Council to consider budget amendments in special meeting Thursday

May 15, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Trina Baughn

Trina Baughn

Chuck Hope

Chuck Hope

The Oak Ridge City Council could consider a dozen budget amendments Thursday evening that were postponed on Monday, a series of proposals that could increase spending in some areas or cut it in others.

Nine of the amendments have been proposed by Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn, and three were recommended by Council member Chuck Hope.

Baughn’s proposals could reduce spending on municipal travel by 20 percent, the Oak Ridge Public Library by roughly $950,000, and Recreation and Parks Department funding by 10 percent, among other things.

Hope’s proposals would add $500,000 funding in the city’s general fund for spending in three areas: economic development, capital maintenance, and to study the relocation of Fire Station No. 2 to Melton Lake Drive. [Read more...]

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Council members clash over Baughn’s budget-cutting proposals

May 14, 2013 By 54 Comments
Trina Baughn

Trina Baughn

Charlie Hensley

Charlie Hensley

Several Oak Ridge City Council members clashed on Monday as they debated a few last-minute proposals to reduce city spending in some areas and increase it in others.

Most of the debate centered on proposals submitted by Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn. She asked the City Council to consider nine budget-cutting proposals and consider selling the Centennial Golf Course and the property used by the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, among other things.

Baughn said she represents the citizens of Oak Ridge and is trying to find the highest and best use of city-owned property. She has previously said she would like to lower the property tax rate and has advocated for a more limited government. [Read more...]

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Contractor installing pedestrian warning signs on Melton Lake Drive

May 14, 2013 By 2 Comments

A city contractor is completing work on new flashing warning signs on Melton Lake Drive at three pedestrian crossings near the Oak Ridge Marina on Melton Lake Drive. The three crossings are at Amanda Drive, Rivers Run Boulevard, and just west of Emory Valley Road.

The flashing beacons could be become operational Thursday, a city press release said. The beacons are activated by a push button and will flash for a short period of time, allowing pedestrians to cross the street. [Read more...]

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Norris archives receive $4,000 state grant

May 14, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The City of Norris Archives in Anderson County has received a $4,000 grant to help improve the storage conditions of and access to local government records, a press release said.

“I am proud to award this grant to the City of Norris Archives,” Secretary of State Tre Hargett said. “Archives are important because they store and preserve historical records for our county and municipal governments. It is my hope that this grant will help the city with its archival development.” [Read more...]

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Former Anderson commissioner, OS manager hired in Kingston

May 14, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

Former Anderson County Commissioner and Oliver Springs City Manager Dave Bolling has been hired as the new city manager in Kingston after spending the last year as the town administrator of Newcastle, Maine.

Bolling and one other finalist were interviewed on Friday, and following the interviews, the City Council voted unanimously to offer the job to Bolling. His first day on the job will be June 1, and he will earn an annual salary of $70,500 a year with a performance bonus possible after the first year and a $5,000 moving allowance. [Read more...]

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Council approves no-tax-increase budget that could be amended

May 13, 2013 By 12 Comments
Mark Watson

Mark Watson

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday gave initial approval to a budget that does not raise property taxes but could be amended.

Council members Trina Baughn and Chuck Hope proposed amendments that could be considered during a special meeting before second and final reading of the budget on May 28.

The budget presented by City Manager Mark Watson on Monday would give city employees a 1 percent pay raise, cut funding for the Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau, and change the city’s contract with the Chamber of Commerce. [Read more...]

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Gov. Haslam vetoes ‘ag gag’ bill

May 13, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Governor Bill Haslam

Bill Haslam

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam has vetoed a controversial bill that would have required anyone who visually recorded livestock abuse to turn over the images or videos to law enforcement officers within 48 hours.

Haslam said the Tennessee attorney general has questioned the constitutionality of the bill, and it appears to repeal parts of Tennessee’s Shield Law without saying so. In addition, Haslam said, there are concerns from some district attorneys that the legislation would actually make it more difficult to prosecute animal cruelty cases, an unintended consequence.

In a Monday press release, he said he wants the Tennessee General Assembly to reconsider the legislation, which critics had labeled the bill the “ag gag” bill. There had been an intense campaign urging the governor to veto the measure, with most people expressing opposition, The Tennessean reported. Celebrities such as Carrie Underwood and Emmylou Harris had weighed in as well. [Read more...]

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B&W team says it’s the best choice for Y-12, Pantex contract

May 13, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Y-12 National Security Complex

Y-12 National Security Complex (Submitted photo)

One of the two teams that did not win the $23 billion contract to manage and operate two nuclear weapons plants in Tennessee and Texas said newly released federal documents show it had the best bid.

The contract to manage the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge and Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas, was awarded to Consolidated Nuclear Security LLC, of Reston, Va., on Jan. 8. The consolidated contract, the first ever for the National Nuclear Security Administration, is expected to save money.

But the two losing teams—Nuclear Production Partners LLC of Lynchburg, Va., and Integrated Nuclear Production Solutions LLC of Oak Ridge—filed bid protests. On April 29, the U.S. Government Accountability Office upheld those protests in part. The GAO questioned whether the NNSA had properly evaluated the expected savings, and the agency recommended that the contract procurement be re-opened and more information requested from the bidders. [Read more...]

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Council considers budget with no tax increase, less money for Chamber, ORCVB

May 12, 2013 By 1 Comment
Mark Watson

Mark Watson

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday will consider a budget that does not raise property taxes but could cut funding for the Chamber of Commerce as well as the Convention and Visitors Bureau.

It would include contracts with economic development consultants Ray Evans and Steve Jones and a 1 percent cost-of-living pay raise for city employees.

Under the budget proposed by Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson, the property tax rate would stay at $2.39 per $100 of assessed value. [Read more...]

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Baughn request: Sell golf course, Chamber property; request payments from tax-exempt organizations

May 12, 2013 By 18 Comments
Trina Baughn

Trina Baughn

Note: This story was updated at 11:38 p.m.

Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn has proposed that the city sell Centennial Golf Course, and terminate the lease agreement with the Chamber of Commerce and sell the property.

Those proposals would convert city-owned assets into taxable properties, Baughn said.

Baughn has also asked the seven-member Council to consider setting up a team that could negotiate voluntary payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreements with tax-exempt organizations that “are most able to afford paying for city services that are currently paid for by the taxpayer.” Those organizations could include Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Utility District, Tech 2020, Roane State Community College, and the University of Tennessee, Baughn said in a May 5 e-mail to Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson and City Clerk Diana Stanley. [Read more...]

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Schedule for third week of brush pickup

May 12, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The third week of the city’s annual brush pickup schedule is as follows: [Read more...]

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Federal judge orders Y-12 protesters jailed until September sentencing

May 10, 2013 By 3 Comments
Y-12 Plowshares Protesters

Pictured above are the three anti-nuclear weapons protesters who broke into the Y-12 National Security Complex and vandalized a uranium storage building on July 28. From left, they are Michael Walli, Megan Rice, and Greg Boertje-Obed.

The three protesters who broke into the Y-12 National Security Complex in July and vandalized a uranium storage building must stay in jail until they are sentenced Sept. 23, a federal judge said Friday.

The three protesters—Greg Boertje-Obed, 57; Megan Rice, 83; and Michael Walli, 64—had sought to be released until their sentencing hearings this fall. They each face up to 30 years in prison.

But U.S. District Judge Amul R. Thapar denied that request in a four-page order filed late Friday afternoon. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Federal, Government, National Nuclear Security Administration, Police and Fire, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy, Y-12 National Security Complex, Y-12 Security Breach Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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