No Child Left Behind waiver request and better defines the scope and focus of the Achievement School District in supporting Tennessee’s lowest performing schools. · Restructures 22 state boards and commissions to eliminate duplicative functions and provide more accountability and oversight of the agencies, which is a first step of an ongoing comprehensive review process. · Updates and reforms the state’s antiquated employment system through the TEAM Act (Tennessee Excellence Accountability and Management) by simplifying the hiring process, providing flexibility to retain and reward outstanding employees and streamlining the appeals process for employees. · Takes a first step in reaching the governor’s goal to raise the state inheritance tax exemption from $1 million to $5 million by increasing it to $1.25 million to lower the tax burden on family farmers and family business owners as these businesses span generations. · Lowers the state portion of the sales tax on food from 5.5 percent to 5.3 percent with the goal of lowering it to 5.0 percent in three years. Also filed today as part of the governor’s legislative package are a series of bills that were announced last week to address public safety issues including prescription drug abuse, tougher sentencing for certain types of gang-related crimes, tougher sentencing for gun possession by those with prior violent felony convictions and mandatory jail time for repeat domestic violence offenders. This legislation is part of a comprehensive, multi-year public safety action plan by the Governor’s Public Safety Subcabinet Working Group, which is made up of representatives from 11 state departments and agencies. The plan is a result of months of meetings with more than 300 public safety professionals and stakeholders across the state. “This legislative agenda is made up of a strategic group of bills aimed at impacting key issues that are crucial to tackle now,” Haslam continued. “I look forward to working with the Legislature on these important initiatives.” The Haslam administration filed a total of 55 non-budget related bills today. For more information about the governor’s legislative agenda, please visit http://forward.tn.gov. 011012 HASLAM UNVEILS LEGISLATIVE AGENDA TO MOVE TENNESSEE FORWARD.pdf

GOP releases redistricting plan

Rep. Curry Todd (R-85) consults with House redistricting panel Chairman Steve McDaniel (R-72) House Speaker Beth Harwell (R-56) sat beside Speaker Emeritus Jimmy Naifeh (D-81) as the redistricting plan was released last week. State Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester (standing) with Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper (Fifth) who addressed the House redistricting panel prior to release of redrawn Congressional districts. The General Assembly heard Nashville leadership's pleas to keep Davidson County consolidated but exchanging constituents in several outlying counties."] Changes:  GOP legislators released their once-a-decade redistricting plan reflecting population changes in the 2010 Census while Democrats voice objections.  The redrawn House and Senate districts are likely to strengthen the GOP’s large majorities in the legislature. Statewide, six incumbent Democrats are paired in three proposed new districts.  Republicans argue that Democrats did the same when they were in the majority.  "Just because I did it doesn't make it right," Democratic Speaker Emeritus Jimmy Naifeh joked.   In 1992, Democrats placed 12 incumbent Republicans into six districts.

“We feel very good about a plan that is fair and certainly less politically gerrymandered than the way the districts are currently drawn,” Speaker Beth Harwell told reporters. “We’ve gone out of our way to be as fair as possible. I can’t control the demographics of this state.”

The new map largely consolidates Green Hills with other affluent areas of Davidson County in Speaker Beth Harwell's House District 56.  Green Hills has long been split between three legislative districts. Davidson County Democratic Reps. Mike Turner (51),  Janis Sontany (53), Brenda Gilmore (54), Gary Odom (55), Mary Pruitt (58), and Republican Rep. Jim Gotto (60), seem safe for reelection under the new map albeit with some new constituents.

Democratic Reps. Sherry Jones and Mike Stewart are paired on the new map in Dist. 52 which only one can win.  Democrat Gary Moore (50), AFL-CIO president, has acquired enough Bellevue conservatives to make the new map a challenge for him.

Longtime Democratic Senators Douglas Henry (21) and Joe Haynes (20) will need to meet some new constituents under the new map.  Sen. Haynes' redrawn district has already drawn a Republican challenger, Dr. Steve Dickerson.  Democrat Thelma Harper (19) has few changes  to her district on the new map.

A newly created Davidson County district is a "coalition district" combining Black and Hispanic voters into a majority giving them an opportunity to elect a minority candidate to  the Legislature.

****

DNC: The state Democratic Party Executive Committee has re-elected three Tennesseans to the Democratic National Committee. Bill Owen of Knoxville, Will Cheek of Nashville and Gale Jones Carson of Memphis were elected to new four-year terms. Members of the Democratic National Committee are responsible for governing the national Democratic Party.

MEDIA ADVISORY: House redistricting committees to meet

House of Representatives

State of Tennessee

Office of the Speaker

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 27, 2011

Media Alert: House redistricting committees to meet

Who: Members of the House Ad Hoc Committee on Redistricting and members of State and Local Government Committee

What: Committee meetings to discuss concept maps to be considered by the House the first week of session

Where: Legislative Plaza Room 30

When: House Ad Hoc Committee will meet at 9 a.m. on January 4th, 2012 and the State and Local Government Subcommittee will immediately follow

Contact: Kara Owen, kara.owen@capitol.tn.gov 615-812-5272

###

Kara Owen
Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications and Policy
Office of the Speaker
Tennessee House of Representatives
Office: (615) 741-1975
Cell: (615) 812-5272 Room 19 Legislative Plaza

The Chicken Whisperer™ is coming to Nashville!

Schneider is coming to Nashville on Tuesday to cluck about the benefits of domesticated chickens at the Metro Council public hearing on a bill that would make it easier for urban dwellers to keep hens. This alone should make it the greatest public hearing in Music City since the halcyon days of the May Town Center debate. Here’s the press release from The Chicken Whisperer: The Chicken Whisperer™ will be speaking at the Nashville City Council meeting and broadcasting live from Davidson Farmers Cooperative. Nashville, TN (December 28, 2011) – The backyard chicken movement is sweeping the nation and Nashville is no exception. There are many advantages of keeping a small backyard flock of chickens and you no longer have to live on a farm to benefit from these advantages. As the nation’s leading expert on the backyard chicken movement, the Chicken Whisperer™ shares his knowledge with others about how to start small backyard flocks of chickens the right way the first time without having to re-invent the wheel. The Chicken Whisperer™ will be broadcasting live at the Davidson Farmers Cooperative on Tuesday, January 3rd from 11:00am CST to 12:30pm CST. He will also be speaking at the Nashville City Council meeting on Tuesday, January 3rd at 6:00pm. Read More: http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2011/the-chicken-whisperer-sorry-i-cant-reproduce-the-trademark-symbol-is-coming/

Hardaway to File Bill on Drug Testing for Legislators

State Rep. G.A. Hardaway, D-Memphis, says state legislators should be required to take drug tests, too, if they impose that requirement on welfare recepients, reports WMC-TV. He got the message from constituents. "They said to me, 'how do we know y'all aren't on drugs?'" said Hardaway. "I thought, well, you don't." Hardaway said they are upset over a bill that would require anyone who receives government welfare assistance to first take and pass a drug test. "With all the crazy legislation that we produce over the last couple of years, I'm sure that some people would love for us to be drug tested," said Hardaway. Read more: http://blogs.knoxnews.com/humphrey/2011/12/hardaway-to-file-bill-on-drug.html

Burros Christmas Luncheon

Another free digital collage by Smilebox

Victor Ashe Reminisces About His Mother

Former Knoxville Mayor Victor Ashe, also former U.S. ambassador to Poland and former state senator, has an op-ed piece in today's News Sentinel that tells the story of his mother, Martha Ashe, and how she became the first Republican woman to serve in the state Senate. A recommended read for Tennessee history buffs and/or those interested in women in politics.

Posted by Tom Humphrey on December 28, 2011 at 8:43 AM  http://tinyurl.com/769c2t7

Dru's Vues, Too: Guard's 375th Birthday; Kiwanis Christmas Party

Kiwanis Christmas Party 2011

"On Friday December 16th as we welcomed 20 four-year-olds from the McNeilly Center for Children. We had fun, fellowship, songs, Santa, lots of presents for the kids and even more smiles. This was a memorable luncheon --- a project delegated to "new members," capably organized and coordinated by Shannon McGee who presided at the meeting."---from Vic Legerton's e-mailed announcement

National Guard celebrates their 375th Birthday

In 1636 --- 140 years before America was born --- citizen soldiers first mustered in Salem, Massachusetts on guard against Indian raids and giving birth to what is now the National Guard the country’s oldest military organization celebrating 375 years of service this year.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, Tennessee National Guard Commander-in-Chief, and Major General Terry “Max” Haston, Tennessee Guard Adjutant General, presided at the ceremony.

“Milestones like this one are a great reminder of the heroic service and sacrifice of soldiers past and present,” Gov. Haslam said. “It is a pleasure to pay tribute to those soldiers and the National Guard for cultivating a long legacy of volunteerism in our country.”

“The Guard’s birthday is a milestone in the history of the nation,” said Maj. Gen. Terry “Max” Haston, Tennessee’s Adjutant General. “It is the oldest and one of the proudest military institutions and its members and service need to be honored.  The Guard is more vital than ever in protecting our freedoms both here at home and abroad.”

In keeping with the militias of 375 years ago, today's National Guard has become essential to national defense. More than 21,000 Tennessee Army and Air National Guardsmen have been deployed overseas in support of the War on Terror. Twenty-two of those brave men and women have given their lives while serving in Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.

The National Guard motto remains "Always Ready, Always There.”

Gov. Haslam and First Lady Light Capitol Christmas Tree

Traditional Boulevard Bolt 2011 attracts 8,200

First Lady Anne Davis with Mayor Karl Dean before The Boulevard Bolt

Over 8,200 Nashvillians ran The 18th Annual Boulevard Bolt on Thanksgiving Day.  Mayor Karl Dean coached the 2011 Bolt runners:

"I invite you to follow my philosophy today which is to start off slow and then taper off in this race.  Enjoy yourselves have a great day and a great Thanksgiving." Mayor Karl Dean's advice to Boulevard Bolt runners, listen here:  MayorDeanAdvice2011Nov24

Brentwood's Sean Keveren, 21, was the first to cross the finish line with a time of 24:28.  Close behind him was the first woman across, Sonja Friend-Uhl, 40, with a time of 27:34.

Other prominent runners included Santa with his reindeer, a waddle of penguins and quite a few turkeys. Civic leader Annette Eskind whizzed past while Nashville notable Lydia Lenker took the boulevard at a slower pace.

Cheering from the sidelines were Congressman Marsha Blackburn (R-7th) and Speaker Emeritus Jimmy Naifeh (D) both of whom had family members competing in the race.

 Mayor Karl Dean told the crowd the traditional Thanksgiving race helps bring Nashville together and also helps those less  fortunate by raising funds for the homeless.  "This is a great cause and a great day," he said.

The mayor, who has led walks on Metro's greenways and beyond, called the event "very consistent with our message that we need to make Nashville a more active, health  city."  He admonished the runners, "Don't stop after today: keep exercising, keep walking, keep running."

 The Boulevard Bolt, organized by volunteers, is a collaborative effort of Immanuel Baptist Church, St. George’s Episcopal Church and The Temple Congregation Ohabai Sholom in Nashville.

Since 1994, the Boulevard Bolt has grown from 2,500 participants to over 8,200 participants in 2011. The Boulevard Bolt ranks among the largest 5-mile races in the country donating $1.6 million to the homeless community in Nashville.

Mayor Karl Dean rallied the runners before the race

A waddle of penguins at the start line

First wave of runners get ready to race

TN VA Commissioner Many-Bears Grinder joins with WPCT to salute women veterans

Col. Many-Bears Grinder volunteered to leave her state-side duty to serve  in Afghanistan.  She told women veterans why she felt she had to volunteer to go.

Listen to her comments:   ManyBearsWhyIWent16Nov2011

Veterans Affairs Commissioner Many-Bears Grinder is an Operation Enduring Freedom Combat Veteran who served more than ten months in Afghanistan. She holds the Legion of Merit and a Bronze Star.

"I've always loved taking care of soldiers," Commissioner Grinder told women veterans and active duty personnel.  "When Gov. Haslam asked if I wanted to advocate for TN veterans, I only had to think about it for a millisecond.  What a dream job.  So rewarding."

 She advocates for Tennessee veterans claims with the federal government, securing $822 million federal dollars for Tennessee veterans in the last fiscal year.  Commissioner Grinder also maintains the state's three veterans homes and four cemeteries. She is the first woman ever to serve as commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Veterans Affairs in Tennessee.

 Many-Bears Grinder retired as a Colonel from the Tennessee Army National Guard with over 35 years service in logistics and personnel.  Grinder's first name was originally a nickname that stuck, so she legally changed her name to Many-Bears.  She is married to Ernie Grinder, a Vietnam veteran and her father earned his U.S. citizenship with his Navy service in WW II.

 The Women’s Political Collaborative of Tennessee invited Commissioner Grinder to speak to salute Tennessee's women veterans.  "I will do everything I can to help people make sure your service is never forgotten," she told the women veterans at a luncheon held in their honor.  "I often find veterans who don't know they are entitled to benefits.  Worrying about those who don't know keeps me up at night."  She plans a broader outreach through  a Women Veterans Summit in April 2012.

"I gave my best to make a better world"

Click here to listen to  Joe Napiltano: KiwanisVetsDaySnip

Veterans Day 2011 was particularly significant not only for its date — 11/11/11 — but also because this year marks  Tenth Anniversary of 9/11.  Bin Laden has been killed by Navy SEALS and the tide of the war 9/11 brought on seems to be receding. Kiwanians paused to remember the nations veterans by laying a wreath at the  Centennial park monument to local soldiers lost in WWI.

Presented in 1923, the WWI monument stands as a gift to Nashvillians from the local Kiwanis Club. The inscription at the monument's foot reads: "I gave my best to make a better world. 1917-1918."

"To honor and remember our veterans this year we think about our Navy SEALS," Marine Jay Drescher said in introducing veteran Navy SEAL Joe Napiltano to speak to Nashville Kiwanians. "Navy SEALS did something spectacular this year but that's normal operating procedure for Navy SEALS."

Napiltano reminded listeners more than a million U.S. soldiers have been lost serving the country in WWI and 12 other modern overseas battles.  His countdown included WWI 116,000, WWII 407,000, Korea 36,000, Vietnam 58,000, El Salvador 20, Beirut 366, Granada 19, Panama 40, Persian Gulf 269, Somalia 43, Bosnia 72, Iraq 400,459 and Afghanistan 1,610 (and counting).

"These men and women went into battle proud to wear the uniform, proud to be part of something greater than themselves and proud to be in the company of such great souls," Napiltano said, counseling, "Today is not a time to mourn the great service members who have passed.  We should  celebrate them and all service members still alive, celebrating their commitment to the ideals our nation holds dear." ---post by Dru Smith Fuller

Navy SEAL Joe Napiltano (l.) and Marine Jay Drescher laid a memorial wreath
at the Kiwanis-sponsored WWI monument in Centennial Park.--photo by Dru Smith Fuller

Japanese Consul General calls Tennessee-Japan partnership "Win-Win"

Consul General Hiroshi Sato spoke at the
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute

Consul General Hiroshi Sato said the ongoing partnership between Tennessee and Japan is "win-win."  He heads the regional consulate Japan moved from New Orleans to Nashville in 2008.


Tennessee is home to 179 Japanese companies representing $14 billion U.S. dollar investment and employing 35,000 Tennesseans. The largest Japanese companies are Nissan, Bridgestone in Middle Tennessee and Denso in Maryville.  



Half the total foreign investment in Tennessee is Japanese leaving far behind the investment from Germany, Canada, United Kingdom and France.  



Despite the recent tsunami and earthquake, Sato said  "Japan fully intends to maintain its status as a leading player in the global economy.  We intend not only to survive but to thrive."

Consul Gen. Hiroshi Sato, Japan, in concert with Vince Gill

Hiroshi Sato, Japan's Consul General Yumi Bhattarai, Vince Gill in Nashville Tn on April 7, 2011 to raise funds for the Mental Health Association of Middle Tennessee.

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Consul Gen. Hiroshi Sato with consulate staffer Yumi Bhattarai joined Vince Gill to play in concert in April 2011.  Gen. Sato plays a Gibson Epiphone guitar.  He recalled his, "tremendous experience of playing with Vince Gill in concert.  When I came here to Music City, I found my old guitar and started a small band called "Beauty and the Beast"  with violinist Yumi Bhattarai."

Consul General Hiroshi Sato brings a baby white seal to class

Consul General Hiroshi Sato with Paro, his robot baby white seal.
---photo by Dru Smith Fuller

"To help communicate the message Japan is still a wonderful place (despite recent disasters)," Consul General Hiroshi Sato told his Osher Lifelong Learning class, "I brought along a little friend, Parot, a baby white seal (robot) disguised by his completely natural demeanor."  


The Consul General said Parot, which is another name for robot, "is here as an ambassador to make a case that Japan, which has standing as a technological and cultural leader, is not gone.  We are still here and eagerly look forward to your visit to Japan to see how far we have come."


Parot "has been used to help relieve the distress of the victims of the Eastern Japan earthquake," he said.


A Japanese consulate has been in Nashville since the 2007 floods  in New Orleans where it was formerly located.

Cooper v. Harwell? The Daily Buzz - November 8, 2011

The Daily Buzz November 08, 2011 Today's Buzz Quote of the Day           The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows. Sydney J. Harris  ________________________        To Subscribe to Out of The Blue, head to BlueTn.com      Follow us on Twitter at@OutoftheblueTN  Cooper Vs. Harwell? Pat Nolan has a story that a lot of people are talking about. LINK Would House Speaker Beth Harwell of Nashville give up her powerful position and safe seat in the State House of Representatives to run for Congress against incumbent Democrat Jim Cooper? That seems to be the focus of a professional telephone poll that's been making the rounds in recent days asking voters who they would support. Sources close to both the Congressman and the Speaker say this isn't their poll, leading to speculation that it might be funded by one of the national parties' congressional committees. Mostly likely it would be the GOP testing candidates to see which might be the strongest competitor to take on Cooper. Gov. Bill Haslam and the gas tax. Just read Tom Humphrey's story. LINK But the Republican governor told reporters on Monday that he doesn't plan to introduce any proposals to overhaul the system in the upcoming legislative session. Haslam said in recent budget hearings that while it's encouraging that cars are becoming more fuel efficient, that trend also means the state stands to collect less from its 21.4-cent tax on each gallon of gas. Betsy Phillips at Pith in the Wind makes a good point about the recent statements of Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey. LINK Wouldn't it be better to retrain people for the open jobs rather than blaming them and calling them lazy because they're not already qualified? I mean, yes, I know that's not as much fun, but the time for publicity stunts is long over. We need to be putting people back to work.  Race to the Top in Tennessee has made the New York Times. Not everyone is happy about teachers evaluations. LINK But tweaking the rules may not be nearly enough. A recent article in Education Week said essentially that things were so bad in Tennessee, there was a danger that the grant program would be undermined elsewhere. The state is micromanaging principals to a degree never seen before here, and perhaps anywhere. For example, Mr. Shelton is required to have a pre-observation conference with each teacher (which takes 20 minutes), observe the teacher for a period (50 minutes), conduct a post-observation conference (20 minutes), and fill out a rubric with 19 variables and give teachers a score from 1 to 5 (40 minutes). Memphis' Steve Ross also gives a fact check to Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey. LINK The unemployment rate in Tennessee stands at 9.8%. As you can see from the chart above, unemployment shot up at an alarming rate from a low of 4.5% in May of 2007 to a high of 10.8% just over a year ago. We've been hanging around 10% unemployment for right at 30 months. So for 52 months we've either seen increasing or very high unemployment in this state. 52 months, that's almost 4 1/2 years. In that time I've seen lots of friends laid off. Some of them have been fortunate enough to find jobs in a very difficult employment environment. Most of those folks that have found jobs are making less than they were before they got laid off. Yet through all of this, their expenses aren't appreciably lower. Rent is still rent. Utilities are still utilities. Gas is still gas, and food is still food. In fact, many of these items, particularly gas (which has increased $.56/gal over the past year have a huge impact on other prices like food (Ag is heavily dependent on fuel, and transportation of food is also). Quick Hits From Around The State Gov. Bill Haslam defends school evaluations but says he is still undecided on school vouchers. LINK It's election day in Knoxville. Mark Padgett and Madeline Rogero are facing off and the senate District 6 Senate race is on between Becky Massey and Democrat Gloria Johnson. LINK If you want to know who is supporting Rick Perry for president in Tennessee, you can find out at the LINK. The beatings will continue until morale improves. A post by Southern Beale. LINK Tennessee GOP chair Chris Devaney and TNDP chair Chip Forrester talk jobs with Bob Mueller. Video at Pith in the Wind. LINK  Trace Sharp tracesharp@gmail.com On the web at  http://www.bluetn.com/

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Kix Brooks gets his star on Walk of Fame

Kix Brooks admires his star on the Music City Walk of Fame
---photo by Dru Smith Fuller

Walk of Fame: Kix Brooks chased his songwriting dream to Nashville back in 1979. Lower Broadway broke his heart at the time because of darkness in storied spots like Tootsie's Orchid Lounge. 


Today, Brooks is a top-ranked country music celebrity. He is also a Nashville community leader serving on the Mayor's Music Council to bring the music industry and the city closer. He was formerly a board member at the Convention & Visitors Bureau.  


Lower Broadway has blossomed with museums, entertainment and restaurants.  "The really cool thing is that we are still a small town here but we've got some big city stuff," Brooks said.  


Country music sweetheart Reba McEntire presented Brooks with his star.  "I don't know if I deserve one but I got to say I'm really proud of it," he said.  


Now the radio host of American Country Music Countdown, Kix Brooks played his last concert as a duo with Ronnie Dunn in 2010.


He joined singer-songwriter Alan Jackson, gospel great Dr. Bobby Jones, and designer for the stars Manuel on the Walk of Fame.  Posthumous stars went to electric guitar visionary Les Paul, gospel music queen Dottie Rambo and Nashville broadcaster Dan Miller.

Fox News: Herman Cain is sure...

TN Sen. Lamar Alexander #27 on Congressional 50 richest members list

• Assets

  $10.88 Million

• Liabilities

  $0.50 Million

• Change

  -14.4%

The Tennessean’s fortunes dipped by more than 14 percent, or nearly $2 million, in 2010 with the sale of Nantucket, Mass., real estate. Alexander reported that both he and his spouse sold their investments in an undeveloped lot in Nantucket in two transactions valued at $500,000 to $1 million each. Alexander had previously reported the investments being worth $1 million to $5 million each. The Senator remained otherwise invested in real estate, with investments in ranchland, farmland, commercial buildings and other lots in Texas worth more than $1 million combined. Alexander also maintained his investment of $5 million to $25 million in Processed Foods Corp., a Knoxville, Tenn.-based company where he served on the board before his election to the Senate in 2002. His wife also reported owning more than $1 million in company stock.

TN Rep. Diane Black #25 on Congressional richest members list

Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.)$10.63*Million

• Assets

  $16.53 Million

• Liabilities

  $5.90 Million

• Change

  n/a

Despite slashing her minimum net worth by nearly two-thirds since filing a financial disclosure as a candidate in May 2010, Black still lands in the middle of the list. As a candidate, Black had reported a minimum net worth of nearly $29 million but dropped more than $18 million in her first filing as a lawmaker. Black’s largest investment had been her husband’s stake in Nashville, Tenn.-based Aegis Sciences Corp., previously valued at $25 million to $50 million. Black most recently valued that stock at $5 million to $25 million. In her latest disclosure form, Black reported her husband sold his Aegis stock in an October 2010 transaction valued at $25 million to $50 million, while purchasing stock in the company the same day in a transaction valued at $5 million to $25 million. David Black was listed as the CEO of Aegis Sciences, which he also founded. The company bills itself as “a forensic chemical and drug-testing laboratory specializing in Zero-Tolerance Drug Testing for businesses, professional and amateur sports drug testing, pain management physicians, and medical examiners” on its website. Diane Black also reported a half-dozen real estate properties in Tennessee and Florida under Ebon Falcon, valued at a combined minimum of $8.5 million.