“Monopolies are rarely a good thing. In fact, I think they’re about as popular as Nancy Pelosi is in East Tennessee.”
— State Rep. Greg Martin, R-Hixson, while expressing his support for the Education Freedom Act.
“Let me be unequivocally clear: Acts like distributing Klan propaganda or engaging in any behavior meant to intimidate or divide us have no place in Chattanooga. We are a community built on strength, unity and mutual respect.”
— Chattanooga Police Chief John Chambers after KKK flyers were distributed in the city.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Chattanooga Chief of Police John Chambers speaks Oct. 11, 2024, after he was sworn in during a ceremony in the Walker Theater.“These apartments are a symbol of hope. They’re an opportunity to positively affect the lives of the individuals we work with from the time they step into our program. In providing them safe shelter, they can begin to focus on taking their life back and achieving their destiny in this world.”
— Mental Health Court Coordinator Clinton Stroble on new transitional housing that will serve clients of accountability courts in Whitfield and Murray counties.
“What can we do to just survive and make it through? Our food cost is just through the roof, and there’s really not a solution in sight.”
— Nina Worsham about her family’s restaurant, Bluegrass Grill, amid a nationwide egg shortage.
“The court’s order serves as complete vindication for Mr. Blevins, who performed a public service and looks forward to collecting the money that Thunder owes him. Hopefully, this humiliating defeat will teach Mr. Thornton and all other developers who dare to abuse Tennessee’s court system an important lesson: Litigation is not a substitute for addressing valid criticism.”
— Attorney Daniel Horwitz on a court ordering Thunder Air Inc., owned by John “Thunder” Thornton, to pay more than $200,000 in damages to Horwitz’s client, Marion County resident Joe E. “Joey” Blevins Jr., and Ronnie Kennedy following dismissal of a lawsuit.
Staff photo by Abby White / Austin Schneider, third from left up front, watches from the sideline with his Silverdale Baptist Academy basketball teammates Jan. 31, 2025, as the Seahawks host Grace Academy on senior night. Schneider, the team’s manager, dressed out and scored the first basket in a moment of special recognition.“The players latched onto Austin really quickly. They started calling him ‘Coach A,’ and pretty soon that’s what everyone in the hallways were calling him, too. The guys just bought into caring for him and loving on him, which has been a cool thing to see.”
— Silverdale Baptist Academy boys’ basketball coach Slater Belew on Austin Schneider, the team’s manager for the past four years. Schneider was born with a life-threatening heart condition that required three surgeries before he was 4 years old.
“My whole thing was, all of this could have gone away with better communication, which is what I’ve been preaching.”
— Hamilton County Commissioner Chip Baker, R-Signal Mountain, after the chair of the county’s audit committee said better communication from the county mayor’s office could have prevented friction over the cost of moving a Chattanooga magnet school.
“We never respond to anonymous communications. Never. And until this person is willing to put their name to it, we’re not responding.”
— Robin Derryberry, spokesperson for the Chattanooga Housing Authority, on an email, sent anonymously, that was critical of the authority’s response to President Donald Trump’s attempts to root out diversity, equity and inclusion programs from the federal government.