The Tennessee Department of Transportation will halt all lane closure activity on interstates and state highways for the Labor Day holiday travel period. Construction crews will stop all lane closure activity at noon Friday until 6 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 5. This will provide maximum roadway capacity for motorists traveling during the Labor Day holiday.

“The Labor Day holiday is typically a busy travel time,” says TDOT Commissioner Butch Eley. “We want to ensure that the thousands of travelers using Tennessee’s roadways during this period arrive at their destinations quickly and safely without being impeded by road construction delays.”

While lane closure activity will be stopped, workers will still be on-site in many construction zones, and drivers are urged to obey posted speed limits. Drivers convicted of speeding in work zones where workers are present face a fine of $250 to $500, plus court fees and possibly increased insurance premiums.

Get the latest construction activity and livestreaming SmartWay traffic cameras from your desktop or mobile device. Travelers can also dial 511 for statewide travel information.

Nashville Airport expects 300,000+ this weekend

Nashville International Airport is preparing for a surge of 300,000-plus travelers passing through TSA checkpoints during the Labor Day holiday weekend.

In particular, Sunday is projected to be the peak travel day, with more than 40,000 passengers through security. Travelers are urged to:

• Pack smart. Know what’s allowed before arriving.

• Check the status of your flight before arriving at BNA.

• Arrive early, allow plenty of time to park, check-in and get to your gate. Check flynashville.com for construction, parking details.

• Allow extra time for parking.

• Utilize the new cell lot to alleviate traffic congestion. It is located at 1415 Murfreesboro Pike. The new lot provides ample space and digital signage that display real-time updates on incoming flights.

81 of 95 counties below 5% unemployment

The vast majority of counties in Tennessee experienced a decrease in their unemployment rates during July, according to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development. The lower county unemployment rates came during the same month Tennessee hit an all-time low statewide unemployment rate.

Seventy-nine of Tennessee’s 95 counties reported lower unemployment compared to the county statistics for June. Rates remained the same in six counties, while 10 counties did experience a slight increase in their jobless numbers.

Unemployment is below 5% in 81 counties across the state and 14 counties had rates equal to or higher than 5% but lower than 10% in July.

Williamson, Cheatham, Sevier, and Moore counties all had the lowest rates of unemployment at 2.7%. For Williamson County that was a 0.1% decrease from the previous month. The rates for Cheatham and Sevier counties both dropped by 0.2%, while Moore County’s number was down 0.3% from its June number.

Bledsoe County had the state’s highest unemployment in July at 6.2%, which was still a decrease of 0.2% from its rate in June. Lauderdale County had the second-highest rate at 5.9%, which represented a 0.4% increase from its previous rate of 5.5%.

Statewide in July, Tennessee recorded its lowest seasonally adjusted unemployment rate since the federal government began tracking jobless numbers in 1976. The new rate of 3.1% edged out the previous all-time low rate of 3.2%.

Titans, Verizon expand stadium experience

The Tennessee Titans announced a new partnership with Verizon that will provide connectivity to improve the experience for fans at Nissan Stadium.

As the “Official 5G Network of the Tennessee Titans,” Verizon will provide connectivity engineered to enhance the fan experience – from helping them communicate inside the stadium to catching and sharing all the action on the field.

In addition to launching Accelerated Access, which uses opt-in facial authentication tech to verify identities for access control and accelerated ticketing in near real time, Verizon recently added dozens of 5G Ultra Wideband cell sites at Nissan Stadium, which will provide enhanced wireless performance to customers in the stands starting at regular season games and events this year.

Starting this season, Verizon, the NFL’s official private wireless network for coach-to-coach communications, will deploy a managed private wireless solution at Nissan Stadium and across all of the other 29 U.S. NFL stadiums. This solution includes full support for coach-to-coach communications on the field and provides the NFL with speed, security and reliability for critical on field coach-to-coach communication.

LP adds support for ‘35x30’ initiative

LP Building Solutions, the Nashville-headquartered manufacturer of high-performance building products, announced its pledge to support the Manufacturing Institute’s “35x30” initiative, an ambitious, industrywide effort to close the gender gap in manufacturing by adding half a million women to the industry, increasing women’s representation from the current 29% to 35%.

One of the initiatives under the “35x30” campaign is the Women MAKE Mentorship Program. LP’s contribution will support this nationwide movement, which seeks to empower women in the industry by training more than 1,000 women mentors in manufacturing.

These mentors will be connected with younger women in the industry and in educational institutions, such as four-year colleges, universities, community colleges, high schools and middle schools and refugees.

The campaign will collaborate with manufacturers on strategies to attract and retain female talent and broaden the workforce pipeline by supporting women throughout their education. The Women MAKE America initiative will focus on retention and recruitment in the industry while recognizing the strides that women have already made.

Cressey & Company acquires HealthDrive

Cressey & Company LP, a private investment firm focused on building leading health care services and information technology businesses, announced that funds affiliated with Cressey have acquired HealthDrive, a leading multi-specialty clinical services organization to patients residing in long-term care facilities, from Bain Capital Double Impact.

Cressey’s investment and added resources will enable the continued expansion of access to HealthDrive’s high-quality health care offering to more long-term care (LTC) facility residents.

HealthDrive offers a comprehensive set of on-site clinical services to residents of LTC facilities, primarily serving older adults who require institutional settings of care. HealthDrive’s more than 500 clinicians provide primary care, podiatry, vision, dental, behavioral health, and audiology clinical services to more than 150,000 LTC residents each year across more than 3,800 LTC facilities spanning 20 states.

Pinnacle hits Top 15 on ‘Companies That Care’

Pinnacle Financial Partners earned the No. 14 spot on People magazine’s list of 100 Companies That Care, jointly chosen by the publication and Great Place to Work.

This is Pinnacle’s fourth time on this prestigious list, joining much larger international brands like Cisco, PwC and Target and ranking higher than others like Deloitte, Capital One and Bank of America.

All on the list were chosen for the generosity of their company benefits and charitable work, as well as personal accounts of the impact these organizations have made on the lives of their employees.

The People Companies That Care list is based on more than 1.3 million employee survey responses and data from companies representing the experience of more than 7.5 million employees. Of those surveys, 1.1 million came from employees at companies eligible for this year’s list, and these rankings are based on that feedback. In that survey, 98% of the Pinnacle associates said their firm is a great place to work.

Murfreesboro opens new municipal building

Officials from both the state and Rutherford County last week celebrated the opening of the Bart Smith Building in Murfreesboro, the new municipal building that will house an additional Rutherford County Clerk’s Office and an Express Driver Services Center.

Located at 3906 Blaze Drive Suite C. in Murfreesboro, the Murfreesboro Express Driver Services Center opens to the public Friday, Aug. 25, and will operate weekdays from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

At the new Rutherford County Express Driver Services Center, customers can obtain a REAL ID, issue a license to a new or returning resident, order a duplicate and/or renew a driver’s license or photo ID, complete a name change, renew or order a duplicate handgun carry permit and obtain driving records. Customers can also complete many Driver Services transactions online.

Volunteer Tennessee opens grant window

Volunteer Tennessee, Tennessee’s commission on volunteerism and community service, has announced grant opportunities for Volunteer Centers and Youth Civic Engagement programs.

Both opportunities will allow organizations to utilize community engagement and service to address critical needs throughout the state.

Grant applications are due Monday, Sept. 25 at 3 p.m. Central time.

In the first grant, Volunteer Tennessee seeks applications from Volunteer Centers to connect people who want to volunteer with other nonprofit organizations that need volunteers in Tennessee’s communities.

These grants allow Volunteer Centers to assist Volunteer Tennessee in carrying out responsibilities outlined in the National and Community Service Act of 1990, as amended and the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act.

To encourage service-learning in Tennessee communities, Volunteer Tennessee also invites organizations to apply for Youth Civic Engagement grants. These grants are designed to involve young people between the ages of five and 24 in service-learning projects that simultaneously support student development and meet community needs in areas such as the environment, education, healthy futures, disaster services and other unmet needs.

To learn more, visit the Funding Opportunities page on Volunteer Tennessee’s website or email.