Summer Cocktail Festival to take over Chattanooga Market June 22

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — The Chattanooga Market is getting ready to host a nostalgic event for adults just in time for summer. Following a Y2K theme, the Summer Cocktail Festival will offer a variety of alcoholic beverages that are da bomb. Travis Faucette with Rolling Oak Distillery is just one of the special local vendors highlighted at the event. The…

Chattz Coffee celebrates over 20 years serving community

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — An incredible local coffee company is celebrating over two decades of serving the Chattanooga area. Chattanooga Coffee Company (‘Chattz Coffee’) was founded back in 2002 and continues to provide coffee lovers a pick-me-up of quality espresso. Owner and operater, Lisa Dunny, highlighted some of their popular products and beverages on News 12 This Morning. The female-owned…

Forward Madison Beats Chattanooga Red Wolves 1-0

Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV) Juan Galindrez scored in the 43rd minute to lift Forward Madison to a 1-0 victory over the Chattanooga Red Wolves Saturday night at CHI Memorial Stadium. It was a homecoming for Galindrez. He’s a former Chattanooga player, who is the Red Wolves all-time leading scorer. Categories: Sports – Local Sports News, Sports – Soccer Tags: Chattanooga Red Wolves, Forward…

New Hamilton County fire code regulations spark concerns about growth

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WDEF) – Every new development in Hamilton County has a series of regulations to meet before they are built. This week, Hamilton County Commission approved new fire code regulations that may affect future development. Commissioners approved the resolution by a 7-to-4 vote that lowers the distance between new entrances to subdivisions to 300 feet. Previously, this line was…

7 educators win scholarships at retired teacher’s picnic

HIXSON, Tenn. (WDEF) – Several current and future educators received big help Friday for their future careers. Seven scholarships were awarded as part of the Chattanooga-Hamilton County’s Retired Teachers Association’s annual picnic at Chester Frost Park. Around 80 former teachers attended the event. The annual Chattanooga-Hamilton County’s Retired Teachers Association’s annual picnic at Chester Frost Park. The event celebrated both…

Tennessee Valley Lineman Rodeo coming to Chattanooga

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – The annual Tennessee Valley Lineman Rodeo is coming to the Tennessee Rivepark this weekend.  EPB is hosting this year’s event, the first for the Scenic City. “All this is the setup for the Tennessee Valley Lineman Rodeo,” said Grant Carriker of EPB. “It is an annual event that rotates different cities. It is in Chattanooga for…

Tasty Donuts celebrates National Donut Day with Salvation Army

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — ‘National Donut Day’ is celebrated each year on June 7. To celebrate, Tony McInnis with Tasty Donuts prepares to serve over 10,000 donuts. An additional 500 are being offered to civil servants across the Chattanooga community. Tasty Donuts partners with the local Salvation Army to help those in need. It goes further than giving people a…

Thursday Throwback: 1982 June Jam

FORT PAYNE, Ala. (WDEF) — Fort Payne is counting the proceeds from another June Jam after last weekend’s show. The country music festival saw its second comeback event since taking a 26-year break. So, for our Thursday Throwback, let’s take you back to the heyday of the Jams in the 1980s. Categories: From The Archives, Local News Tags: Alabama, From…

Councilwoman in court over residency, says she was threatened

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – A Chattanooga City Councilwoman testified inside of a Hamilton County courtroom Thursday as she tries to maintain her seat. The issue at hand inside the Hamilton County Circuit Court was whether or not Councilwoman Demetrus Coonrod has lived in District 8 in the past couple of years. An anonymous tipster sent an email to several city…

Home Depot grants SPCA of Bradley County $15,000 for improvements

CLEVELAND, Tenn. (WDEF) — The SPCA animal shelter of Bradley County is closed for the next two days, but for a good reason. They are getting a generous $15,000 grant from the Cleveland Home Depot to make improvements. “Home Depot has granted us $15,000 to make significant improvements to our facility. The main thing being securing a perimeter fence, an…

Pet lovers invited to Paw Palooza on June 8

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — McKamey Animal Center (MAC) is celebrating their third annual ‘Paw Palooza’ on Saturday, June 8th. Pet parents along with those looking to adopt are invited. The event is open to all ages… and all species. Savannah Shoemaker with MAC is currently fostering two adorable kittens– “Bongo” and “Violin.” This brother and sister duo will be available…

Driving Our Economy Forward: Special Touch Landscape

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WDEF) — It’s a company whose owner believes in second chances. Learn how this business has been putting the “Special Touch” on cooperate and residential lawns since 2004.  They are driving our economy forward in a meaningful way. Mike Jones is the owner of Special Touch Landscape. The business started in 2004. “We started doing residentials first….

Commission votes against Hamilton County vacation rental ban

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WDEF) – The Hamilton County Commission finally voted on a topic of much controversy Wednesday morning: vacation rentals.  The debate over vacation rentals has been contentious for months. However, by a six to five margin, the commission voted not to change the current ordinances that would ban vacation rentals in unincorporated Hamilton County. Those against vacation rentals…

New Lookouts Stadium could break ground soon, if approved

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – The final piece of the South Broad Stadium puzzle appears to be heading for a vote. If all goes as planned, Chattanooga could soon see a groundbreaking for the project.  The new financial agreement of the South Broad Stadium, or new future Lookouts stadium, has been in development for months. Commissioners, however, voiced one key concern…

Was county commission oversight committee formed too quickly?

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WDEF) — Was the newly proposed audit committee formed too quickly? That’s one question the Hamilton County Commission is now asking. This new committee would be in charge of overseeing spending and other actions of the commission. It would exist independently of existing auditors inside county government. The committee will be comprised of five members, including sitting…

Visit Tivoli Theatre Foundation during upcoming Broadway season

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — The Tivoli Theatre Foundation is proud to present a list of shows that will make a Broadway lovers’ day. The Tivoli will host six iconic shows starting this fall. Les Misérables and Hamilton are just two fan favorites headed to Chattanooga. Along with the classics, Broadway aficionados can look forward to seeing up-and-coming acts like Hadestown and…

Weightlifter Olivia Reeves Finally Glad She Can Officially Celebrate Spot on U.S. Olympic Team

Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV) Chattanooga weightlifter Olivia Reeves learned last month that she’s headed to the Olympics this summer in Paris. While Reeves kind of knew she had qualified for the U-S Olympic team, she explains to News 12’s Brian Armstrong how it all became official. Said Reeves:”Still does not feel real until I think I’ll actually be there and it’ll be over….

Poplar Springs Road reopens 2 months ahead of schedule

Poplar Springs Road reopens after stormwater improvements. CATOOSA COUNTY GOVERNMENT RINGGOLD, Ga. (WDEF) — Poplar Springs Road in Ringgold has reopened two months ahead of schedule, according to Catoosa County Public Information Officer John Pless. Crews began stormwater improvements to the area in mid-March. Pless said the work was completed ahead of schedule. They originally expected to complete the job…

Giant venomous flying spiders with 4-inch legs heading to New York area as they spread across East Coast

First came the spotted lanternflies, then the cicadas — and now, the spiders? The Northeast U.S. is bracing for an invasion of giant venomous spiders with 4-inch-long legs that can parachute through the air. Earlier this year, New Jersey Pest Control warned of the incoming spiders, saying Joro spiders will be “hard to miss” as females have a leg span of up to 4 inches and are…