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Spring Hill Marks 40 Years Since Saturn’s Arrival and Birth of UAW Local 1853

Issue #512

July 31, 2025

In this What’s Up Columbia issue…

🌤️ Columbia’s Weather - Mixed sun & clouds. High of 96, low of 72.

📰 Spring Hill Marks 40 Years Since Saturn’s Arrival and Birth of UAW Local 1853

📰 Maury County Works on New Zoning Rules to Manage Growth

🗓 List of Upcoming Events

🎵 This Week’s Live Music

🗓 Know of Some Local Events Not Listed? Send us the Details!

Spring Hill Marks 40 Years Since Saturn’s Arrival and Birth of UAW Local 1853

Click image to see more photos of the early years at the plant.

From UAW Local 1853’s post yesterday…

Wednesday marked the 40th anniversary of Saturn coming to Spring Hill, TN marking the birth of UAW Local 1853! The announcement was made by Tennessee Governor Lamar Alexander and UAW VP Don Ephlin (which the main road in front of the plant was named). The company attracted many from around the country to come work in Spring Hill, evolving the town that sprawls two counties into what it is today.

The Saturn facility was built on what used to be a 2100-acre horse farm. And some of that acreage is still preserved to this day. Haynes Haven which sits by Highway 31 is still rightfully taken care of and a lot of land is still used for farming. From 1990 till 2009, the Saturn brand thrived, until GM faced bankruptcy and had to discontinue a few of their brands. 

What also makes the Saturn facility so unique is that it was basically two plants in one. 10 years after the first Saturn rolled off the assembly line, they broke ground and built an engine manufacturing plant. Which still runs at full capacity to this day, supplying engines for different vehicles across the country for General Motors.

There is rich history here and even more so the rich diversity that is reflected in the workforce and the surrounding natural habitats. We are proud of that history. It is what has built us into what we are today – a proud local union that is always ready to stand up for what is right. And we are also a strong workforce that is able to adapt into whatever the auto industry demands. 

So today, we honor the past while looking ahead into the future. We will continue to build the best vehicles in the world, and Saturn laid that foundation. Please enjoy this photograph collection of “Past Meets Present.”

Special shoutout to Local 1853 Retirees – Jack, Joe, and Todd for supplying some of these older photographs!

Maury County Works on New Zoning Rules to Manage Growth

From Maury County Mayor Sheila Butt’s post on 7/30/25…

Tuesday evening we had a Special Called County Commission Meeting to go over the rewrite of our zoning ordinances and codes that has been in progress for over 3 years. 

It is a very tedious job and we are so grateful to the members of the Regional Planning Commission who are very thoughtful, experienced, and capable people who have worked tirelessly on this rewrite. They also love Maury County and represent Agriculture as well as a very diverse array of occupations.

The rewrite had two goals from the beginning:

1. Holding developers to higher standards.

2. Being very mindful of property rights.

There had already been two Open Meetings for the public before last night. An average of about 8 people attended those two meetings prior to last night’s Commission Meeting. It appears that we need to find more avenues for announcing those meetings.

I can assure you we will make that happen. I will post the next one here as well.

Yes. The current County Commission room only holds 80 occupants per the fire code. However, the County Commission is making plans to move the County Commission Room to the Courthouse with the renovation. The courtroom we are using will be larger.

Right now, I am posting the video of last night’s meeting below. If you are a concerned citizen, PLEASE view it.

I want everyone to understand that the county cannot stop any property that is contiguous to a city from being annexed if the owner requests to be annexed. And you cannot stop a property owner from selling his property to whomever he wishes, nor would we ever want to do that.

However, the ordinance proposes densities comparable to the city’s along the municipal limits to deter annexation and make it less desirable for developers or homeowners to want to be annexed. As we move out into the county, we can plan for less and less density.

By doing this we can create a buffer between the cities and retain county property.

I live on 28 acres and drive to Centerville every Sunday. I see the beauty of this county and 100% understand the great economic impact that Agriculture has on Maury County. We spend a lot on chicken feed, cattle feed, goat feed and dog feed. In complete transparency, I wouldn’t care if they never built another house.

But they will. So here’s the rub. It will either be in a city or in the county, and unless we give options for some growth that the county controls on the properties that are contiguous to the cities, then eventually cities will annex the property.

We talk about “controlled growth.” That is exactly what we are trying to accomplish with this rewrite.

I know the people on this Planning Commission and they want the same things for Maury County that the vast majority of us want. We also want some say in what Maury County will look like for our children and grandchildren.

With some minor tweaking, this is a good step in that direction.

When this is adopted, we will immediately move on to updating our Land Use Plan (UGB, Urban Growth Boundary.)

Upcoming Local Events

🗓 Have an event to add? Send us the Details!

Thursday, July 31st

Friday, August 1st

Saturday, August 2nd

Sunday, August 3rd

📌 Mark Your Calendars…

Aug 1-9: Williamson County Fair
Aug 28 - Sept 1: Maury County Fair & Expo 

👇 Click the Links to Learn About our Local Business Sponsors! 👇

🎵 This Week’s Live Music

Thursday, July 31st

Radio Farm, Puckett’s, 6:00 - 7:30 PM
Todd Ciprian, Tito’s Spring Hill, 6:00 - 9:00 PM
The Nature Project, McCreary’s Irish Pub, 7:00 - 9:00 PM

Friday, August 1st

Live Music, The Spot, 5:00 - 8:00 PM
Jack Fiddler, McCreary’s Irish Pub, 7:00 - 9:00 PM
The Fletcher Bothers, Puckett’s, 7:30 - 9:00 PM
South Margin, Fozzy’s Bar & Grill, 8:00 - 11:00 PM

Saturday, August 2nd

Cross Bridges, Amber Falls Winery, 3:00 - 7:00 PM
Tom & Robert, McCreary’s Irish Pub & Eatery, 7:00 - 9:00 PM
Aberration, Rebel Bar & Grill, 7:30 PM
Song Writers Open Round, The Bourbon Gospel, 7:30 PM
Cross Bridges, Puckett’s, 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Eaglemaniacs, The Mulehouse, 8:00 PM
South Bond Crows, Fozzy’s Bar & Grill, 8:00 - 11:00 PM

Sunday, August 3rd 

The Sins, Amber Falls Winery, 1:00 - 5:00 PM
Texas Flood Relief Concert, The Rebel Bar & Grill, 1:00 - 7:00 PM
Elmer’s Tunes, Fozzy’s Bar & Grill, 4:00 - 7:00 PM
Jay Hoppus, Puckett’s, 6:00 - 7:30 PM

Want to get your business in What’s Up Columbia? Let’s talk