Oak Ridge Today

Hwy 55 Burgers Shakes & Fries opening in Oak Ridge

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A Hwy 55 Burgers Shakes & Fries restaurant is being built in the shopping center on South Illinois Avenue where Pie Five Pizza used to be. The photo above was taken Friday evening, Aug. 10, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A Hwy 55 Burgers Shakes & Fries restaurant is being built in the shopping center on South Illinois Avenue where Pie Five Pizza used to be. The photo above was taken Friday evening, Aug. 10, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A Hwy 55 Burgers Shakes & Fries is opening in Oak Ridge.

The new restaurant will be located where Pie Five Pizza used to be at 443 South Illinois Avenue, near the Aldi grocery store and next to Aspen Dental and Fast Pace Urgent Care medical clinic in the Woodland neighborhood in south Oak Ridge.

Hwy 55 Burgers Shakes & Fries announced in May that it was coming to Oak Ridge. A business sign was recently installed on the front of the restaurant. A hiring sign is posted on the front window, and the company said it is interviewing potential employees next week. [Read more…]

Arts festival in Jackson Square on Saturday

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Mad Hatters Art Festival Through Looking Glass 0718 390x600

The Mad Hatter’s Arts Festival in Jackson Square on Saturday will feature arts and crafts vendors, poetry, music, food, dancers, authors, and interactive arts stations.

The free festival, the first of its kind, is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It’s presented by Through the Looking Glass Antiques and Collectibles in Jackson Square.

A Jabberwocky Poetry Slam is scheduled at Razzleberry’s Ice Cream Lab and Kitchen from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. An open mic will start at 2 p.m. for walk-ins who didn’t sign up for the family-friendly event but want to perform.

Sixteen local songwriters will perform original acoustic music all day, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., in the square. There will also be musicians playing cover songs at the festival, said Linda Johnston of Through the Looking Glass.

At noon, the Oak Ridge Civic Ballet dancers will perform in the square. [Read more…]

Appeals court upholds Applewood warrants, board’s order to vacate

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The site of former Applewood Apartments buildings, which have been demolished, is pictured above at Hillside Road and East Hunter Circle on Wednesday, July 18, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The site of former Applewood Apartments buildings, which have been demolished, is pictured above at Hillside Road and East Hunter Circle on Wednesday, July 18, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

It’s not clear if it will make much difference now, but a state appeals court has upheld administrative warrants used by the City of Oak Ridge for inspections at Applewood Apartments and a city board order that had once called for vacating and demolishing six of the buildings.

The Tennessee Court of Appeals in Knoxville issued its opinion on Tuesday, July 24.

Joe Levitt, the owner of the former 13-building apartment complex on Hillside Road and Hunter Circle, had appealed a September 2016 order of the Anderson County Chancery Court in Clinton. That court, where M. Nichole Cantrell is chancellor, had granted summary judgement to the City of Oak Ridge, the Oak Ridge Board of Building and Housing Code Appeals, and former codes enforcement supervisor Denny Boss. Levitt, who has battled the city for years, had sought to overturn an Oak Ridge order that the six Applewood Apartment buildings be vacated and demolished.

Inspections conducted with the help of Corum Engineering in 2009 had found multiple code violations and structural deficiencies at the six buildings, including cracks in foundations, damaged and rotten floor joists, and evidence of wood-destroying insect activity, as well as dead animals and animal feces in the basement and crawl space, and excessive debris, lack of smoke detectors, plumbing leaks, and damaged roofing materials, among other issues, according to last week’s opinion. Unless the defects were corrected, the 2009 engineering report said, the top floors of the buildings could collapse because of a lack of structural support, according to the opinion. [Read more…]

FAA comments on Oak Ridge Airport could be received this week

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A revised layout plan for the Oak Ridge Airport at Heritage Center from a presentation to Oak Ridge City Council by project consultant Billy Stair on Feb. 20, 2018. (Image courtesy Billy Stair)

A revised layout plan for the Oak Ridge Airport at Heritage Center from a presentation to Oak Ridge City Council by project consultant Billy Stair on Feb. 20, 2018. (Image courtesy Billy Stair)

 

Officials working on the proposed Oak Ridge Airport could receive comments this week from the Federal Aviation Administration about a revised layout plan, a project consultant said Thursday.

Officials are finalizing an airport runway plan. If it is approved, that would be a very positive step, project consultant Billy Stair said.

In February, Stair said the FAA wanted project officials, who are proposing to build what is known as a Class B airport, to plan for a future expansion to a Class C airport—sometime around 2040.

“To plan for such a future expansion, we need to widen the runway and taxiway at the initial construction,” Stair said in February. “We do not need to lengthen the proposed 5,000-foot runway. The new runway alignment avoids encroachment by Highway 58.” [Read more…]

Planning Commission recommends residential rezoning near South Illinois

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The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 19, 2018, recommended a rezoning that could allow about 200 homes on 32 acres near South Illinois Avenue and Centrifuge Way in south Oak Ridge, pictured above on Monday, July 23, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 19, 2018, recommended a rezoning that could allow about 200 homes on 32 acres near South Illinois Avenue and Centrifuge Way in south Oak Ridge, pictured above on Monday, July 23, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission has recommended a rezoning that could allow about 200 homes on 32 acres near South Illinois Avenue and Centrifuge Way in south Oak Ridge.

The Planning Commission approved the rezoning request 8-0 on Thursday, said Stephen Whitson, Planning Commission chair.

There was no opposition.

The Planning Commission also voted 8-0 to recommend an associated land use plan map amendment.

The rezoning request and land use plan map amendment will now be considered by Oak Ridge City Council.

The property is currently zoned industrial. If approved by Council, the request would rezone the 32 acres as low-density residential. [Read more…]

Site work starts for Tire Discounters in front of AMSE

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Site work is pictured above on Tuesday, July 17, 2018, on the lot where a Tire Discounters will be built along South Illinois Avenue in front of the American Museum of Science and Energy. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Site work is pictured above on Tuesday, July 17, 2018, on the lot where a Tire Discounters will be built along South Illinois Avenue in front of the American Museum of Science and Energy. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Site work was under way last week for a Tire Discounters on property south of the American Museum of Science and Energy, the first development on any part of the museum site.

There could be other developments later on the southern 7.4 acres of the 19-acre museum site, possibly including a grocery or retail store of about 55,000 square feet and retail or restaurant space. (See here and here.)

The Oak Ridge City Council unanimously approved a rezoning for the 7.4 acres, which will include the Tire Discounters store, in November.

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission unanimously approved a final master plan for a planned unit development on the property during a special meeting in March. The final master plan was subject to certain conditions. Among them were one requirement to submit a new or revised traffic impact study when the site plan for the grocery store or large “box” store is submitted and one to install sidewalks on the northern boundary of the property. [Read more…]

S&R Insurance Services celebrates 25 years with open house

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S&R Insurance Services Open House July 17 2018

S&R Insurance Services is celebrating its 25th anniversary with an open house on Tuesday.

The open house is scheduled from 1-6 p.m. Tuesday, July 17. There will be a ribbon-cutting at 1:30 p.m.

The Medic Regional Blood Center blood mobile will be at S&R Insurance from 1-4 p.m., a press release said.

The Oak Ridge Police Department and ASAP of Anderson County will be holding a pill take-back event from 1-3 p.m. [Read more…]

Rezoning requested for about 200 homes on South Illinois

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Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge Community Development Department

Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge Community Development Department

 

A rezoning to be considered by Oak Ridge officials next week proposes about 200 homes on 32 acres near South Illinois Avenue and Centrifuge Way in south Oak Ridge.

The property is currently zoned industrial. The request, if approved, would rezone it as low-density residential. The request will be considered by the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday.

The property, which is currently vacant, is owned by Commercial Bank. It’s in an area north of South Illinois Avenue and the Summit, south of Mitchell Road and Crossroads at Wolf Creek, east of Lafayette Drive and Midway Lane, and west of Centrus (formerly known as USEC in a building once used by Boeing) and the University of Tennessee Arboretum.

The potential developer is not named in a review of the rezoning request by the Oak Ridge municipal staff.

“The applicant states that the prospective developer for the property plans to develop the site with approximately 200 single-family detached units,” the review said. [Read more…]

Applewood Apartments buildings demolished

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After a years-long dispute over alleged code violations, the 13 Applewood Apartments buildings on Hillside Road and Hunter Circle have been demolished. The site of one former building at Hillside Road and West Hunter Circle is pictured above on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

After a years-long dispute over alleged code violations, the 13 Applewood Apartments buildings on Hillside Road and Hunter Circle have been demolished. The site of one former building at Hillside Road and West Hunter Circle is pictured above on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

After a years-long legal dispute over alleged code violations, the 13 Applewood Apartments buildings on Hillside Road and Hunter Circle have been demolished.

Brady Excavating and Demolition of Crab Orchard was working on removing the last apartment basement on West Hunter Circle on Monday. The basement walls are a foot thick, and Keith Brady of Brady Excavating and Demolition was using a trackhoe with a hammer attached to it to remove the concrete bunker-like walls.

The buildings themselves have already been torn down, and the debris has been hauled away.

Brady, who owns Brady Excavating and Demolition, said the next step will be grading. The site has to be leveled so that it can be mowed, won’t have holes, and will have “positive drainage.” Grading could take two to three days and could be done by next week, Brady said. Big trees on the perimeter and in the middle of the property will remain. [Read more…]

If you can’t stand the heat, eat out to support ADFAC!

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Razzleberry’s has loyally supported ADFAC for over a decade! Please note, Razzleberrry’s does not serve dinner on Mondays, but is open until 9 p.m. for patrons to indulge in homemade ice cream and marketplace items. (Submitted photo)

Razzleberry’s has loyally supported ADFAC for over a decade! Please note, Razzleberrry’s does not serve dinner on Mondays, but is open until 9 p.m. for patrons to indulge in homemade ice cream and marketplace items. (Submitted photo)

 

On Monday, July 9, thirteen local restaurants are donating a portion of their sales to Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties (ADFAC). With a predicted high of 90 degrees on Monday, a more literal understanding of “if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen!” is a great way to skip cooking and participate in ADFAC’s July Dine & Donate event, a press release said.

The featured restaurant for July is Razzleberry’s Ice Cream Lab & Kitchen. Known for their homemade ice cream, eclectic international lunch menu, and pig collection, Razzleberry’s is a true hometown favorite, the press release said. Located in Oak Ridge’s historic Jackson Square, the restaurant and market is ideal for hot summer days, the release said.

“Whether trying out the latest flavor of ice cream, cooling off with an imported beer, or ordering one of Monday’s lunch specials, Razzleberry’s has something for everyone,” the press release said. “Afterward, continue your cool-down in the Jackson Square fountains!” [Read more…]

AMSE: Current museum could close this month, with new home open this fall

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The current location of the American Museum of Science and Energy on South Tulane Avenue could close at the end of July, and the museum could re-open at its new home at Main Street Oak Ridge in the early fall, officials said. The new location is pictured above under construction on Thursday, June 21, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The current location of the American Museum of Science and Energy on South Tulane Avenue could close at the end of July, and the museum could re-open at its new home at Main Street Oak Ridge in the early fall, officials said. The new location is pictured above under construction on Thursday, June 21, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The current location of the American Museum of Science and Energy on South Tulane Avenue could close at the end of July, and the museum could re-open at its new home at Main Street Oak Ridge in the early fall, officials said.

In the meantime, the museum might not be open a month or two as exhibits are moved, said Ken Tarcza, manager of the Oak Ridge Office for the U.S. Department of Energy. But DOE bus tours will continue, Tarcza said at a meeting to give an update about the AMSE project at Oak Ridge High School on June 14. Some specifics of the transition haven’t been worked out yet.

Tarcza said the new 18,000-square-foot museum will feature state-of-the-art interactive exhibits and hands-on activities. It will be in renovated space on the north side of Main Street Oak Ridge near JCPenney. Besides exhibits and activities, the new museum will also have a lecture hall and two classrooms.

There will be four major categories featured in the museum, Tarcza said: energy leadership, “big science,” national security, and environmental restoration. Many of the exhibits at the current AMSE need to be refreshed, and the majority of the exhibits at the new location will have a brand-new design, Tarcza said. [Read more…]

McGuire Books closing, while Packard’s store re-opened

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McGuire Books in Oak Ridge is closing. Law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at the store, which also sells CDs, DVDs, games, and electronics, on Thursday, May 24, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

McGuire Books in Oak Ridge is closing. Law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at the store, which also sells CDs, DVDs, games, and electronics, on Thursday, May 24, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

McGuire Books in Oak Ridge is closing, while Packard’s Games and Movies in Clinton has re-opened and Packard’s in Kingston is expected to re-open.

The McGuire Books store in Oak Ridge, which also sells compact discs, digital video discs, games, and electronics, said it was closing after it was searched and some items were seized by law enforcement starting at about noon Thursday, May 24. The store was open the next day, Friday of last week, with a skeleton crew of staff members, although there were, at that time, shelves that were conspicuously empty at the front of the store. Law enforcement officers were reported to have taken DVDs, games, and some other items.

The search last week, which continued into Thursday night and involved several large moving trucks, was led by the Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force of Anderson County. The CTF was helped by the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, the Eighth Judicial District Drug Task Force, Knox County Sheriff’s Office, and Clinton Police Department. Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark and Assistant District Attorney General Ryan Spitzer were also at the store.

Officers were observed removing boxes of items from McGuire Books and packing them into the moving trucks last week. Crime scene tape blocked entry to the store, and a Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force crime scene truck was parked out front. The purpose of the search has not been announced. [Read more…]