People

Russell Brackins, former mayor of Erwin, died Oct. 15, 2025, at the age of 96. A lifelong resident of Erwin and a graduate of Unicoi County High School and East Tennessee State University, Brackins career in government began with the Internal Revenue Service with Brackins retiring as a senior...

Don Stallions has been selected as the new city manager of Townsend. Stallions previously worked as the director of general services for Blount County since 2014. Prior to that, he served as Blount County’s HR director and risk manager from 2003 to 2014. He holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal...

J. Scott Miller, city manager of East Ridge, will retire in January 2026 after a more than 45-year career in public service. Miller has served as East Ridge city manager since January 2023, having first returned as interim city manager in November 2022. He previously served as city manager from 2016...

Steve Alexander has been appointed the new fire marshal of the Johnson City Fire Department (JCFD). Alexander has spent 22 years with JCPD, beginning as a firefighter as well as serving as a driver/engineer, lieutenant, district chief, and most recently as interim fire marshal since September. Prior...

K9 Kilo has joined the Mount Carmel Police Department as the first ever K9 unit on active duty. A specially trained police dog, Kilo will assist in a wide range of law enforcement duties including narcotics detection, suspect tracking, and search-and-rescue operations. His arrival marks a...

Mark Lindsey, an officer with the Mount Carmel Police Department, died Oct. 11, 2025, at the age of 51 following an unexpected medical emergency. Lindsay served for several years with the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office before joining the Mount Carmel Police Department where he served as patrol and...

Josh Carr has been appointed as the chief of the Pigeon Forge Fire Department. Carr has 22 years of service in the department and has served as interim fire chief since July following the retirement of Chief Tony Watson. Carr began his career with the Pigeon Forge Fire Department as a volunteer then...

Makenna McGowan has been selected as the new marketing coordinator for the city of Columbia’s Tourism and Marketing Department. In her role, she will assist in developing and implementing marketing strategies designed to strengthen the City’s tourism brand, Visit Columbia, by building destination...

Sean Pfalzer has been selected as the first director of capital programs and chief data officer for the city of Goodlettsville. Pfalzer has more than 15 years of experience in planning, infrastructure, management, and public serving, most recently completing a municipal management fellowship through...

Mike Adams has been selected as the new deputy chief of police for the Johnson City Police Department following the retirement of current Deputy Chief Scott Jenkins. Adams has spent 24 years with JCPD, most recently serving as captain of the Criminal Investigations Division. He has held numerous...

Greg Cox has been appointed as mayor of Johnson City following the departure of Mayor John Hunter. Cox has been serving as the city’s vice mayor. He will hold the mayoral seat until the next election in December 2026. Cox is a real estate agent and owns two small businesses in Johnson City. He has...

Matt Slagle has been selected to fill the vacant seat representing the Bristol City Council’s east district seat vacated by the departure of former mayor Mark Hutton. His appointment to the city council will continue until the city’s next election in November 2026. Slagle is a Bristol native who has...