Oak Ridge Today

Haslam to be guest speaker at Anderson Chamber luncheon

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Bill Haslam during Presidential Visit at Pellissippi State

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam is pictured above during a visit by President Barack Obama to Pellissippi State Community College on Friday, January 9, 2016. (File photo by Rob Welton)

 

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam will be the special guest speaker at a quarterly business luncheon of the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce.

The luncheon is from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Thursday, September 15, at Junior Achievement of East Tennessee at 2135 North Charles Seivers Boulevard in Clinton.

There is limited seating, and reservations are requested by September 13. Call the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce at (865) 457-2559 for more information.

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TDOT cancels proposed changes on Clinton Highway due to county opposition

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TDOT Clinton Highway Improvements Mehaffey Road July 7 2016

As proposed, a one-third mile section of Clinton Highway south of Mehaffey Road—the section of road to the right of Mehaffey Road in the map above—would have been one lane in each direction with a center turn lane. The road to the north of Mehaffey Road—the area to the left—would have been two lanes in the southbound lane, a center turn lane, and one lane in the northbound lane. The changes would have been made as part of a resurfacing project in 2017, the Tennessee Department of Transportation said in a meeting in Claxton on Thursday, July 7, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 12:30 p.m.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation has canceled proposed changes meant to improve safety on Clinton Highway between Edgemoor Road and the Knox County line. The proposed safety improvements in Claxton have been canceled due to opposition from Anderson County, and after residents objected, including in a petition.

TDOT presented its proposal during a July 7 meeting at the Claxton Community Center. Among other changes, the project would have reduced the four-lane highway to a three-lane roadway with a passing lane in one direction, wider shoulders, and a continuous center turn lane as part of a resurfacing project scheduled for next year.

TDOT said there have been 10 fatal crashes in 10 years on that 2.6-mile section of Clinton Highway between Edgemoor Road and the Anderson County-Knox County line.

“That’s pretty high in a small section of roadway,” Nathan Vatter, TDOT regional traffic engineer, said after the July presentation. “It’s a significant number of fatalities.”

There was another meeting this month to give comments to TDOT. Anderson County Commissioner Tracy Wandell, one of two county commissioners who represent Claxton, provided notes to TDOT. Among the highlights: [Read more…]

Public meeting on Thursday on proposed Clinton Highway improvements

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Clinton Highway 10-Year Crash Map

A 10-year crash map shows 10 fatal crashes in 10 years in a 2.6-mile section of Clinton Highway between Edgemoor Road and the Anderson County-Knox County line. (Map by TDOT)

 

Oak Ridge Today/WYSH Radio

There will be an opportunity for the public to comment on Thursday on proposed improvements to a 2.6-mile stretch of Clinton Highway from Edgemoor Road to the Knox County line, where 10 people have died in crashes in the past decade.

Comments will be documented and transmitted to the Tennessee Department of Transportation. The meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, August 11, in Room 312 at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

During a public meeting in July, TDOT presented its proposal to resurface and realign a 2.6-mile stretch of Clinton Highway—Highway 25W—from Edgemoor Road to the Knox County line. TDOT said it developed the proposal after reviewing crash data that showed that between 2006 and last year, 10 fatal accidents and 11 others involving serious injuries have occurred on that stretch of highway. That section of roadway includes a hilly, curvy area with no median or center lane. The roadway shoulders are limited in some spots, the speed limit is 50 mph, and there are several areas with no buffers between traffic traveling north and south, meaning vehicles move past each other around curves while moving in opposite directions. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Cedar Barren Cleanup, Prairie Grass Extravaganza on Saturday, Aug. 20

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Oak Ridge Cedar Barren

September blooms at Oak Ridge Cedar Barren, courtesy Doug Colclasure. (Submitted photo)

 

There will be a free opportunity to see prairie goldenrod (Solidago ptarmicoides), naked-stem sunflower (Helianthus occidentalis), and Torrey’s mountain mint (Pycnanthemum torrei) at the Oak Ridge Cedar Barren on Saturday, August 20. This will be combined with a workday to remove invasive plants, a press release said.

Located next to Jefferson Middle School in Oak Ridge, this barren is a joint project of the City of Oak Ridge, the State Natural Areas Division, and Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning, or TCWP. The area is one of just a few cedar barrens in East Tennessee, and it is subject to invasion by Chinese lespedeza, Japanese privet, autumn olive, mimosa, Nepal grass, multiflora rose, and woody plants that threaten the system’s prairie grasses. [Read more…]

Clinton Driver Services Center to close Sept. 9, move to Oak Ridge

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security announced the current Clinton Driver Services Center will be closed Friday, September 9, and re-open Monday, September 12, in a new location.  The new location is located at 475 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge.

The Clinton Driver Services Center, located at 704 North Charles G. Sievers Boulevard in Clinton, will stop serving customers at the close of business on Thursday, September 8.

The new facility located at 475 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge will be open for business on Monday, September 12. [Read more…]

Anderson County receives $18,000 clean energy grant

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Bill Haslam during Presidential Visit at Pellissippi State

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam is pictured above in January 2016. (File photo by Rob Welton)

Anderson County has received an $18,000 state clean energy grant.

The project will consist of an LED lighting upgrade at the county’s Fleet Service Facility, Highway Facility, and Dickens Building, according to information from the state. The existing lights currently consume 160,200 kilowatts annually, and the new lights are estimated to reduce that energy usage by 35 percent—or 56,064 kilowatts on an annual basis.

The project will use the latest technology in LED lighting, and it is estimated that it will reduce 38 metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalents from the atmosphere per year, the information said. Over the lifetime of the project, the county is estimated to save nearly $144,000.

This project has been a high priority for the county for the last three years. [Read more…]

Eighth lane could be added to Oak Ridge rowing course by March

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SIRA-Regatta-April-17-2016-6

Officials and referees used Oak Ridge Rowing Association boats to monitor the races on the seven-lane course at the 2016 SIRA Championship Regatta in Oak Ridge on Sunday, April 17, 2016. The city plans to add an eighth lane by March 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

An eighth lane could be added to the Oak Ridge rowing course by March, officials said Tuesday.

The work is made possible with help from a $40,000 state Tourism Enhancement Grant announced Tuesday by Randy Boyd, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. Officials celebrated with a brief ceremony at Calhoun’s Event Center on Melton Lake Peninsula.

The eighth rowing lane has been on the city’s wish list for at least a decade, possibly longer.

Oak Ridge has received a $250,000 state grant for the proposed eighth lane. The city has planned to contribute $150,000, and Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson has solicited more money from other agencies that would benefit from the rowing course improvements, including in Anderson and Knox counties. That meant there was enough money available to fund a project of about $560,000, which is close to a targeted estimate that Watson gave Oak Ridge City Council members in March. [Read more…]

Commissioner Boyd to make tourism grant announcement at Calhoun’s on Tuesday

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Randy Boyd

Randy Boyd

 

Randy Boyd, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, will be in Oak Ridge on Tuesday to make an announcement concerning the state’s Tourism Enhancement Grant program, a tourism official said.

Boyd will be at Calhoun’s Event Center on Melton Lake Peninsula at 4 p.m. Tuesday, said Stephanie Wells, executive director of the Anderson County Tourism Council. [Read more…]

Anderson County gets $40,000 tourism grant

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Bill Haslam during Presidential Visit at Pellissippi State

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam is pictured above during a visit by President Barack Obama at Pellissippi State Community College on Friday, January 9. (File photo by Rob Welton)

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam and Economic and Community Development Commissioner Randy Boyd recently announced that 29 communities will receive close to $1 million in Tourism Enhancement Grants to assist communities with tourism infrastructure assets. Anderson County received a $40,000 grant.

“We want to congratulate all 29 communities on receiving Tourism Enhancement Grants,” Haslam said in a press release. “These grants showcase how great the partnership is between tourist development and economic development. With the support of these grants, each community will be better equipped to succeed in our state, and I look forward to seeing these Tennessee communities thrive.”

The grants assist counties and cities in improving local assets to increase the economic impact of tourism.

“I am pleased to announce these 29 communities that have been awarded the Tourism Enhancement Grant,” Boyd said. “It is always exciting when communities choose to invest in economic development initiatives to grow and succeed in our state. Tourism development is economic development, and with the assistance of the Tourism Enhancement Grant and our partnership with Commissioner Kevin Triplett and the Department of Tourist Development, each community will be able to invest in their assets and grow their local economy.” [Read more…]

Reminder: Early voting under way in Tennessee

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Vote Here

Early voting for the August 4 state primary and county general elections is under way. Voting will continue Mondays through Saturdays and end Saturday, July 30.

Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett is encouraging voters to take advantage of early voting, which allows people to cast a ballot when it’s convenient for them, a press release said.

“Tennesseans broke records during the March 1 ‘SEC Primary’ by taking advantage of early voting,” Hargett said in the press release. “It will be exciting to see Tennesseans participate in the electoral process this August and November.”

The easiest way for voters to find their early voting and Election Day polling locations, view and mark sample ballots, see their elected officials, districts, and county election commission information as well as access online state and federal election results is through the GoVoteTN app. Voters can download the free app in the App Store or Google Play or visit GoVoteTN.com to view voter specific information. [Read more…]

Yager announces Senate re-election bid

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Ken Yager

Ken Yager

Information from WYSH Radio

Tennessee Senator Ken Yager, a Kingston Republican, recently announced his bid for re-election to the Tennessee Senate. Yager, unopposed in his reelection bid, is seeking his third term to the state Senate.

“It is an honor to serve,” Yager said. “I take my responsibility to serve very seriously and am guided by one—and only one—principle: Constituents come first.”

The 12th Senatorial District is one of the largest in the state geographically.

“I represent seven of the finest counties in East Tennessee and the Upper Cumberland region, and work hard to make sure each receives its fair of state funding and grants,” Yager said. “I have been proud to be able to announce millions of dollars in grants, road projects, and new funding which will improve the lives of all of our citizens.” [Read more…]

Oak Ridge, AC added to state blight elimination program; loans of up to $25K per home

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TDHA Perrey Oak Ridge Gooch Blight Elimination Program July 11 2016

Oak Ridge and Anderson County have been added to a state blight elimination program that could allow the city to accelerate its efforts to remove blighted and abandoned homes and replace them with new affordable housing, or possibly green space. Ralph Perrey, left, executive director of the Tennessee Housing Development Agency, makes the announcement in Oak Ridge on Monday, July 11, 2016. Also pictured is Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge and Anderson County have been added to a state blight elimination program that could allow the city to accelerate its efforts to remove blighted and abandoned homes and replace them with new affordable housing, or possibly green space. Loans of up to $25,000 per home are available.

The Blight Elimination Program allows qualified nonprofits and land banks, like the one in Oak Ridge, to apply for loans of up to $25,000 to acquire blighted, abandoned homes, demolish them, turn the property into green space, and maintain the vacant lots. The “greened” lots can then be turned into new affordable housing or converted into other uses meant to stabilize neighborhoods, with the uses approved by the Tennessee Housing Development Agency.

The $25,000 per demolition will be fronted by the THDA. The work could start with the Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation, THDA Executive Director Ralph M. Perrey said during a Monday afternoon press conference in Oak Ridge. The press conference also included Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson, Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch, and Katie Moore, East Tennessee THDA representative.

The Blight Elimination Program has $10 million in funding available in Tennessee on a first-come, first-served basis. Much of it is likely to be used in Memphis in Shelby County, one of six other counties previously approved for the Blight Elimination Program, Perrey said.

But Memphis isn’t the only place that needs help, he said.

“I think a fair amount of that can be put to work here,” Perrey said in Oak Ridge on Monday. [Read more…]