Oak Ridge Today

Power restored after being out across most of city

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Note: This story was updated at 4:30 p.m.

Power has been restored to most, if not all, customers after being out across nearly all of Oak Ridge on Sunday afternoon, the Oak Ridge Police Department said.

If you are still without power, you can call (865) 425-1803.

The cause of the power outages weren’t immediately clear, but there were thunderstorms over Oak Ridge on Sunday afternoon. The storms brought heavy rain and lightning and thunder.

It wasn’t immediately clear how long the power was out for different customers and where.

It would be the second major outage in Oak Ridge since mid-June, the weekend of the Secret City Festival, when the city had several electrical power outages. The most widespread outage that weekend occurred Saturday afternoon, when approximately 11,455 homes and businesses were affected across the city. The outage area included nearly everything north of the Oak Ridge Turnpike and west of Rutgers Avenue. Other areas in the central-south part of the city were also affected. Power was out for about two hour and 20 minutes.

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City will work to improve visibility at Tyler, Tennessee

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Tyler Road Tennessee Avenue Intersection July 29 2019
The intersection of Tyler Road and Tennessee Avenue is pictured above on Monday, July 29, 2019, looking west down Tennessee Avenue.

The City of Oak Ridge on Friday said the recommended sight distance is already available at the intersection of Tyler Road and Tennessee Avenue, where the stoplight will be removed, and the city will be taking action to improve the line of sight for drivers looking left from Tyler Road.

An Oak Ridge Today reader had asked about obstructions at the intersection that affect visibility looking left from Tyler Road to Tennessee Avenue. There are two utility poles there, as well as a hospital sign and utility box, and the reader had mentioned vegetation and the roadside hill alongside the eastbound lanes of Tennessee Avenue.

This week, City of Oak Ridge spokesperson Sarah Self said the utility box, which appears to be the widest of the obstructions next to the intersection, will be removed when the traffic signal is decommissioned in October.

Public Works crews will soon trim the trees and other vegetation there to provide an extended view, Self said.

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Outdoor Pool hours extended into August

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The Oak Ridge Outdoor Pool on Providence Road is pictured above. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department is extending open hours at the outdoor pool into the month of August. The new schedule will begin on Thursday, August 1, as follows: 

  • Monday-Friday: 100-meter Lap Swim from 9 a.m.-12 p.m.
  • Monday-Friday: Kiddie/Shallow Open Swim from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: After-school Open Swim from 3-8 p.m.
  • Saturday and Sunday: Open Swim from 10 a.m.-7 p.m.
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Stop sign going in, stoplight coming out

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The intersection of Tyler Road and Tennessee Avenue, which now includes a stoplight, is pictured above on Thursday, July 18, 2019.

A new stop sign will be installed and the traffic signal will be removed at the intersection of Tyler Road and Tennessee Avenue in the Jackson Square area in central Oak Ridge.

The new stop sign will be uncovered on Tuesday, July 23, at about 8 a.m., the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release Thursday.

“At present, both Tyler Road and Tennessee Avenue are controlled by a traffic signal,” the press release said. “The change is being made after a traffic study indicated the traffic pattern and crash history at this location does not justify the need for a traffic signal. The study also indicated that changing the right-of-way assignment to favor Tennessee Avenue will reduce delays.”

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Outdoor Pool has movie night on Saturday

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The Oak Ridge Outdoor Pool on Providence Road will show the 2018 movie “The Meg” on Saturday night, July 20, 2019. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge Outdoor Pool will host a movie night on Saturday, starting at 8:30 p.m.

The 2018 movie “The Meg” (rated PG-13) will be shown poolside on an inflatable screen, a press release said. Gates will open at 8:30 p.m. with the movie scheduled to start at approximately 9 p.m. Attendees can watch the movie while floating in the water (shallow end only) or sitting in the grassy area.

Tickets are $5 each and can be purchased at the gate. Only cash or check will be accepted, no credit or debit cards, the press release said.

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Photos: Landslide near water plant

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Pictured above is the landslide next to the access road to the Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant on Pine Ridge, above the Y-12 National Security Complex, on Saturday night, February 23, 2019. (Photo courtesy CNS Y-12)

Photos released by the City of Oak Ridge and CNS Y-12 on Monday show the landslide that occurred next to the access road to the Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant on Pine Ridge in February.

Last week, Oak Ridge Public Works Director Shira McWaters said it could cost an estimated $407,000 to repair the landslide, and the work should be complete by the end of July.

The water plant is on a ridge top above the main entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex on Bear Creek Road. The landslide occurred next to the access road to the water plant on Saturday night, February 23. It’s the only access road to the water plant. It allows operations and maintenance workers to get to the water plant and deliver materials, equipment, and chemicals.

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Landslide repair could cost $400,000

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It could cost an estimated $407,000 to repair the landslide near the Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant on Pine Ridge, city officials said Friday.

The water plant is on a ridge top above the main entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex on Bear Creek Road. The landslide occurred next to the access road to the water plant on Saturday night, February 23. It’s the only access road to the water plant. It allows operations and maintenance workers to get to the water plant and deliver materials, equipment, and chemicals.

Oak Ridge Public Works Director Shira McWaters said the city has been able to maintain access to the water plant using the inside lane of the access road and closing the outside lane, the one closest to the slide.

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Updated: Council approves $45 million debt resolution for new water plant

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Note: This story was updated at 8:30 p.m.

The Oak Ridge City Council voted 5-0 Monday evening to approve an initial debt resolution worth up to $45 million for the construction of a new water treatment plant and related infrastructure.

The five members voting in favor of the resolution were Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch, Mayor Pro Tem Rick Chinn, and Council members Jim Dodson, Chuck Hope, and Ellen Smith. Council members Kelly Callison and Derrick Hammond were absent.

The water plant would be built near the city’s water intake on the Clinch River in south Oak Ridge. The cost of the new plant, which could produce about 16 million gallons of water per day, is currently estimated at about $42.9 million.

City officials have been discussing the new water plant for several years and have had an engineering firm study the project.

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Drivers prohibited from holding wireless telecommunications device

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Under a new state law that went into effect July 1, drivers in Tennessee are now prohibited from holding a wireless telecommunications device such as a cell phone, personal digital assistant, or computer while operating a vehicle.

To comply with the new law, the Oak Ridge city code has to be changed. The Oak Ridge City Council will consider the code change in the first of two readings during a meeting this evening (Monday, July 8).

The proposed city ordinance mirrors the new state law, the city’s legal staff said in a July 1 memo. Most first and second offenses of the new handheld law will be brought to Oak Ridge City Court. Other offenses will result in state charges, which can result in higher fines than those imposed in municipal courts. Those other offenses include third and higher offenses, as well as violations occurring in construction zones, marked school zones where flashers are operating, and offenses that result in a crash.

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City repairing large landslide near access road to water plant

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Oak-Ridge-Water-Treatment-Plant-2009-1
The Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant is pictured on Pine Ridge above the Y-12 National Security Complex. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

The city is repairing a large landslide that occurred next to the access road to the Oak Ridge water treatment plant on Pine Ridge above the Y-12 National Security Complex during the rainy month of February.

The landslide occurred on the night of February 23, Oak Ridge Public Works Director Shira McWaters told City Manager Mark Watson in a June 24 memo. The access road is the only access road to the city’s water plant, and it’s critical to being able to operate the water plant, McWaters said. The road allows operations and maintenance workers to get to the water plant and deliver materials, equipment, and chemicals.

Repairs were started immediately after the landslide to minimize the risk of more damage to the area and the potential to lose the only access road to the plant, McWaters said. She said work started in March and should be complete by the end of July.

The water plant provides water to both the City of Oak Ridge and to U.S. Department of Energy sites, including Y-12 and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The plant is on a ridge at the southern entrance to central Oak Ridge above the main entrance to Y-12 at Bear Creek Road and Scarboro Road.

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Reminder: Fireworks tonight in A.K. Bissell Park

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Fireworks at Alvin K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge on July 4, 2017. (File photo by D. Ray Smith)

A reminder: The annual fireworks show in Oak Ridge is in Alvin K. Bissell Park tonight (Thursday, July 4).

The fireworks show is sponsored by the City of Oak Ridge to celebrate Independence Day.

Today’s fireworks are expected to begin after dark at about 9:45 p.m.

The Oak Ridge Community Band, now in its 75th year, will perform before the fireworks. The concert is free, but donations are accepted by the band to help cover the cost of equipment and other expenses, a press release said. The music is expected to begin at 7:30 p.m. WMYL 96.7 Merle FM will be live following the band performance and will broadcast the soundtrack for the fireworks display.

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FAA conditionally approves Oak Ridge Airport

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This is an aerial image of the current layout plan for the proposed Oak Ridge Airport at the Heritage Center in west Oak Ridge. (Image courtesy Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority)

The Federal Aviation Administration provided a conditional approval for the proposed Oak Ridge Airport in a February letter, a consultant said Thursday.

The conditions included in the February 22 letter included the completion of a benefit cost analysis and an environmental assessment for the airport property, project consultant Billy Stair said.

In response to the conditional approval, the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority’s board of directors approved a work authorization for CHA Consulting Inc. during a June 19 meeting. CHA Consulting, which has an office in Louisville, will provide professional services for “qualifications development and agency scoping” for the design, environmental assessment, and benefit cost analysis for the proposed airport.

“This puts in motion the process for undertaking the BCA (benefit cost analysis) and EA (environmental assessment),” Stair said.

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