Community Corner
🌱 What Columbia’s Planning Commission and new zoning changes could mean for you
Coming up: First Friday's on the Columbia Patch calendar
Hey there, Columbia! Let's get started with what's happening in and around town. Read on and stay in the loop. ☀️
In today's newsletter:
- What Columbia's Planning Commission and new zoning changes could mean for you
- How Columbia's tourism team just brought home top state honors
- What a $1 million FEMA grant means for local firefighters
Also on today's calendar: First Fridays and 9 more events.
Today's riddle: What do you call a belt that is made of watches? 🤔 (Answer below!)
- Thursday: Partly sunny and hot, with a high of 93 and low of 69 degrees. 🌶 Hot!
- Friday: Mostly cloudy and humid, temps: high: 86, low: 69.
- Saturday: Showers and a heavier t-storm, with a high of 78 and low of 64 degrees.
📰 News we're reading
1. Public Notices – Main Street Maury – September 30, 2026 (mainstreetmediatn.com) — Columbia residents have several important dates coming up, including an Oct. 14 Municipal Planning Commission meeting on subdivision plats and major zoning text amendments, plus November foreclosure auctions for properties on Tower Drive, Williamsport Pike, and Owen Avenue. The notice also details Maury County estate filings, county zoning changes near Columbia, Spring Hill public hearings, and TDOT claim deadlines that could affect local contractors and landowners. 
2. Columbia Tourism Leaders Honored with Two State Tourism Awards (mainstreetmediatn.com) — Tourism leaders Kellye Murphy and Lexi Dearborn have earned top state honors for their work promoting Columbia, highlighting how tourism is boosting the local economy and easing pressure on taxpayers. Their efforts include the Visit Columbia Welcome Center, new historic markers, public art in the Arts District, the Columbia 101 civic program, and planning the upcoming Fruit Tea Festival slated for 2027.
3. Maury County Fire and Rescue Awarded FEMA Grant (mainstreetmediatn.com) — Maury County Fire and Rescue in Columbia has secured more than $1 million from FEMA's Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response program, money that can fund firefighter positions, recruitment, and retention. The award is part of a broader $72 million regional package, aimed at strengthening first-response capacity when disasters strike communities like Columbia and surrounding Maury County.
4. John Bowdoin Colmore (chattanoogan.com) — A longtime Columbia resident, John Bowdoin Colmore, has passed away at 79, remembered for his teaching, community-building, and generosity across Middle Tennessee. His family invites friends to a memorial service at Sewanee's All Saints Chapel on October 18, with a reception afterward, and suggests memorial gifts to the Sewanee Athletic Fund instead of flowers.
📸 Around Columbia
Show off your photography skills and the sights around town! Click here to submit your Photo of the Day to Patch AM!
🗓 Upcoming Events in Columbia
Add your event to our calendar and newsletter!
★ Featured events ★
- First Friday's →
Downtown Columbia, Columbia
Friday October 2
Want to see your event featured? Click here!
Other local events
- First Farmers Bank - Main Office Blood Drive
Maury Alliance Chamber of Commerce First Farmers Bank - Main Office 816 South Garden St. Columbia, TN 38401
10:00 am - First Fridays- Fall Fest →
Maury Alliance Chamber of Commerce 106 W 6th St, Columbia, TN 38401
5:00 pm - Friday Night Grill Out at The Grille at Pillow Springs
Maury Alliance Chamber of Commerce The Grille at Pillow Springs 119 Stoneybrook Rd Columbia, TN 38401
5:00 pm - Meet & Greet with Artist Gretel Page
Gallery 48, 107 W 7TH ST, Columbia
5:00 pm - First Fridays →
Downtown Columbia, 1 Public Square, Columbia - City-Wide Tornado Siren Test →
Columbia, TN Calendar Columbia, TN 38401
1:00 pm - Little Black Dress Class Of 2026 →
Dr. Christa S. Martin Community Center, 871 Iron Bridge Road, Columbia
2:00 pm - UpStander 5K 2026 →
Columbia TN - Sunday Brunch
The Grille at Pillow Springs, 119 Stoneybrook Rd, Columbia
10:00 am - Hyundai of Columbia Blood Drive
Hyundai of Columbia, 1370 Nashville Highway, Columbia
2:00 am - Columbia Foodland Blood Drive
Columbia Foodland, 427 W. 7th St, Columbia
11:00 am
Friday October 2
Saturday October 3
Sunday October 4
Tuesday October 6
📣 Columbia Shout Outs!
Want to say something great about someone in town? Click here to submit your Shout Out to Patch AM! It's free!
Have we missed something on our calendar? Add an event yourself! As always, before attending confirm event details to ensure accuracy.
Want to see your business here? Click here to connect with local customers.
💬 Chatter
What your neighbors are talking about on social media
- My 3 hummingbirds who stayed with me (after they FINALLY arrived in late July) seem to have left early in the past few days.
I'm really bummed. Have anyone else's migrated yet? (Nextdoor West Columbia Hills) - Looking for a reputable person that cleans houses?
Someone dependable, responsible and trustworthy. Would like someone with references that is able to clean every other week. Would prefer a non-smoker… (Nextdoor Baker Road)
- University of Tennessee posted a job opening for Extension Specialist, TN Landowner Education - UTIA in Columbia. Apply here.
- McDonald's Restaurants posted a job opening for Crew Team Member in Columbia. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Columbia here.
Ok Columbia! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!
-- The Patch AM Team
P.S. The answer to today's riddle: A waist of time. (Thank you Martin L. for sending it in!)
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Submit it here!
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