The TMA Group (Transportation Management Association) in Franklin is pleased to announce the promotions of Mike Johnston to Transit Director and Monte Rodriguez of Transit Compliance Director. “We are excited to promote Mike Johnston and Monte Rodriguez into these respective positions. Their experience, knowledge, dedicated work, and long-term commitment to the success of TMA are outstanding. Also, we welcome Ray Brooks in Transit Operations to our TMA team; he is such an asset to our TMA team,” states Glenn McGehee, TMA Board Chairman. The TMA Group is a regional leader in customizing innovative, multimodal transportation solutions for employers and communities. TMA manages the operations of Franklin Transit in Franklin, TN, and the TDM program and VanStar regional commuter vanpool program in Middle Tennessee. For additional information, contact The TMA Group at 615.790.4005.

Franklin’s Historic Zoning Commission (HZC) recently voted to support a preliminary recommendation for a new multifamily residential project for the city’s emerging Factory District called The Middle Eight. A final Certificate of Appropriateness will come later in the process. Longtime Franklin residents Toby and Amanda McKeehan, along with their business partner, Charles Rulick, are seeking to develop the 7.1-acre property behind the McKeehan’s historic home on the corner of Franklin Road and Liberty Pike directly across the street from The Factory. As proposed, The Middle Eight will provide 275 housing units to Franklin’s growing, vibrant arts, and entertainment district through a combination of single-family homes, townhomes, duplexes, and apartments.  “For thirty years, we’ve dreamed of what this property could be, how it could build upon and enhance Franklin’s unique charm, generous spirit and creative core,” said Toby McKeehan following the vote. “We’re thrilled to share our vision for The Middle Eight with the greater community and excited to welcome more people to our little corner of downtown.” So, the McKeehans’ and Rulick joined together to form their own company, Truland Development, to oversee the potential project themselves. For the past year and a half, the team has worked closely with city staff to create a vision for a development that could fit within Franklin’s standards while also helping to meet the housing demand created by the area’s explosive growth.  Working with a team of local and national experts in project brand and visioning, market analysis, land planning, architecture, and engineering, Truland presented a concept that includes twenty-one townhomes and single-family homes, forty-five large apartment units and penthouses, 103 mid-size apartments and 106 smaller apartments. 

The Downtown Franklin Rotary Club (DFRC) recently announced $35,000 in grant donations for four non-profits:

 

Davis House Child Advocacy Center - $15,000

United Against Slavery - $10,000

FrankTown Open Hearts - $5,000

GraceWorks Ministries - $5,000

 

The club presented checks to representatives of each organization at its final 2022 meeting. “There is no better way to celebrate the holiday season than to help others,” said Kathy Reynolds, DFRC president. “Rotary is built on the premise of ‘Service Above Self’ and the club has taken that to heart since our founding five years ago. In addition to financial support, club members logged more than 2,500 in service hours in the last six months 2022.” The funds were generated from the DFRC’s three major events: Jockeys & Juleps Kentucky Derby Party, Rollick n’ Roll and Chili Cookoff. They are administered through the organization’s foundation. The DFRC Foundation will be providing additional grants throughout 2023. Visit downtownfranklinrotary.com for a grant request application. 

C.K. Collins, originally from Brentwood, has been on a one year traveling sabbatical to write her first book. The Swipe Right Effect: The Power to Get Unstuck is a nonfiction creative memoir that highlights great advice from friends all over the world. C.K., who goes by Kelly in her book, shares stories from her own life pre- and post-divorce but also shares her interviews with nine other women who have faced big life challenges. “This book is a pay it forward effort that shares with the reader all the amazing advice I was given after a big life change,” shared C.K. “Hearing from my friends firsthand in the interviews allows the reader to connect with them, read their story and absorb the advice that was life-changing for me.” Collectively, C.K. and her friends hope to give the reader ideas for a way back to their own happiness. She describes this book as the moon reflecting the love light of others. The interviews include stories of pain and renewal from many forms of loss including loss of friendship, a child, a spouse and a marriage. Their unifying hope is that in reading their stories, readers will find their way, their power and their joy. C.K. was the award-winning publisher and owner of a hyperlocal news publishing company, Home Page Media Group, in the Williamson County area. She sold her company and retired from the industry in 2021.