Knoxville's Top 40 Under 40 and YPK

As some of you have uncovered already, this blog is closely tied to the founders of the Young Professionals of Knoxville. Today, the Knoxville Business Journal unveiled their Top 40 Under 40 and the Chief Styro is proud to say YPK was represented well by Brandon Clarke and Whitney Haslam.

With community leaders such as Clarke and Haslam leading YPK, Knoxville is destined to Serve, Unite and Inspire.

A Taste of the Second District - Amy Broyles

Friday, November 30 6 - 9 PM at 1202 & 1204 North Central

This should be an interesting event led by Amy Broyles. Lets face it, the growth and uniqueness of Knoxville is present in the second district. The area is really exploding, have you driven around there lately?

Taste of the Second District is being held in the buildings on Central Avenue recently renovated by Daniel Schuh of Knoxville Preservation and Development, and the day before the Old Knoxville Holiday Home Tour. A large crowd is expected with lots of fun, food, drinks, and media coverage.

Open house for all neighbors, businesses, restaurants, organizations, artists,
bloggers, musicians in the Old North Knoxville, Fourth & Gill, North Hills, Beaumont, Edgewood Park, Whittle Spring, Fairmont-Emoriland, Oakwood-Lincoln Park, Inskip, and Fountain City areas.

Finally a hip store for men

My wife is pumped up about Cloth. Ok, I'll be honest I am a sucker for a nice wardrobe too. Check out The Bottom Line for more info, good find Carly.

The Bruce is Loose

These guys are up to it again this year, the mania that is Tennessee Basketball. Check out thebruceisloose.com

Knox County School Rankings?

Something that has really been on my mind lately is the Knox County School system. I am a product of Knox County Schools and remember vividly the first computers we used in elementary school, the books in the library, and the first day of the school year…a clean school. As the time went by I remember the technology stayed the same, the books got older, and the horrible smell of the bathrooms, just got disgusting. When I graduated high school, I always imagined the school 10 – 15 years in the future and being young and stupid, I always just felt all the schools would be given a once over. But now I wonder…I have a child on the way and just simply wonder how clean my old school is, how advanced the technology is, and how many books and learning materials are at hand.

Is this information already available – does a report card exist for each Knox County Schools? I don’t necessarily want test scores, teacher stats, attendance, or race. I want to know what unique programs have been created, who has what computers, the software used in each school, cleanliness rating, property conditions, etc. I just want a score of 1-10 for every school in Knox County. It seems this would be an important tool and would make for a great News Sentinel story, not to mention great community information.

Any takers on creating this process and implementing a plan? An unbiased committee could be appointed to tour the schools and complete the report card. Then the items could be pooled and posted to a website that we all could review.

Creating a New Knoxville Culture

Recently, young professional Knoxvillians have become passionate about one thing, community. After reviewing the Knoxville News Sentinel and Rock Top MBA, I have come to this conclusion:

Knoxville is in the process of building an infrastructure and community dedicated to positive growth. To me, Knoxville is the country's best suburb, there is no better place to raise a family. But what about young professional culture, can you find that it in the numerous shopping malls and franchise restaurants we are known for? Doesn't look like....

The MBA program and groups like Young Professionals of Knoxville (YPK), seem to be really interested in serving, uniting, and inspiring a unique experience for the next generation. With infrastructure and community in place, no doubt that the next generation will define this city.

As discussed before in the previous Styrofeen blog, Knoxville is known to date for 2 things, the 1982 Worlds Fair (25 Years ago) and the Big Orange.......no wonder the YPKers are stepping up, they must.

Knoxville 3, Chattanooga 1

I thought I'd research more stats surrounding the Knoxville vs. Chattanooga debate. Here are 5 battles I thought were interesting.

• 2000-2006 Population Growth: Knoxville +4.9% over Chattanooga -0.2%
• Median Household Income: Chattanooga $32,174 over Knoxville $30,473
• Graduate or Professional Degree: Knoxville 9.5% over Chattanooga 7.5%
• Registered Sex Offenders: Tied at 153 per city
• People in Local Jails: Knoxville 193 over Chattanooga 1,035

Photo by tennessee-mary

Knoxville, Home of the World's Largest Disco Ball

Since Michael's commenter is broken, here's my response to his Chattanooga to surpass Knoxville? article.

Knoxville has the world's largest disco ball (the Sunsphere) and UT, which not everyone follows. The IMAX theatre and Aquarium in Chatt-town sure sound a lot more enticing than Knoxville if you ask me. Not to mention, Chattanooga is closer to Atlanta.

No Thanks Chamber, I Can Start My Own Business

In a world where technology is mainstream, the necessities needed to start a business are for the most part, online. Furthermore, grassroots marketing efforts can more easily be accomplished through networking sites such a LinkedIn, Facebook and more. I use the site Facebook because my theme for this article circles around young professionals and their drive to become entrepreneurs and how the chamber of commerce won't be able to help the next generation.

Sam Davidson recently said on YP Commons:

I can start my own business, I can find people like me, and I can get involved a way that is relevant, quick and engaging. Unless chambers realize that they've got to not only get someone in the door but also give them a seat at the table, very soon, Millennials will be graduating, picking cities and moving around, completely unconcerned about a massive citywide effort aimed to lure them in.

How can the chamber's of the world restrategize now to help the next generation of business owners?

Photo by seabass1254

Austin, TX Ranks High Among Singles, Not Knoxville

Josh Flory's jejune article on Knoxville, TN ranking high amongst singles falls short in comparison to a new survey compiled by Travel + Leisure. Austin, TX ranked .01 points higher than Las Vegas for singles according to the recent study. Even with the lack of statistical clout the T+L survey carries, it makes a lot more sense than the Primacy Relocation report I wrote about yesterday.

Knoxville a Good Place for Singles, Maybe

I was approached by Josh Flory of the News Sentinel yesterday regarding a new study that ranks Knoxville high on the singles destination list. Today, the article was published and I found the information provided by Primacy Relocation rather interesting. I'm not sure how serious I can take a study on young people that measures how many Starbucks a city has to how many people subscribe to magazines.

The Sunday Linker: 10/28/07

• According to a new study, women are more likely to be obese than men.
• ESPN poll says that 1 in 5 fans try to increase the luck of their favorite team. After UT's loss to Alabama, no red toothbrushes please.
  
• $560,000 for a watch? At least it makes sound.
• Merck Books has now released a manual for pet health. Diagnose Fido's condition with ease.
• Knoxvillians, participate in the Johnia Berry Memorial Toy Drive.
• If The Notebook were real it would look like this.

Ghostly Knoxville

My wife and I ventured downtown last night to take in the James White Fort Hearth Scares walking ghost tour. As an Orientation Leader at the University of Tennessee in my "younger" days I told many stories about ghosts and "beings" that stirred on campus. What I didn't know was that I only told a handful compared to the many you hear on the Hearth Scares tour. The most intriguing story of the tour, I'll only tell you one so I don't ruin your future trip, was the First Presbyterian Church cemetery tale. I did not realize famous people such as William & Mary Blount and James White were laid to rest there. Or, I should say, apparently laid to rest there. If you haven't experienced the tour I highly recommend it.

Downtown Knoxville Too Expensive to Inhabit

Jack Neely of the Metro Pulse wrote a great piece on the expensive price of living in downtown Knoxville. For the past year and a half I have founded and developed the Young Professionals of Knoxville and during that time myself along with my co-founder have met with many Knoxville leaders. One recurring theme in those discussions is developing downtown to become a hub for young professionals (YP's).

About 9 months ago my wife and I looked at purchasing one of the lofts (Gallery Lofts) mentioned in Jack's article. At nearly $200/sq ft the property was clearly out of our reach. We quickly turned our focus to West Knoxville.

If many of the leaders in this community want my age demographic to inhabit the downtown area, why are they not doing something about the pricing hike?

My recommendation would be for Mayor Haslam and Mayor Ragsdale to look into a subsidy program similar to that in Denver, Colorado. If there is a true desire for the up-and-comers in Knoxville to live and play in the downtown area then I say it is time for the government to get involved.

Knox County Commission Wall Décor

Racial Tension Selectiveness by the Media

How does this make national headlines but this does not? I will never understand why the media is so selective in their racially fueled criminal cases.

Knox County Government, Let's Get a Do Over

No matter where you turn these days the Knox County government is making headlines. This morning I stumbled upon the Metro Pulse's Ear to the Ground story on Tyler Harbor, former aide to Mayor Ragsdale.

Harber, who often claimed ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu as his inspiration, ran local political campaigns and has said he didn’t do any work in his county job. He left town after a Sheriff’s Department investigation into stolen emails that appeared in Ragsdale’s office.

Knoxville Tennis Court Map

A little boredom and curiosity go a long way. I decided to map all of the Knoxville city tennis courts via Google Maps. Happy swinging.

UPDATE: Added more courts.

The Sunday Linker: 9/9/07

No Sunday is complete without some speed linking. Welcome to the first edition of The Sunday Linker here at Styrofeen.

• Is $6,000 too much for a man chair? Fight it out with the Argument chair.
• Since we just got back from Hawaii I'd recommend this article over at MSNBC to anyone looking for a hot cocktail.
• According to the KnoxNews.com high-risk revenue bonds are going to keep some of Knoxville's richest busy by keeping a keen eye on the new downtown theater, the Riviera.
• Round up the wives and send them to Knoxville's newest retailer, White House | Black Market. Oh wait, it's not open yet.
• Tamara seems to be a cool nerd queen. What are you?
  

Knoxville Auto Dealerships Take Note

Because Big Two Toyota in Chandler, Arizona has a hair salon, wireless internet, barbershop, massage parlor...should I keep going? As reported by the Toyota Open Road Blog.