Oak Ridge Today

Anderson, three other counties join Retire Tennessee program

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Retire Tennessee

Anderson, Carter, Sumner, and Unicoi counties align with 15 established communities 

NASHVILLE—Tennessee Department of Tourist Development Commissioner Kevin Triplett announced last week that Anderson, Carter, Sumner, and Unicoi counties have been added to Retire Tennessee, the state’s retiree recruitment marketing program. That brings the total number of active Retire Tennessee counties to 19, a press release said.

“It’s great to officially add four new counties to this important state program,” Triplett said. “Tennessee has much to offer people making retirement decisions based on quality of life and cost of living. Our state has the lowest cost of living in the Southeast and second lowest in the nation, no state income tax, and low property tax. Add to that, the state’s breathtaking scenic beauty and unparalleled hospitality, and it’s only natural Tennessee would rank high among the population relocating after retirement.”

The four counties join Cumberland, Franklin, Hamblen, Hamilton, Hardin, Jefferson, Loudon, Maury, Putnam, Rhea,  Roane, Robertson, Sullivan, Warren, and White counties as Retire Tennessee counties. Now in its ninth year, Retire Tennessee inspired more than 10,000 inquiries from potential retirees last year. Tennessee is one of only four states with retiree recruitment as a formal program and continues to gain momentum as a potential retirement destination for more than 78 million baby boomers. [Read more…]

TDOT: Long-term lane closures on SR 61 at I-75 start Wednesday

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The long-term lane closures on State Route 61 at Interstate 75 are scheduled to start Wednesday, July 22, officials said.

One lane will be closed in both directions for bridge repairs, the Tennessee Department of Transportation announced on Twitter.

This is the bridge that crosses over I-75 in east Clinton on the way to the Museum of Appalachia and Norris. [Read more…]

Roane reappraisals show 3.47 percent assessment drop; OR tax rate calculated at $2.52

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Jason Mumpower

Jason Mumpower

Note: This story was last updated at 5 p.m.

Roane County properties showed an overall 3.47 percent drop in assessed values in the five-year reappraisal process taken over by state officials this year, and the tax-neutral property tax rate in the City of Oak Ridge has been calculated at $2.52, the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office announced Thursday.

The tax-neutral rate is up from the current $2.39 per $100 of assessed value, a 13-cent increase.

Separately, the Oak Ridge City Council has been asked to consider a tax rate increase of up to eight cents, with a one-cent increase requested by the municipal staff and a seven-cent increase requested by the Oak Ridge Board of Education. The one-cent increase would help maintain city services and allow for a 2 percent pay raise for city employees, and the seven-cent increase would help cover a deficit and add money for salaries and staff, including a 3 percent pay raise.

Any tax increase, if approved by city officials, would be in addition to the tax-neutral rate calculated by the state. Each additional cent on the property tax rate generates about another $90,000 in revenue. A one-cent increase would cost the owner of a $145,000 house another $3.63 per year. An eight-cent increase could cost that homeowner another $29 per year. [Read more…]

Synchronous fireflies found in Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area

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Synchronous Fireflies

In the foreground: Predatory Photuris sp. which is recognizable by the red on the pronotum (head shield), larger size, and stripes on the wings. The firefly in the background is the Photuris frontalis (a.k.a. snappy sync). (Photo by TWRA)

 

By Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency

Paul Shaw, a TWRA fisheries creel agent, has taken an interest in fireflies this summer, which has led to an amazing discovery.

Intrigued by the synchronous fireflies at Elkmont in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and learning that Lynn Faust, the premiere synchronous firefly researcher in the GSMNP had them on her property near his own, Shaw set out on a mission to find other populations in east Tennessee.

His initial search in early June produced a healthy but isolated population on his densely forested property, which lies about a mile north of the Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area.

During the next few weeks, Shaw—along with ORWMA Manager Jim Evans, former TWRA employee Wade Gefellars, and several others—formed a group called the “Firefly Team” that began visiting sites around ORWMA with hopes of discovering other synchronous fireflies. Their research areas consisted of about 30 sites, which were not arbitrary, random locations but were carefully calculated by biological factors similar to those at Elkmont. [Read more…]

Norris Bulletin provides detour ideas over I-75

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Information from WYSH Radio

With traffic over Interstate 75 on Highway 61 down to one lane in either direction for bridge repair work, drivers can expect delays now through October 31, but our friends at the Norris Bulletin have a couple of alternate routes you may want to consider.

In the Wednesday edition, the Bulletin said westbound drivers can get to the other side of the interstate pretty quickly by taking the back route via Alley Road off the Norris Freeway and then following Hillvale Road all the way to back to Highway 61, adjacent to Harrison’s, Waffle House, and WalMart. The Bulletin said that detour will work for westbound traffic trying to get to I-75 South or to Clinton, but eastbound traffic probably will not get much benefit from that route due to expected backups.

For eastbound drivers, the Bulletin suggested turning left onto Miller Road just before Ray Varner Ford and following that route until reaching Hillvale, where you would then turn left, and proceed to Alley Road back into Norris.

Another option, especially for those living in Andersonville or south on Norris Freeway is to take Mountain Road east across the interstate. To reach Mountain Road from Clinton, take Sinking Springs Road (you can either turn right after crossing the Clinch River Bridge just past the soccer fields and Hammer’s, or continue on to Bland Road) until reaching Irwin Mill Road. Turn right there and proceed to Mountain Road. Turning left on either Bethel Road, Cross Pike, or Norris Freeway will return you to Highway 61.

Bridge repair project = lane closures

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Information from WYSH Radio

A bridge repair project on Highway 61 will reduce traffic to one lane in each direction on the bridge over Interstate 75 beginning Tuesday, July 14, and continuing until the project’s scheduled completion date of October 31.

Mid-State Construction, based out of Livingston, sent a letter as required by the Tennessee Department of Transportation to the Clinton Police, Fire, and Public Works departments, the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Anderson County EMS, the U.S. Postal Service, and both the Clinton and Anderson County school systems. All of them could be affected by the project, so they were informed of the upcoming lane restrictions. [Read more…]

Sen. McNally to discuss recent Supreme Court decisions at AC Tea Party meeting

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Randy McNally

Randy McNally

Tennessee Senator Randy McNally will discuss recent Supreme Court decisions and what they mean for the state during an Anderson County Tea Party meeting on Tuesday, July 14, a press release said.

McNally, an Oak Ridge Republican, is also expected to discuss how the Tennessee General Assembly plans to address the decisions, the press release said. Those are among the items McNally is expected to address as he talks about items concerning Anderson County and Eastern Tennessee.

The July 14 meeting starts at 7 p.m. at Clinton Church of God. [Read more…]

Opposing views on gay marriage: ‘Equality’ and ‘biblical values’

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Melanie Heiberg

Oak Ridge resident Melanie Heiberg organized a celebration at Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church on Friday, June 26, after a 5-4 U.S. Supreme Court decision made gay marriage legal in all 50 states. “This is about equality,” Heiberg said.

 

Note: This story was updated at 11 a.m.

There was a range of reactions in Oak Ridge and across the state this week after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision on Friday, June 26, that the Constitution guarantees a right to same-sex marriage. That decision made gay marriage legal in all 50 states.

Some said the decision made them proud to be Americans, while others worried about whether the country is straying from biblical values.

Melanie Heiberg and others celebrated the decision at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church last Friday. Heiberg said she was raised by two dads—her father and his partner—when she was in high school.

“This is about equality,” Helberg said. “Everyone is as important as the next person.” [Read more…]

TBI not investigating Akagi, POST ends its inquiry, DAs say no violation

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James T. Akagi

James T. Akagi

Note: This story was last updated at 8:53 a.m. July 2.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is not investigating, two district attorneys said there was no violation, and the state agency that certifies police officers has completed its activities, officials said Wednesday.

That would appear to end the inquiry of Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi by the Tennessee Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission, or POST. In April, POST asked three authorities, including one federal official and two state officials, whether Akagi had violated state and federal laws by possessing a firearm after being issued an ex parte order of protection during divorce proceedings in Blount County three years ago.

The response from all three officials has been “no,” according to letters sent to POST.

Oak Ridge Today reported on the response from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, as reported by Akagi’s attorney Tasha Blakney, on Tuesday. The two state officials—Dave Clark, district attorney general in the Seventh Judicial District in Clinton, and Mike Flynn, district attorney general in the Fifth Judicial District in Maryville—sent their response to POST on Wednesday.

“The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and our offices have concluded that based on what you submitted, there never has been an order of protection issued against Chief Akagi and thus no violation of an order of protection could have occurred,” Clark and Flynn said in a letter to Ray Farris, assistant director of the POST Commission. “Any criminal investigation in this case is closed.” [Read more…]

Historic day for same-sex couples: ‘Long, hard battle that love won’

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Ann Spencer and Brandy Horn

Brandy Horn, right, and Ann Spencer discuss their wedding plans after a 5-4 U.S. Supreme Court decision on Friday made same-sex marriages legal in all 50 states.

 

KINGSTON—They didn’t intend to make history, but they did.

Two women, Brandy Horn and Ann Spencer, became the first couple to receive a same-sex marriage license in Roane County. They picked it up at about 3 p.m. Friday, just hours after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that the Constitution guarantees a right to same-sex marriage, making it legal in all 50 states.

“It was a relief,” Spencer said. “I was so happy I was about to cry. I was in disbelief. It was finally happening.”

Horn and Spencer live in Rockwood. They have been together for 16 years and worn rings for 15. They already considered themselves married. But now it will be legal.

“It has been a long, hard battle that love won today for all couples,” Horn said Friday. “It was also a proud moment to walk into our hometown courthouse and be given the same rights and privileges as any other couple would have.” [Read more…]

No same-sex marriage licenses issued in Anderson County yet

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Jeff Cole

Jeff Cole

Note: This story was updated at 4:51 p.m.

The Anderson County Clerk received a few inquiries after the U.S. Supreme Court decision on same-sex marriage on Friday, but the office hasn’t issued any licenses yet, an official said Saturday.

Tennessee officials had prepared county clerks for the landmark 5-4 decision. An email from the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office advised county clerks that Friday’s ruling made it legal for same-sex couples to marry. County clerks in the state’s 95 counties were advised to comply promptly, and implementing the federal court’s decision began immediately.

Anderson County Clerk Jeff Cole said residents could get same-sex marriage licenses starting at about 1 p.m. Friday (June 26), after county clerks received guidance on the issue.

“We had a few phone calls, but we didn’t issue any licenses yesterday,” Cole said Saturday. [Read more…]

Area lawmakers announce $72,190 in Anderson County arts grants

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Tennessee legislators announced Friday that seven arts grants worth $72,190 have been awarded to six organizations in Anderson County.

The recipients include the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Community Playhouse, Oak Ridge Civic Music Association, Oak Ridge Community Art Center, Tennessee Mountain Writers, and Appalachian Arts Craft Center.

The grants include two grants with a combined total of $20,800 for the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge in the categories of Arts Education-Community Learning and Partnership Support.

The other grants include: [Read more…]