The Weekender: All That & A Mailbag

Good morning, Clayton!

It’s a pretty light week, so instead of doing a big lead, I’m using this space to let you know The Clayton Dispatch now has a mailbag.

Is something happening in Clayton that you feel the need to speak on? Go for it. Have a specific question or comment about a Dispatch piece? Shoot it over. Wanna tell me to kick rocks? Let me have it.

I’m also opening the door to letters to the editor and guest opinion pieces, so if you’ve got something longer to say, send that too.

You can reach the mailbag at claytondispatchmail@gmail.com.

You don't have to agree with me. I just want this to be another place where people in Clayton can actually say what they think.

This won’t be an every-week thing. Think of it as something I’ll reach into whenever the inbox is good, and Clayton gives me a minute to breathe.

And if you’re sending a tip, asking a question, or sharing something you don’t want your name attached to, that’s fine too. I'll respect reader privacy, and anonymity will be the default unless you tell me otherwise.

Questions. Tips. Documents. Letters. Opinions. Weird stuff you think I should know about.

One more time: 📬 claytondispatchmail@gmail.com

Let’s get into the rest of it.

Town Hall Watch

Town Council meets twice on Tuesday, September 8, and much more is happening at the 3 p.m. work session than at the regular 6 p.m. meeting.

Council will hear updates on ADA compliance from Parks & Rec, ordinance modernization, and **“Permit Clayton”**before turning to a ladder truck proposal, emergency vehicle preemption, and a budget check-in. All six items are listed as “informational only,” and the agenda packet includes no supporting documents or further details on any of them.

The 6 p.m. regular meeting is unusually light, with no public hearings, quasi-judicial hearings, old business, or new business. Most of the actual voting is on the consent agenda, including a 26,100-gallon-per-day wastewater allocation for Clayton Boulevard Industrial, a $5,250 railroad agreement tied to the East Main Street public parking lot, and two resolutions transferring authority over certain DEQ grant documents from Mayor Jody McLeod to Town Manager Rich Cappola.

The meeting is also scheduled to end with another closed session to discuss a legal matter.

Another Ladder Truck?

What stands out most to me on Tuesday’s agenda is the ladder truck proposal.

Clayton just got a new ladder truck in 2021, so seeing another one on the agenda this soon immediately caught my attention.

I’m no expert on fire trucks or public safety, so I reached out to former Town Council member Jason Thompson, who currently serves on Clayton’s Fire Advisory Board, to ask a pretty simple question:

Why would Clayton need another ladder truck already?

Thompson said the Fire Department actually gave the advisory board a presentation on this exact issue last month, and he came away convinced there was a legitimate need.

According to Thompson, one of the biggest issues is simply the amount of ground Clayton’s existing ladder truck has to cover.

“The current one has been getting worn out driving from one side of the District to the other,” Thompson told me. “We’re hoping to save some longevity on it.”

He said the department is also working on an agreement that could have Wilson’s Mills provide ladder-truck coverage for a portion of the area, while mutual-aid departments currently help cover other gaps.

Then there’s something I definitely hadn’t considered: you apparently have to plan years ahead to buy one of these things.

Thompson said fire apparatus that might have taken roughly a year to arrive five years ago can now have build times stretching well beyond three years.

“If ordered now, it will be a solid three or four years before it gets here,” he said.

So a ladder truck discussed in 2026 may not actually show up in Clayton until 2029 or 2030.

Thompson also said modern staffing practices mean the ladder truck isn’t simply some specialized piece of equipment sitting around waiting for a particular kind of emergency.

“The reality is it is staffed just like an engine,” he said. “So it has to be dispatchable at all times.”

Thompson said population growth and industry standards are also part of the department’s case for additional ladder capacity, although he stressed that Fire Chief David Ranes can better explain the specific NFPA or ISO standards involved.

And that’s important, because Tuesday’s agenda packet doesn’t tell us any of this.

The Town included only the words “Ladder Truck Proposal,” with no presentation, price, specifications, financing information or explanation of why another truck is being considered.

Thompson told me that, as someone serving on the Fire Advisory Board, he didn’t want to speak for the department or get ahead of Chief Ranes’ presentation. But he also said Ranes’ presentation to the board last month answered his own questions about why another ladder truck is necessary.

That changes my initial reaction quite a bit.

I still want to hear Tuesday exactly what the Town is proposing, what it will cost, how it will be paid for, whether this would be an additional ladder truck or a replacement, and what specific standards are driving the need.

But if the basic situation is that Clayton’s existing truck is piling up mileage covering a rapidly growing fire district and a replacement or additional truck has to be ordered three or four years before it’s actually needed, that’s a much different story than the one the words “Ladder Truck Proposal” tell you on their own.

Town Hall Watch will be watching the ladder truck proposal, the budget update, and whatever else manages to crawl out of an agenda packet that, this week, tells us surprisingly little.

Downtown Dispatch

Sugar, We’re Going Down... to Revival 1869

Revival 1869 just dropped a new early-2000s emo-themed cocktail menu, and this may be the most emotionally devastating way possible to order a drink.

The new “It’s Not Just a Phase, Mom!” menu from the Bar School Drop Outs features original cocktails inspired by some of their favorite emo songs, with all the dark eyeliner, dramatic breakups, and tortured feelings you’d expect.

And this is the part I really love: each drink is paired with its own song and a QR code that takes you straight to Spotify to listen while you drink it.

That is so awesome.

So, dust off the skinny jeans, update your MySpace Top 8, and go drink your feelings.

Dispatch Drink Recs

Hold Me For Ransom - Since I went away, I been no good. Revival 1869 barrel-picked Corazón Añejo Tequila aged in a W.L. Weller Cask, Drambuie, Montenegro, Honey Chipotle Syrup, Remedy's Noir bitters
Paired with "No Mas Tequila" by The Mainliners

King for a Day - Let's scream until there's nothing left. Paddy's Irish Whiskey, Housemade Irish Matcha Cream, Braulio, Dark Chocolate Matcha Dust
Paired with "King for a Day" by Pierce the Veil

N/A Pick: Cold Killa - Fresh OJ, honey, lemon, Revival housemade ginger syrup, spirit-free champagne
Paired with "Stone Cold Killer" by Kat Leon

Weekend Picks

A quick rundown of what’s happening around Clayton this weekend. Music, markets, food, family stuff, and anything else worth leaving the house for.
Presented by The Clayton Center.

Friday

First Street Tavern | 115 E First St

Proton Jones | 7pm
Proton Jones is taking over First Street Tavern Friday night with live music from 7–10pm outdoors, weather permitting, or 8–11pm inside if the rain moves things around. Local hero, incredible singer, ridiculous talent, and also just a genuinely good dude.

Deep River Brewing Company | 700 W Main St, Ste 102

Peanut Butter With a Chance of Fluff Returns | Friday
One of Deep River’s fall favorites is back Friday. Peanut Butter With a Chance of Fluff is a 6.2% brown ale made with roasted malt, peanut butter and marshmallow fluff, with caramel and cocoa notes underneath all that dessert-beer nonsense. Basically, somebody turned a fluffernutter sandwich into a pint, and I’m not mad about it.

Saturday

Deep River Brewing Company | 700 W Main St, Ste 102

Books & Beers ft. Finn and Ollie’s Book Trolley | 12–6pm
Deep River is pairing books and beers Saturday afternoon with a visit from Finn and Ollie’s Book Trolley. They’ll have a curated mix of quality used books and bookish merch covering everything from thrillers and romance to fantasy and mysteries, while Deep River keeps 24 craft beers pouring in the taproom. Pretty ideal Saturday setup if your hobbies include reading and day drinking.

Horne Square | Downtown Clayton

Downtown Clayton Ghost Walk | 8pm
Take a spooky walk through downtown Clayton and dig into some of the town’s haunted history. Tours meet just behind Horne Square and head out in the evening, so this is a solid pick if you’re ready to start pretending it’s Halloween already. Reservations are required.

Reserve your spot.

The Cardinal Bar Clayton | 401 E Main St, Suite 111

Jon Wood Band | 10pm
The Jon Wood Band takes over The Cardinal Bar Saturday night with a late set from 10pm–1am. Good pick if you’re looking to keep the night going after dinner and want some live music downtown.

Sunday

Hang Out Downtown Day | Sunday
Not much on the calendar Sunday, so here’s your excuse to just spend a few hours downtown. Grab coffee, wander the shops, get lunch, have a drink, and generally kill a lazy afternoon without needing an itinerary. Sometimes the best Weekend Pick is just leaving the house and seeing where the day takes you.

Happy Labor Day!

One Good Thing

Every week, we're going to try to end on a positive note. Snapshots of Clayton history, local legends, monumental accomplishments in the community, and more. This section is supposed to make you feel good.

Movies in the Garden: Take Two

UPDATE we initially had MIDSOMMAR scheduled for October 3. That was an error, and has now been corrected. MIDSOMMAR is showing on Saturday, October 10. Sorry for any confusion.

After getting absolutely bullied by the weather all summer, Movies in the Garden is finally coming back — this time with four rescheduled dates and considerably better outdoor movie weather.

The fall lineup kicks off with FERNGULLY: THE LAST RAINFOREST on Saturday, September 26, followed by MIDSOMMAR on Saturday, October 3, WATERSHIP DOWN on Friday, October 16, and I SAW THE TV GLOWon Friday, October 30 for Halloween weekend.

All four screenings will take place at the Main Street Community Garden, 439 E. Main Street, with movies beginning after dark. Bring your own chair or blanket, and there will be food and vendors available.

And this time, rain isn’t winning twice. Each screening will have an indoor Downtown Clayton backup location if the weather decides to get stupid again.

If you bought tickets for any of the postponed summer screenings, those tickets will automatically be honored for the new dates. If you can't make the new dates, please reach out for a refund, no problem.

If you didn't get tickets last time, they will be on sale later today.

Best of all, proceeds from Movies in the Garden will go toward supporting the Main Street Community Garden, so you can watch a movie under the stars and help keep one of downtown’s coolest little spaces growing at the same time.

The rescheduled lineup:

September 26 — FERNGULLY: THE LAST RAINFOREST
October 10 — MIDSOMMAR
October 16 — WATERSHIP DOWN
October 30 — I SAW THE TV GLOW

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