Oak Ridge Today

Video: Free group guitar lessons at Oak Ridge Senior Center

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Wendall Cook teaches free group guitar lessons every Friday at 9 a.m. from January through the first week of October at the Oak Ridge Senior Center.

Freelance contributor Savanna Schubert talks to Cook, a few of his students, and Senior Center Manager Linda McGhee in the video below.

The Oak Ridge Senior Center is at 728 Emory Valley Road. Call (865) 425-3999 for more information.

Copyright 2016 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Cook teaches guitar, love of music at Oak Ridge Senior Center

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Wendall Cook teaches free group guitar lessons every Friday at 9 a.m. from January through the first week of October at the Oak Ridge Senior Center. (Photo by Savanna Schubert)

 

Wendall Cook has been playing guitar for more than 60 years. It began when he was growing up, listening to Elvis, Johnny Cash, and Jerry Lee Lewis. Cook started playing and singing with the help from his father, and it began with three chords on the guitar.

Now Cook has a class of his own. He has been giving group guitar lessons every Friday at 9 a.m. for more than 11 years. His group has grown from a small jam session of three people to four classes of more than 60 students ranging from beginner to advanced.

“We started from three people and they kept inviting people in—by the end of the year we had seven or eight,” Cook said. “I never have been a professional teacher, but I like to share.”

Cook’s passion for teaching can be seen just by sitting in on one class. His love for the music and the students are unparalleled. We spoke with a couple of Cook’s students about why they got started and how the group lessons have grown. [Read more…]

Oak Ridger with public, private work experience appointed city clerk

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Beth Hickman

Beth Hickman

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

An Oak Ridge resident who has management and administrative experience in the public and private sectors has been appointed city clerk, officials said Monday.

Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson announced the appointment of Beth Hickman on Monday. Hickman will replace former City Clerk Diana Stanley, who resigned in November 2015.

Hickman has more than 15 years of management and administrative experience in both the public and private sectors, a press release said.

She served as field representative for former U.S. Congressman Lincoln Davis and as executive assistant at The Roane Alliance.

She is presently employed at Vanderbilt University Law School as a faculty assistant. [Read more…]

National Park Service, DOE have three meetings on Manhattan Project Park

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Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz shortly after they signed a memorandum of agreement and created the 409th park in the National Park System, the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. The park was authorized by Congress in December 2014. The park will have three sites in Los Alamos, New Mexico; Hanford, Washington; and Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The signing ceremony took place at the South Interior Building in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 10, 2015. (NPS Photo by Anthony DeYoung)

 

First meeting on Monday, February 1

The National Park Service and the U.S. Department of Energy will have three public meetings in early February to solicit input on planning for the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. The meetings will be held at the three sites associated with the park: Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Hanford, Washington; and Los Alamos, New Mexico. The public is encouraged to come to the meetings and meet with representatives of the NPS and the DOE to share their thoughts about the key stories and interpretive ideas related to the park.

Locally, there will be a public meeting held on Monday, February 1, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. (Eastern time) at Oak Ridge High School (in the Food Court) at 1450 Oak Ridge Turnpike. [Read more…]

New Public Works director hired in Oak Ridge

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Shira McWaters

Shira McWaters (From LinkedIn profile)

Shira McWaters, a civil engineer who is now an associate at a company in Arizona, has been hired as Public Works director in Oak Ridge.

McWaters will replace former Public Works Director Gary Cinder, who retired in September 2015.

The appointment was announced by Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson.

McWaters will administer all Public Works activities for the city. The Public Works Department, with approximately 100 full-time employees, is responsible for the maintenance of city streets, all city-owned buildings, stormwater management, water treatment, distribution, and wastewater collections systems, and for the maintenance, service, and repair of all city automotive vehicles, heavy equipment, and stationary equipment.

The Department also prepares and administers the Solid Waste Collection contract and provides staff representation to the Traffic Safety Advisory Board. [Read more…]

Affordable Care Act enrollment rescheduled for Wednesday

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A rescheduled Affordable Care Act enrollment event will be Wednesday.

The enrollment event has been rescheduled from Saturday, January 23, to Wednesday, January 27, because of the weather last week.

The enrollment event is still at the Oak Ridge Public Library, and it’s from 4-8:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Library Auditorium. [Read more…]

Mail carrier shaken up, but not injured, when tree falls on delivery truck

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A mail carrier was shaken up but not injured when a tree fell on her delivery truck in west Oak Ridge on Friday morning, Jan. 22, 2016, officials said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A mail carrier was shaken up but not injured when a large tree fell on her delivery truck in west Oak Ridge on Friday morning, officials said.

The mail carrier was in her vehicle delivering mail on Mohawk Road when the tree fell on it at about 10:10 a.m. Friday, said David Walton, spokesman for the Tennessee district of the United States Postal Service.

The carrier was able to get out of the vehicle, but the tree had to be cut before the truck could be moved, Walton said.

The delivery vehicle was towed back to the Post Office, where the mail was unloaded onto another vehicle. Another carrier then finished the route. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge recreational facilities, library closed Saturday; AC govt. offices close early Friday

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

Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks facilities and the Oak Ridge Public Library will be closed on Saturday, January 23, due to the forecasted winter weather, officials said.

This closure includes the Oak Ridge Civic Center, the Public Library, the Scarboro Community Center, and the Senior Center.

At this time, officials plan to reopen city facilities on Sunday, January 24, at normal operating hours, a press release said.

The Anderson County Courthouse and other county government offices closed early, at 1 p.m. Friday, due to winter weather already moving into Anderson County.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Copyright 2016 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

City of Oak Ridge warns of utility scam

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City of Oak Ridge Seal

Oak Ridge utility customers, including commercial customers, should be aware that a scam regarding a meter change out program is happening in the area, officials said.

In this scam, a customer receives a call from someone claiming to be a representative from an electric company that provides electricity for the residents of Oak Ridge. The representative states the customer should have received a notice last week that the electric company will be changing out meters in the city, and the customer is asked to pay a deposit ($700-$900) to avoid interruption in the electric service. In some cases, the customer has been told the deposit will be refunded on the next bill. [Read more…]

Roads becoming slipperier as snow continues to fall

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Roads in Oak Ridge are becoming slipperier as snow continues to accumulate. Above, an Oak Ridge snow plow is pictured at the intersection of Oak Ridge Turnpike and Administration Road at about 11 a.m. Wednesday morning, Jan. 20, 2016. Heavy snow continued to fall about 1.5 hours later. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 2:30 p.m.

Roads in Oak Ridge became slipperier on Wednesday morning as snow continued to fall.

There were slick spots on well-traveled roads such as New York Avenue, Tyler and Administration roads, and even Oak Ridge Turnpike at about 11 a.m. Wednesday. And a heavy snow continued to fall about an hour later.

Oak Ridge Today drove around central Oak Ridge for about an hour between 10 and 11 a.m. Wednesday while taking pictures, and the roads became noticeably slicker as snow accumulated. We measured about three-quarters of an inch of snow in a parking lot at the Oak Ridge Civic Center at about 10:15 a.m. A few hours later, there was a little more than two inches on the ground on a city side street.

Most people appeared to be driving cautiously Wednesday morning as schools and some government offices and businesses decided to close. [Read more…]

City puts down brine to prepare for snow

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Oak Ridge city workers have put down brine to help prepare roads for the snow that is forecast for Wednesday. Above, the brine is visible on Woodbury Lane in front of the Oak Ridge Central Services Complex on Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 19, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge city workers have put down brine to help prepare roads for the snow forecast for Wednesday.

The salt and water mix is visible on many city roads.

On Tuesday morning, the National Weather Service in Morristown said there is a 20 percent chance of snow showers after 1 a.m. Wednesday near Oak Ridge, and snow is likely before 3 p.m. Wednesday. A new snow accumulation of one to three inches is possible in Oak Ridge, forecasters said. [Read more…]

Council to receive briefing on Manhattan Project park from Park Service on Tuesday

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Niki Nicholas

The Oak Ridge City Council will receive a briefing on the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park on Tuesday.

The briefing by Niki Nicholas, superintendent of the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, will be during a Tuesday evening work session on January 21. It will follow a special 6 p.m. City Council meeting for boards and commissions elections in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Courtroom. (See the work session agenda here. See the special meeting agenda here.)

There will also be an orientation session next week for those interested in volunteering for the new park, which includes Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Hanford, Washington; and Los Alamos, New Mexico. That orientation session starts at 10 a.m. Thursday, January 21, at the Midtown Community Center at 102 Robertsville Road. [Read more…]