Warren L. Gooch
It took years to win approval of a Manhattan Project National Historical Park, and now that the park bill has been signed into law, planning is starting.
As part of that process, officials from the National Park Service and U.S. Department of Energy will visit Oak Ridge next week. The visit will include a Thursday morning open house hosted by the City of Oak Ridge. The open house is scheduled from 10 to 11 a.m. Thursday, March 26, in the A/B Room at the Oak Ridge Civic Center. It’s open to the public, and reservations are not required.
The team of NPS and DOE officials are visiting Oak Ridge to begin planning for the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. The planning team is expected to include senior National Park Service representatives from Washington, D.C., the Southeastern Regional Office in Atlanta, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and Big South Fork.
The delegation will also include the U.S. Department of Energy’s chief historian, as well as the DOE’s senior consultant for historic preservation, and DOE representatives from Los Alamos and Hanford. The DOE offices in Oak Ridge are hosting the visit.
“We are honored to host our distinguished visitors as they travel to Oak Ridge to see first-hand the assets we have to offer,” Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch said. “The open house will provide an opportunity for our community to meet and interact with the planning team as they begin implementation of this innovative three-site national park. On behalf of City Council, I encourage citizens to attend this important event.”
The Manhattan National Historical Park legislation was passed by Congress in December 2014, and signed into law by President Barack Obama on December 19. The law designates sites in Oak Ridge; Los Alamos, New Mexico; and Hanford, Washington as a three-site national park. The law recognizes the Manhattan Project as one of the most significant events in U.S. history, with assets and history that must be preserved.
More information will be added as it becomes available.
Philip W Nipper says
I really think that there should be concerted effort by the city to get Clark Center Park included as part of the new national park. I think it could become a great addition if improvements were made including rental cabins / camping areas, boat rentals, horse back riding, additional walking trails etc., thus offering visitors a choice from the traditional motel stay and keeping them here for awhile longer perhaps. Also, if the NPS gained custody of the property, I believe the question of turning it into an upscale housing area could be put to rest. Just a thought…
Joseph Lee says
That’s a great idea Mr. Nipper. Thank you.
Kevin Rice says
Great Great ideal Mr Nipper this would help with the cost to the city and a way to have people staying here longer, and making Clark Center Park a great place to enjoy more.
Philip W Nipper says
Also, DOE could, and probably should, just go ahead and turn over the AMSE to the NPS and add it into the mix as well. The park is a totally new concept for the NPS. It took a lot of forward, “out of the box thinking” to make it a reality. I feel that us local folks should continue to help form our part of the park by encouraging the NPS and DOE to consider additional “out of the box ideas”.
johnhuotari says
Philip,
It’s my understanding that the Secretary of Interior can identify non-DOE sites for inclusion in the park. I don’t know if this might include Clark Center Park. But I think that’s an interesting idea. I’ll try to get more clarification during the National Park Service/Manhattan Project National Historical Park open house tomorrow morning (10 a.m. Thursday, March 26) at the Civic Center.
DOE Oak Ridge Office has said they prefer to transfer the property to the city as long as it remains a recreational asset, which would seem to rule out upscale housing.
Much of the discussion during the public forums last fall was in line with what you suggest, especially the camping and cabin area ideas.
Thank you.
John