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Small Branch bridge to be fixed
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Replacement is on the horizon for the worst bridge in Warren County.
The county Financial Management Committee met Tuesday and accepted a bid of $724,919 from Rogers Group to replace the bridge over Small Branch.
“My engineer went over the bids,” said Road Superintendent Levie Glenn. “I’m going to go with his recommendation. The bid was OK. This company has done satisfactory work before. I make a motion that we give it to Rogers Group, the low bidder.”
Glenn said the bid estimate was expected to exceed $800,000.
“The bid came in a little less than my engineer thought it would and we got three bidders,” said Glenn. “Some places have only been getting one bid.”
Warren County began working with property owners in that area more than three years ago. Because communication was an issue with at least one property owner and the condition of the bridge is deteriorating, Warren County government approved a measure in April 2016 to take the property by eminent domain if negotiations fail.
The decision was made after Warren County Highway Department engineer Kyle Hazel informed the county it needed to take action.
 “The bridge on Old Shelbyville Road, no doubt, is one of the most critical structures needing to be replaced in the Warren County bridge inventory,” said Hazel. “TDOT has a bridge grant program. It provides funding to replace structures with a minimal amount of matching by counties.”
However, the grant does require acquisition of land by the county and the state will not consider another grant for Warren County until this one is replaced because it is currently at the top of the state’s bridge replacement list.

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