Dave Flessner is the business editor for the Times Free Press. A journalist for 35 years, Dave has been business editor and projects editor for the Chattanooga Times Free Press, city editor for The Chattanooga Times, business and county reporter for the Chattanooga Times, correspondent for the Lansing State Journal and Ingham County News in Michigan, staff writer for the Hastings Daily Tribune in Nebraska, and news director for WCBN-FM in Michigan. Dave, a native of Lansing, Mich., joined the Times Free Press in 1999 after working for 19 years at The Chattanooga Times. He covers energy, business and special projects, including the Tennessee Valley Authority. Dave has previously covered police, county government, politics and education. A 1979 graduate of the University of Michigan, Dave also studied economics at Michigan State University's Graduate School of Business. He has won more than a dozen journalism awards for business, breaking and investigatory reporting, including first place honors for education coverage in 2007 from the Tennessee Press Association, investigative reporting in 2006 and project reporting in 2005 from the East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists, deadlline reporting in 2002 from the Georgia Associated Press Association, and health care reporting in 2001 from the Tennessee Hospital Association. Contact Dave at 423-757-6340 or dflessner@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on twitter at twitter.com/chattreporter.
Within the next 15 months, President Biden will be able to appoint a majority of the directors to America's biggest public utility which was established, in part, to be a "living laboratory" for all utilities.
by Dave FlessnerPower sales to major industries in the Tennessee Valley rose 7.5% in the fourth quarter of 2020 as manufacturers continued to rebound from the pandemic.
by Dave FlessnerDirectors of the Tennessee Valley Authority dismissed claims by former President Donald Trump that TVA President Jeff Lyash is overpaid and voted Thursday to boost what TVA's CEO may earn this year.
by Dave FlessnerEach of the past two U.S. presidents has proposed selling some or all of the Tennessee Valley Authority to help pay down the federal debt, arguing that government ownership of America's biggest public utility was no longer necessary or beneficial.
by Dave FlessnerOver the past half-century, Chattanooga went from being labeled by the federal government as "the dirtiest city" in America to being named "best town ever" by Outside magazine.
by Dave FlessnerTwo educators who are helping lead efforts to use Chattanooga's high-speed internet have been appointed to the board of EPB, which developed the nation's first citywide Gig service a decade ago.
by Dave FlessnerThe Chattanooga City Council Tuesday rejected plans to develop the former Quarry golf course into a 225-unit complex of apartments and single-family homes.
by Dave FlessnerWith the fastest internet service available anywhere in town, Chattanooga is the best city in America to work from home, according to a new report from PC magazine.
by Dave FlessnerAfter relying on the Tennessee Valley Authority for more than 80 years, a handful of local power companies in Tennessee are looking for a new and cheaper source of power.
by Dave FlessnerGena Weldon took over as head of the 97-year-old Goodwill Industries in Chattanooga last year and within her first four months as CEO she had to shut down all 17 of its resale shops due to the pandemic and respond to the demolition of Goodwill's top-selling store in a tornado.
by Dave FlessnerThe former Camp Dixie on Lake Chickamauga has a new owner.
by Dave FlessnerTo help jump start the growing electric car market, America's biggest public utility is teaming up with Tennessee state and local governments and private businesses in a new initiative to build a network of fast-charging stations every 50 miles along Tennessee's interstates and major highways.
by Dave FlessnerChattanooga's biggest construction project is getting a record amount of money this year under a revised funding formula Congress adopted to help rebuild part of America's infrastructure.
by Dave FlessnerAmerica's biggest public electric utility is turning more to natural gas to generate power.
by Dave FlessnerEven as bank consolidation reduces the number of U.S. banks, Chattanooga continues to attract the interest of regional banks eager to tap into the area's growing economy. Despite the pandemic and near record-low interest rate yields, deposits in Chattanooga's commercial banks last year swelled to a record $12.1 billion as of June 30, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
by Dave FlessnerA routine medical exam last February revealed that Kevin Flynn needed another brain surgery, which his doctors immediately scheduled two days later.
by Dave FlessnerDalton, Georgia is the capital of the $10 billion-a-year carpet industry, but Mayor David Pennington is eager for the city to capitalize on more than making floorcovering.
by Dave FlessnerThe ongoing COVID-19 pandemic may change how the process works this year, but local volunteers are still preparing to provide free tax assistance and preparation for thousands of low- and moderate-income individuals or those with disabilities in the Chattanooga area over the next three months.
by Dave FlessnerChattanooga's jobless rate rose last month but remained below both the state and national averages, according to preliminary job figures released Thursday.
by Dave FlessnerThe Tennessee Valley Authority, which cut out many of the rebates, loans and other subsidies it once offered for energy efficiency improvements, trails most other utilities in helping its customers to limit their power consumption, according to a new study on energy efficiency in the South.
by Dave Flessner