Oak Ridge Today

Crews working to restore power on west end

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A fallen tree or trees knocked down power lines along Louisiana Avenue on Tuesday night, Jan. 3, 2017, and crews were working to restore power in west Oak Ridge on the north side of Oak Ridge Turnpike, including the area around Louisiana Avenue and Robertsville Road. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 12:50 a.m.

Crews were working to restore power on the west end of Oak Ridge on Tuesday night, including in the area around Louisiana Avenue and Robertsville Road.

A fallen tree or trees knocked down power lines along Louisiana Avenue north of Robertsville Road, and crews were working to restore power on the north side of Oak Ridge Turnpike. [Read more…]

Photos: American Museum of Science and Energy property, future Main Street home

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The U.S. Department of Energy and City of Oak Ridge had a signing ceremony Friday, Dec. 30, 2016, at Pollard Technology Conference Center for the transfer of the roughly 17-acre American Museum of Science and Energy site. Pictured above at center is U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz. Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch is at right, and U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, an Ooltewah Republican, is at left. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The U.S. Department of Energy and City of Oak Ridge had a signing ceremony Friday for the transfer of the roughly 17-acre American Museum of Science and Energy site. The property will be transferred from DOE to the city, and then to a company affiliated with RealtyLink, the developer of Main Street Oak Ridge at the former Oak Ridge Mall. Within about a year, AMSE will move to a two-story building that once housed a Sears store next to JCPenney at the former mall site. The AMSE site could be developed and the museum building demolished.

Here are photos from the Friday signing ceremony and of the AMSE property and the museum’s future home.

See a story from the signing ceremony here. [Read more…]

With transfer agreement signed, plans call for developing AMSE site, relocating museum, demolishing building

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The American Museum of Science and Energy is pictured above on South Tulane Avenue in Oak Ridge on Monday, Jan. 2, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 1:30 p.m. Jan. 3.

With a property transfer agreement signed, new businesses could be built on the 17 acres that now house the American Museum of Science and Energy, the museum will be relocated, and the AMSE building could be demolished, officials and a business executive said Friday.

The changes are allowed under an agreement approved by federal officials, unanimously approved by the Oak Ridge City Council in December, and signed by U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz and Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch in a Friday morning ceremony at Oak Ridge Associated Universities.

The U.S. Department of Energy said the transfer of the museum property, owned by the federal government, will allow the City of Oak Ridge to “explore future innovative development and economic stimulus opportunities.”

“From the Manhattan Project of World War II to the cutting-edge materials research of today, Oak Ridge has long played a vital role in American science and security,” Moniz said. “This agreement will ensure that Oak Ridge’s history is preserved and shared while providing the city a new opportunity to create jobs and strengthen the local economy.”

When the transfer is completed, DOE public outreach and education missions that are now conducted at AMSE and focused on Oak Ridge history, science, and national security will continue in renovated space in a two-story building that once housed a Sears store next to JCPenney at the former Oak Ridge Mall. The former mall is being redeveloped as Main Street Oak Ridge.

DOE said the AMSE property transfer will save more than $2 million in deferred maintenance costs at the museum and greatly reduce operating expenses. [Read more…]

Former Oak Ridge Mayor Jerry Kuhaida dies at 74

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Jerry Kuhaida

Jerry Kuhaida

Former Oak Ridge Mayor Jerry Kuhaida died at home Monday after a hard-fought battle with Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia, according to his obituary. He was 74.

Kuhaida was elected to the Oak Ridge City Council twice, serving from 1991-1995 and from 1997-2003. He served one term as mayor.

Kuhaida continued his passion for community and local government development while serving as a consultant in Russia and working with the U.S. Agency for International Development/U.S. State Department, assisting the U.S. Army’s development efforts in Iraq, his obituary said.

Andrew “Jerry” Jerome Kuhaida Jr. was born on September 29, 1942, in Wheeling, West Virginia. He had bachelor’s and master’s degrees in geology and a doctorate in geography/geology, according to his obituary. He started his lengthy career in environmental restoration and hazardous waste remediation after returning to Oak Ridge in 1980, the obituary said. He served on several local boards and committees, including the Environmental Quality Advisory Board and the Scarboro Community Day Care Center Board. [Read more…]

Leaf pickup: Crews behind due to volume and weather, but all streets will be visited

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Leaf pickup crews are running four days behind due to volume and weather, but all streets will be visited before the end of the annual program, the City of Oak Ridge said.

The citywide leaf pickup program began Monday, November 21.

Here a few guidelines for the program: [Read more…]

Convenience Center in Oak Ridge will be closed New Year’s Day

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Waste Connections of Tennessee will close the Convenience Center located at 400 Warehouse Road in Oak Ridge all day Sunday, January 1, 2017 (New Year’s Day).

There will be no change to the weekly residential refuse and recycling pick-up schedule, a press release said.

For more information, you can contact Waste Connections of Tennessee at (865) 482-3656 or visit the company’s website at wasteconnectionsTN.com.

Waste Connections suspends glass recycling

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Note: This story was updated at 1:20 p.m.

Waste Connections of Tennessee has announced that beginning January 1, 2017, they will suspend glass recycling for their curbside pickup program in Oak Ridge in an effort to remain “dedicated to maintaining a healthy and strong recycling program for all residents,” a press release said.

“Markets for recyclable materials ebb and flow, and changes in glass markets have made this change in service necessary,” Doug McGill, municipal marketing manager for Waste Connections Inc., said in a recent letter to Oak Ridge officials. “By removing glass from curbside collection, we will preserve the overall integrity of our recycling program.”

A City of Oak Ridge press release said McGill went on to say that the processor of recyclables in Knoxville will stop accepting single-stream recycling glass after the first of the year, as will most processing companies across the country. [Read more…]

Government building holiday closings

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Information from WYSH Radio

Most government buildings at the county and municipal levels will be closed Friday, December 23, and Monday December 26, for the Christmas holiday.

That includes Clinton City Hall, the Anderson County Courthouse, Rocky Top City Hall, and the Oak Ridge Municipal Building.

Many of those buildings will also be closed on Monday, January 2, 2017, for the New Year’s holiday as well.

Holiday Schedule: Waste Connections Convenience Center

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Waste Connections of Tennessee will close the Convenience Center at 400 Warehouse Road at noon on Saturday, December 24, in observance of Christmas. The Convenience Center will reopen on Monday, December 26.

In addition, the Convenience Center will be closed all day Sunday, January 1, 2017, in observance of the New Year’s holiday. [Read more…]

DOE secretary to attend AMSE land transfer ceremony on Dec. 30

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Ernest Moniz

Ernest Moniz

Note: This story was last updated at 12:10 p.m.

U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz will attend the land transfer ceremony for the American Museum of Science and Energy property in Oak Ridge next week.

The ceremony is scheduled for Friday, December 30. Also expected to attend are U.S. Congressman Chuck Fleischmann and City of Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch.

It’s a signing ceremony to formally transfer the roughly 17-acre AMSE site from the U.S. Department of Energy to the City of Oak Ridge.

Under an agreement unanimously approved by Oak Ridge City Council on December 13, the city is then expected to transfer the property in two phases to a company set up by RealtyLink, the South Carolina firm building Main Street Oak Ridge at the site of the former Oak Ridge Mall. [Read more…]

Energy Communities Alliance publishes recommendations for Trump transition team

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The Energy Communities Alliance, an organization whose members include local governments adjacent to or affected by U.S. Department of Energy activities, has submitted its transition priorities and recommendations for the incoming Trump administration. They are included in “A Roadmap for Successful Local Government and Community Engagement.”

The document includes nine key priorities, each with their own set of recommendations, for the new administration to adopt as it engages in discussions regarding ongoing U.S. Department of Energy operations and performance, a press release said.

Here are the nine priorities, grouped into three areas: [Read more…]

Christmas tree recycling available in Oak Ridge

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Two drop-off locations will be available for residents who want to recycle their Christmas trees after the holidays. The program is offered by the City of Oak Ridge.

Signs will be posted in both locations. The drop-offs are:

  • Big Turtle Park, 2525 Oak Ridge Turnpike (parking lot)
  • Solway Park, 205 Edgemoor Road (parking lot near the boat launch)

Trees will be accepted any time through January 29, 2017. On Saturday, January 14, and Saturday, January 21, Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department employees will be available to assist with unloading trees at the Big Turtle Park drop-off location from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., a press release said. [Read more…]