The City of Oak Ridge Public Works Department will be making asphalt repairs to South Illinois Avenue this week, weather permitting, a press release said.
The work will be in the northbound lanes across from Badger Avenue near Sonic and stopping at Oak Ridge Turnpike. Crews are set to begin at 8 a.m. and end at 3 p.m.
For more information, contact Oak Ridge Public Works Department at (865) 425-1875 or visit OakRidgeTN.gov.
Submitted
Every bug has a purpose. Did you know that very few caterpillars reach their mature size because birds gobble them down? It is estimated that one pair of chickadees must find 6,000 caterpillars to feed one brood of fledglings. Carpenter bees pollinate tomatoes. Flies pollinate pawpaws. Gnats pollinate Jack-in-the pulpits, while hummingbirds eat gnats. Ants plant trillium seeds, and flickers eat ants. Cardinals eat adult beetles, while brown thrashers eat their grubs. It is a complicated and intricate circle of life. The list goes on and on.
Join local naturalist Stephen Lyn Bales to learn about why “Bugs are Not Bad” at the University of Tennessee Arboretum Society’s First Thursday Nature Supper Club via Zoom on Thursday, August 4, at 7 p.m. Eastern time.
The program is free, but registration is required to receive your link. Register at www.utarboretumsociety.org. This program will be recorded, and closed captioning is available.
[Read more…]
An airport update, comments about mercury storage, and an overview of a proposed 69-kilovolt electrical line for the TRISO-X project at Horizon Center are on the agenda for an Oak Ridge City Council work session on Tuesday.
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An airport update, comments about mercury storage, and an overview of a proposed 69-kilovolt electrical line for the TRISO-X project at Horizon Center are on the agenda for an Oak Ridge City Council work session on Tuesday.
The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.
Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here.
Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:
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If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:
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Oak Ridge, TN 37831
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The U.S. Department of Energy and cleanup contractor UCOR are preparing to demolish research reactor facilities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Crews are nearing the final stages of deactivation inside two former research reactor facilities: the Bulk Shielding Reactor, known as Building 3010, and the Low Intensity Test Reactor, known as Building 3005, according to a newsletter published by DOE’s Office of Environmental Management. They are also beginning efforts at the Oak Ridge Research Reactor, known as Building 3042.
The work is overseen by DOE’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, or OREM.
These structures are located in the heart of ORNL, and their demolition will eliminate risks, clear land for research missions, and enhance access to a component of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, the department said.
[Read more…]
Thomas Zacharia plans to retire as director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory at the end of 2022 after 35 years at the nation’s largest science and energy laboratory, a press release said.
Zacharia has served as laboratory director since July 2017, overseeing the lab’s extensive $2.5 billion research portfolio and staff of nearly 6, the press release said.
“An incredible leader, extraordinary collaborator, and powerhouse innovator, Thomas is leaving a profound impact on ORNL and the world,” said Randy Boyd, University of Tennessee system president and chairman of the UT-Battelle board of governors. UT-Battelle operates ORNL for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science.
In his tenure as lab director, Zacharia spearheaded significant growth in ORNL’s staff and portfolio, established new research initiatives, and guided the lab through the COVID-19 pandemic, the press release said.
Among milestones during Zacharia’s tenure as director, the press release said, the laboratory has:
[Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 21, 2022, will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company. (Image by City of Oak Ridge)
The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 21, 2022, will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company.
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The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 21, 2022, will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company. (Image by City of Oak Ridge)
The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 21, 2022, will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company.
The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today. Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here. Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here: Basic
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If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to: Oak Ridge Today P.O. Box 6064 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here. We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription. Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!
The Oak Ridge Public Works Department will conduct road repairs to the gravel section of Tuskegee Road from Tuesday, July 19 to Friday, July 22, weather permitting, a press release said.
The work will require sections of the road to be closed for the day beginning at 8 a.m. and ending at 3 p.m.
[Read more…]
Three people are safe after a house fire on West Outer Drive on Friday morning.
Fire crews arrived on scene of the home, located at 687 West Outer Drive, within three minutes of the call, a press release said. They arrived at 10:06 a.m. to find the home on fire with heavy smoke coming from the roof.
One man suffered injuries that weren’t life-threatening after escaping through a window, the press release said. He was treated on scene and did not need to be taken to the hospital.
[Read more…]
The annual July 4 concert and fireworks show is in Oak Ridge this evening.
The Independence Day fireworks display will be held in Alvin K. Bissell Park on Monday, July 4, and it is scheduled to begin at dark, around 9:45 p.m. In order to set up for the event, the walking trails in Bissell Park will be closed beginning at 8:30 a.m. the morning of the event, a press release said.
The Oak Ridge Community Band will perform before the fireworks. The concert is free, but donations are accepted by the band to help cover the cost of equipment and other expenses, the press release said. The music is expected to begin at 7:30 p.m.
[Read more…]
Christy Viola Comer, left, who pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Tuesday, June 7, 2022, listens to testimony during a preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton on Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2019. At right is defense attorney Leslie Hunt. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
An Anderson County woman pleaded guilty Tuesday to first-degree murder and aggravated robbery in the death of J.C. Copeland, an 83-year-old Rocky Top man, and she was sentenced to life in prison plus an extra 20 years.
Christy Viola Comer, 41, entered the guilty plea in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Tuesday afternoon.
Comer had planned to rob Copeland, who was described as a “sweet old man,” because “it would be easy,” according to testimony during a preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton in January 2019.
Comer traded some of the property stolen from Copeland’s home, a digital video disc player, for a $10 bag of methamphetamine, according to court testimony by Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Agent John Hannon.
Copeland’s body was found partially wrapped in a pink blanket underneath a porch at a mobile home on Jacksboro Avenue in Rocky Top on August 31, 2018, Hannon said. Copeland is believed to have been strangled until he died, according to court records. There was white rope around his neck and other parts of his body, including his wrists and ankles, Hannon testified during the preliminary hearing.
“In the overnight hours of August 30, 2018, Christy Comer made the decision to rob him (Copeland) to get money for methamphetamine,” Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark said in a press release Tuesday.
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A city official will give an update on the proposed development of downtown Oak Ridge during a lunchtime meeting Tuesday.
The presentation will be led by Wayne Blasius, director of the Oak Ridge Planning and Development Department. The online Lunch with the League meeting has been organized by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge, and it is scheduled from 12 to 1 p.m. Tuesday, March 15.
“Because of its unique development as a community to support the Manhattan Project (during World War II), the City of Oak Ridge lacked a central downtown,” a press release said. “In the fall of 2019, the city prepared a vision for a new city center, which included zoning changes, property acquisition, and soliciting development. With zoning changes and property acquisition in place, on August 6, 2021, the Oak Ridge Land Bank held its ‘Toast the Town’ event to hear the formal announcement of the call for development. Two excellent proposals were received in response to the (request for proposals) and will be considered for approval by the Land Bank Board at their business meeting, March 15, 5:30 pm (location to be announced). Interested community members are encouraged to attend.”
[Read more…]
The Tennessee Valley Authority will have a virtual open house for the Clinch River Nuclear Site in west Oak Ridge this evening (Thursday, March 10).
The open house follows the release of a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for the 935-acre site in the Roane County portion of Oak Ridge, south of Heritage Center (the former K-25 site) near the Clinch River.
The draft EIS assesses the potential environmental effects associated with possibly having nuclear reactors at the site, a press release said.
“The proposed facility aligns with TVA’s 2050 target of achieving net-zero carbon emissions and drive to a carbon-free future,” the press release said.
[Read more…]