Franklin Mayor Ken Moore on Wednesday delivered his State of the City address, highlighting among other things his administration's efforts to keep the city's infrastructure ahead of growth wherever possible. But he also touched on one item where the infrastructure has lagged: In the near future, Moore said he plans to be "addressing the when and how" of building a new City Hall to replace the current facility on the Public Square.

Franklin officials have chosen Philadelphia-headquartered Hamilton Lane Advisors to help it allocate up to $4 million in pension fund assets to a private equity fund of funds. A big Boston-based firm also had been in the running.

Mike Walker this week told the Brentwood City Commission he will step down in January as city manager, a role he has held for more than 22 years. During his tenure, the city has boomed while sticking to its strict development standards and in recent years setting the stage for the future redevelopment of its core Town Center district. The commission has not yet kicked off a formal search for a successor.

Two-year-old Vertical Consultants, which advises lessors working with wireless service companies, has launched a division that will work with municipal governments. Vertical Consultants boss Hugh Odom has been pounding the streets saying telecom companies often — through strategic intent or by mere omission — aren't paying leaseholders a fair value for their real estate.

“We have and will continue to offer information and our expertise to municipalities across North America as it relates to matters associated with proposed or existing cell tower, rooftop or other types of telecom agreements that a municipality may be or already is a party to. We believe we can provide options as well as opportunities related to these assets that are currently overlooked and can ultimately be a source of additional revenue for municipalities of all types and sizes.”

City of Franklin managers have launched a search for a private equity manager to handle up to $4 million of the city's money. Dahab Associates is handling the process, which is looking for a fund-of-funds approach.

Williamson County commissioners this week voted down a call to look into the possibility of selling Williamson Medical Center, an option that had been proposed by Commissioner Bob Barnwell late last year. While the majority of citizens attending the meeting want no change to the hospital's status, there does seem to be some public support and five of the 24 representatives wanted to pursue the option.

Despite the emphatic vote, Barnwell isn't ready to call it quits on this issue.

“This is a process that needs to at least be evaluated,” he said. “People are talking about a voter referendum.”

“My objective was to get the county out of healthcare,” he added and said he hasn’t lost his passion for the topic. “Healthcare in America is so up in the air right now – it’s a good time to get out of it. The healthcare business is too dangerous. We don’t know what’s coming down the road and ultimately the taxpayer will be stuck with the bill.”

Williamson County Commissioner Bob Barnwell isn't dropping the idea of selling the county's publicly owned hospital. And he has the backing now of industry titan HCA, whose legal experts chimed in this week with an opinion that state law would allow county officials to use proceeds from any sale for their general fund. In addition, a company spokeswoman said HCA would consider buying Williamson Medical Center, but county officials are moving quickly to block any prospects of an auction.

But at the same time Barnwell was touting the benefits of free markets, an opposing group of commissioners gathered at the hospital to discuss how they might drive a stake through such a notion. That dagger was revealed Wednesday when members of a tax study committee adopted a resolution opposed to selling the hospital.

The resolution carried the signature of 10 cosponsors.

SEE ALSO: County commissioner raises prospect of selling Williamson Medical from last November

The pension fund for Franklin government workers is on the hunt for a large-cap equity manager to handle $10 million. Check out the details here.

HT: Pensions & Investments