From the beginning Democratic hack and former journo Colby Sledge and his NFP organization have slung mud at the intentions and the actions of those of us who supported the movement to stop Mayor Karl Dean's take-over of the planning process for the State Fairgrounds. They generated innuendo and gossip about Fairgrounds supporters coming from outside the county and being bankrolled by racers. Once it became obvious that the referendum had enough popular support to be put on the ballot, they trashed Fairgrounds supporters during the Election Commission process, and the latest false charge of "illegal conduct" was just part of the pattern of lies to stop a movement that is determined to stop Karl Dean's bulldozers.
Hence, the DA's refusal is further evidence that Neighbors for Progress's case for stopping Fairgrounds supporters never had merit and their ulterior motive has been to help Karl Dean prevail by any means necessary. But they just keep losing:
District Attorney General Torry Johnson said a review of the petitions determined that no further investigation should be conducted.
"The Election Commission is very stringent in its review of these petitions and they determined that there were more than enough qualified signatures provided that they didn't even need to rely on any of these forms the ‘Neighbors for Progress' group found questionable
Leader of the Fairgrounds referendum effort, CM Jamie Hollin, called Neighbors for Progress's latest efforts nothing but "gutter politics." That's exactly what they are conducting despite their claims to be community-based. It seems more like a party-type campaign of mud-slinging.
Mr. Sledge again slung some mud in a recent Tennessean article covering the use of mufflers at the raceway.
ReplyDeleteHe states:
“The general feeling from the neighborhood is that the difference is made more at the track rather than away from the track,” South Nashville Action People co-chairman Colby Sledge said. “With the way the sound carries, it’s still pretty apparent.”
This is an absolute lie.
To test the "noise levels" myself, I road my bicycle to the last race. I rode from Belmont Blvd, down Kirkwood, past the emissions testing facility near I-65, then to the corner of the fairgrounds near the Mrs. Grissom's plant. From there, I rode to Wedgewood and to the main entrance.
The cars were running during my ride. I stopped at the top of the hill behind the bread bakery on 8th Ave. This is the highest point in the area. I figured if the racing sounds "carried" into the neighborhoods, I would hear it from this point. When I listened closely, I could hear the distinctive noise of the track, but barely. The 18 wheelers on 440 made more noise.
At the corner of the fairgrounds near Mrs. Grissom's, it was still quiet enough that a church could have held a picnic and the pastor could have said grace at normal speaking levels.
The noise only became "apparent" as I came within 100 feet of the fairgrounds entrance on Wedgewood.
As I crested the hill that is the fairgrounds, it became obvious there was a race going on.
Again, for Sledge to state the sound carries at any significant levels into his neighborhood is an absolute lie.
Mr. Sledge should try to base his arguments on truth and perhaps dedicate his efforts towards the Save My Fairgrounds proposal which takes a park-like approach to improving the area while maintaining the raceway and fairground facilities.