The athletics director and former department director of the Greeneville (Tenn.) Parks and Recreation Department used town facilities to operate several privately sponsored sporting events between January 2025 and March 2026, an investigation by the Tennessee Comptroller's Office found.
According to Knoxville NBC affiliate WBIR, citing the investigation report, officials were not able to find the exact number of private events because they did not have sufficient supporting evidence.
That said, the report did indicate that the athletic directors did not request the city manager's approval of the privately run events, which is a requirement of Greeneville's Outside Employment Policy.
WBIR's Matthew Fisher reported that the town's ethics policy also states that town employees are not allowed to use town facilities for personal gain. The athletics director told investigators they had not been aware of the policy, according to the report.
The report also listed two deficiencies in the internal operation of the Greeneville department, "some of which contributed" to the findings listed in the report, the comptroller's office wrote, per Fisher.
The first deficiency was a "collection deficiency," which included a failure to include necessary information such as payment method and customer receipts, as well as not properly storing cash collections, the report said.
The second deficiency, according to the report, was that the Greeneville department did not have adequate policies regarding facility rentals, leading to a lack of clarity for department employees on proper procedures.
"The town of Greeneville responded to the findings, saying their administration and finance offices will work with the Parks and Recreation Department to improve and clarify operations regarding to cash handling and facility rentals," Fisher reported.
"The Town is committed to maintaining transparency, accountability, and the responsible stewardship of public resources while taking the necessary steps to address the report's findings and recommendations," the town said in a statement, as reported by WBIR.
