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City may accept less than $6,000 for boat
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McMinnville officials have decided to take less than the minimum bid for the boat they no longer want, if necessary.
The city paid approximately $12,000 for the boat a couple of years ago. It was recently listed on www.govdeals.com with a minimum bid of $6,000.
“We have seven more days left on the auction,” said interim city administrator Bill Brock. “As of today, the highest bid is $4,500. We placed a minimum bid at $6,000. Do you want to meet after seven days and make a decision or do you want to go ahead and say sell it for the high bid at the end of seven days?”
Brock made the request Tuesday night to Safety Committee members Mike Neal, chairman, Everett Brock and Ryle Chastain, who has previously voted to declare the boat as surplus and sell it on the website for at least $6,000.
The boat was purchased by the city of McMinnville to be used by the Warren County Rescue Squad. However, a test in deep water of a boat designed for shallow water resulted in the boat tipping over and sinking in July 2013 at Riverfront Park. Firefighters were simulating a river rescue in deep water, with two men in the boat attempting to pull one man out of the water, when the boat tilted to the side, filled with water, and sunk.
During a prior Safety Committee meeting, McMinnville Fire Chief Kendall Mayfield said the boat is in running order but missing its gas tank and does not have a battery.
When asked who has the authority to make the final decision on the selling price, city attorney Tim Pirtle said the buck stops in committee.
“Since your bid range is under $10,000, I think the committee has the authorization,” said Pirtle.
Committee members voted to accept the highest bid received at the time the auction ends Jan. 20 at 9 p.m.

Local farm partnership brings fresh beef to Warren County Schools
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Warren County Schools has beefed up lunch menus this school year through a new community partnership. Thanks to a collaboration between the district’s School Nutrition Department and Barton Creek Farms, students at Warren County High School, Warren County Middle School, West Elementary, Eastside Elementary, and Dibrell Elementary are enjoying locally sourced, farm-fresh beef in their lunches as part of a pilot program.

The initiative, spearheaded by Terri Mullican, Director of School Nutrition, has already shown great promise in its first few months. The partnership with Barton Creek Farms, located in Rock Island, Tennessee, ensures that the beef served is not only local to Warren County but of the highest quality. Barton Creek Farms specializes in farm-to-fork beef, with grass-fed and grain-finished cattle. Each calf is born and raised in Rock Island and goes through USDA-inspected processing, ensuring it meets the strictest safety and quality standards.

“When the opportunity arose to provide fresh, local beef, we knew it was a no-brainer,” Mullican said. “The fact that it’s a product from right here in our community makes it even more special. We can’t wait to implement it district-wide.”

Barton Creek Farms delivers fresh ground beef to the district monthly, and the nutrition

department incorporates it into homemade recipes such as lasagna, meatloaf, chili, and tacos.

As of now, the beef is being served at five schools, but the ultimate goal is to expand the program to all ten lunch-serving schools in the district.

The pilot program originated from a conversation between Mary Roller of Barton Creek Farms and Mullican. Roller, recognizing the farm’s potential to support local schools, reached out to gauge the district’s interest in serving local beef to students. Around the same time, a Warren County school board member contacted Mullican to share information about a similar partnership in neighboring Dekalb County, which helped push the initiative forward.

The timing worked in the district’s favor, as the nutrition department was able to fund the purchase of the beef using existing resources, eliminating the need for additional funding. Now that the pilot program is enjoying a successful run, the department has budgeted to extend the partnership district-wide for the 2025-26 school year.

Dr. Grant Swallows, Director of Schools, praised the program’s economic approach to student nutrition.

“This pilot is a perfect example of how we can use local resources to continue providing nutritious, healthy meals for our students,” he said. “We are grateful for partnerships like this one that benefit both our students and our local community. We always strive to support our local businesses when we can because our community is so good to us.”

In addition to working with Warren County Schools, Barton Creek Farms also partners with local restaurants to offer farm-fresh beef on their menus. The farm’s offerings include ground beef, steaks, roasts, and custom cuts by the quarter, half, or whole cow, meeting diverse consumer needs.

As the program continues to grow, the district hopes to expand its focus on farm-to-school meals, benefiting students’ health and connecting them to the agricultural roots of the community