Oak Ridge Today

Aldi could open at Woodland Town Center in September

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Aldi Site at Woodland Town Center

The property at Woodland Town Center where an Aldi grocery store could open by September near Panera Bread and Aubrey’s between South Illinois and South Purdue avenues.

The new grocery store that could open on South Illinois Avenue by September could be an Aldi, a developer said Friday.

The 15,800-square-foot store would be on 1.6 acres at Woodland Town Center, where the new Aubrey’s and relocated Panera Bread opened in October. It would be across from those two restaurants, on the other side of a new roadway called Woodland Terrace East.

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Former City Council member Pat Rush dies

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Patricia "Pat" Lewis Paynter Rush

Patricia “Pat” Lewis Paynter Rush

Former Oak Ridge City Council member Patricia “Pat” Lewis Paynter Rush died Wednesday at Methodist Medical Center after a short illness. She was 82.

Rush was elected to City Council in 1987 and served for 14 years. She was also a former board member of the Oak Ridge Civic Music Association and president of the local Altrusa International organization in 1984 and 1985. She had also been a member of many organizations and boards, and was known for her service in many civic endeavors, her obituary said.

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Two City Council members appointed to National League of Cities committees

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Oak Ridge City Council

The Oak Ridge City Council is pictured above. Anne Garcia Garland is pictured at left and David Mosby is at right.

Two Oak Ridge City Council members have been appointed to key National League of Cities committees, a city press release said.

National League of Cities President Marie Lopez Rogers has announced the appointment of Oak Ridge City Council member Anne Garcia Garland to the National League of Cities 2013 Community and Economic Development Steering Committee, and the re-appointment of Council member David Mosby to the Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources Steering Committee, the press release said.

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City considers $18 million in state loans for sewer system repairs

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The Oak Ridge City Council tonight will consider applying for $18 million in two state loans to help repair all sewer system overflows by September 2015.

The two state loans are low-interest loans granted by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, and they can be used for engineering and construction costs. Oak Ridge has received two earlier loans, one in 1998 and 2002.

The sewer system project is expected to cost $23 million total. The project, which will start in east Oak Ridge and move west, will also be funded by a $2 million Tennessee Municipal Bond Fund Loan and about $3 million in future debt or an amendment of the state loans.

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Guest column: Let’s work hard rather than ‘rubber stamping’ water, sewer debt

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We are only a few days into 2013 and most of us have discovered that we will have to make do with less this year. Before January ends, Oak Ridgers will realize that fact again when they receive their water and sewer bills, which will reflect the second rate hike since last May.

But before you have a chance to see your newly increased bill, Oak Ridge City Council may take an action that will cause your rates to rise a third time before 2013 ends. On Jan. 14, City Council will vote whether or not to apply for two state loans totaling $18 million. This debt, in addition to a large portion of the $15 million issued since September 2011, will pay for work affiliated with a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency administrative order that requires the city to stop sewer overflows.

All $33 million borrowed will be paid by Oak Ridgers through multiple increases in your water and sewer rates. The amount of those increases is not determined until after each round of debt is issued. In other words, the city first borrows on your behalf and then determines how much it will charge you without consideration for your ability to pay.

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Guest column: Housing strategy could include paint, marketing, tax breaks, plaques

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E=mc2 (E Equals MC Squared), or Energy Equals Many Citizens Working Together

There’s no doubt that Oak Ridge could use a facelift. I applaud City Manager Mark Watson and our Oak Ridge City Council members for recognizing and attempting to address this need with their “Not In Our City” initiative.

I think, however, that “Not In Our City” has some problems:

  1. It’s a whole lot of stick and not much carrot.
  2. It creates an adversarial relationship between the city and its residents and potentially pits neighbor against neighbor.
  3. It is piecemeal in its approach and lacks an overarching vision.

How about this as an alternative? It even has a catchy slogan. In honor of Einstein, let’s call it E = mc2, or Energy Equals Many Citizens Working Together.

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Council appoints 43 members to 17 boards

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The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday appointed 43 members to 17 city boards and commissions. Some of the appointees are new board members, and others are incumbents.

Some were for designated positions. For example, two hotel representatives were appointed to the Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau, and one City Council member was appointed to the Planning Commission.

Here is a list of the appointments:

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City Council could fill 43 board, commission positions tonight

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The Oak Ridge City Council is scheduled to fill 43 positions on 17 boards and commissions during a special meeting tonight.

The boards include two of the most high-profile bodies, the Industrial Development Board and Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission.

Others include the Beer Permit Board, Board of Building and Housing Code Appeals, Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau, and Recreation and Parks Advisory Board.

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After week of debate, Beehan re-elected mayor, Miller vice mayor

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Tom Beehan

Tom Beehan

Jane Miller

Jane Miller

After a week of spirited public debate, the Oak Ridge City Council re-elected Tom Beehan to a third term as mayor in a 4-3 vote on Monday.

He narrowly beat Oak Ridge City Council member David Mosby, who announced his candidacy this past weekend.

Council also re-elected Jane Miller to a third term as vice mayor—or mayor pro tem—on Monday. She received four votes, and Mosby, who hadn’t sought the position, received three.

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Council to elect mayor, vice mayor; could hire shelter veterinarian

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The Oak Ridge City Council will appoint a mayor and vice mayor on Monday, one month after the Nov. 6 election.

Council will also consider hiring a full-time veterinarian at the Oak Ridge Animal Shelter and approving a pair of $17,000 demolition contracts for two city-owned homes.

The current mayor, Tom Beehan, and vice mayor, Jane Miller, have both asked to be appointed to a third two-year term. In Oak Ridge, the mayor and vice mayor—officially called mayor pro tem—are also council members, and they are appointed after each municipal election.

There has been some public opposition to re-appointing Beehan as mayor. It has been led by new Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn.

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Baughn asks for mayor’s travel records for past five years

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Trina Baughn

Trina Baughn

After asking Oak Ridge Mayor Tom Beehan to consider resigning, new City Council member Trina Baughn requested trip and cost information for all of his city-related travel in the past five years.

She asked Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson for the trip information in a Wednesday afternoon e-mail.

Baughn requested the mayor’s travel records for the dozen boards and committees she knows about, as well as any she doesn’t. She asked Watson to also give the total cost of each trip, including mileage, per diem, hotel expenses, entertainment, and other charges, as well as the funding sources.

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New council member asks mayor to consider resigning, mayor says ‘no’

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Trina Baughn

Trina Baughn

Tom Beehan

Tom Beehan

New Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn has asked Mayor Tom Beehan to drop his bid for a third term as mayor and consider resigning.

In a column posted on her website and submitted to local media, Baughn lobs accusations at the mayor that range from his alleged public encouragement of “backroom meetings” on the high school debt to the alleged benefits he received from the $30 million Kroger Marketplace shopping center.

“An overwhelming percentage of Oak Ridgers have lost all confidence in Tom Beehan’s leadership abilities,” Baughn said. “They elected me to be their voice, and with this letter, I am keeping the only campaign promise that I specifically made: I will not cast my vote for Tom Beehan as mayor.”

The seven-member council is expected to appoint a mayor to serve a two-year term during a Monday, Dec. 10, meeting.

It’s Baughn’s first major move as a new City Council member, and Beehan dismissed it with dismay this week.

“If you had to fact-check that whole column and label it, it would be ‘pants on fire,’” Beehan said. “It’s mostly fiction.”

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