Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge
The Oak Ridge Outdoor Swimming Pool will be open to the public over Memorial Day weekend this year, Saturday, May 27, through Monday, May 29, from noon to 6 p.m. each day.
This will be a “soft opening” over the holiday weekend, with the pool being closed for the three days following Memorial Day, from Tuesday, May 30, to Thursday, June 1, a press release said. The outdoor pool will then open for normal summer hours starting Friday, June 2. [Read more…]
Rowers are pictured above on the Oak Ridge rowing course in the spring of 2017. The area that needed work to recently add the eighth lane is pictured at center-right along Melton Lake Drive. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)
Oak Ridge will celebrate the new eighth rowing lane with a special dedication ceremony on Friday, April 28, the city said in a press release.
The dedication, announced by the City of Oak Ridge, will be at 3 p.m. Friday, April 28. It is expected to include state and local leaders, and it will help kick off one of the biggest rowing weekends of the season, the press release said.
The eighth rowing lane, which is now complete, has been on the city’s wish list for many years. Officials have said that it could help attract even more and larger regattas (rowing races) and help maintain the Oak Ridge course as one of the top-ranked rowing venues in the United States.
Those who attend Friday’s dedication ceremony will gather in Melton Lake Park at the pavilion across from the Oak Ridge Rowing Association and then take a short walk on Melton Lake Greenway to the new overlook for the eighth rowing lane, the press release said. [Read more…]
A previous Oak Ridge Egg Hunt is pictured above. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)
Reminder: The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department will host the 2017 Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 8, at 11 a.m. Hundreds of children are expected to participate in this annual spring event, a press release said. More than 15,000 candy and prize-filled eggs will be hidden in Alvin K. Bissell Park with a first-, second-, and third-place prize egg in each age group.
This event will be held rain or shine, so participants should dress for the weather, the press release said. If severe weather prevents hiding the eggs outdoors, they will be given away in the gym and a drawing will be held for the prizes.
Participants should arrive early and assemble in the Civic Center gymnasium prior to 11 a.m. The children will be divided into separate age groups and will be escorted to their respective hunt areas. The hunt is targeted for children age four through fourth grade. [Read more…]
Registration for the 2017 Summer Camp sponsored by the Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department began on Saturday, April 1. Online registration is available at https://apm.activecommunities.com/oakridgerecandparks/Home.
Space is limited, and the camp will fill up quickly, a press release said. Early registration is recommended.
In addition to online registration, walk-in registration for cash or check payment will be available during regular Oak Ridge Civic Center hours (8 a.m. to 10 p.m.). Walk-in registrants should complete an online profile/account before coming in to register. The staff will complete the registration at the front desk, the press release said.
The first session of camp will begin on June 5 and run for eight consecutive weeks, Monday through Friday. There will be no camp on Tuesday, July 4. Campers must be six to twelve years of age, or have completed kindergarten, the press release said. [Read more…]
Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge
The eighth lane on the Oak Ridge Rowing Course has been completed on schedule and under budget, just in time to welcome teams for spring training and the season’s first regatta, the City of Oak Ridge said Friday.
“Previously, the course utilized seven rowing lanes, taking Oak Ridge out of the running for any event requiring eight lanes for competition,” a city press release said. “Part of the waterway was widened, and a retaining wall installed in order to create the additional lane.”
Spring training started in late February, and Oak Ridge has already welcomed dozens of teams to town, the press release said. The first regatta on this season’s schedule, the Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational, kicks off Saturday, March 11. Approximately 12 teams will compete in the event before it wraps up on Sunday, March 12.
First Place Finish Inc. was selected to carry out the project back in September. The $548,350 contract was awarded to the company during a meeting of Oak Ridge City Council. A partial closure of Melton Lake Greenway and a temporary speed limit reduction along part of Melton Lake Drive were both lifted this week. [Read more…]
A previous Oak Ridge Egg Hunt is pictured above. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)
The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department will host the 2017 Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 8, at 11 a.m. Hundreds of children are expected to participate in this annual spring event, a press release said. More than 15,000 candy and prize-filled eggs will be hidden in Alvin K. Bissell Park with a first-place, second-place, and third-place prize egg in each age group.
This event will be held rain or shine, so participants should dress for the weather, the press release said. If severe weather prevents hiding the eggs outdoors, they will be given away in the Oak Ridge Civic Center gymnasium, and a drawing will be held for the prizes. [Read more…]
Photo by City of Oak Ridge
The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department will be conducting turf maintenance at Big Turtle Dog Park in west Oak Ridge starting in early March. The dog park will remain open to the public during the project.
Big Turtle Dog Park is at 2525 Oak Ridge Turnpike.
During the maintenance project, areas of turf being renovated will be closed off with orange construction fencing, a press release said. The fence will be removed once the new grass has become established. [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Senior Center welcomed guests to its new temporary location at the Civic Center with a free Chili Cook-Off on Monday, Jan. 30, 2017. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)
The Oak Ridge Senior Center welcomed guests to its new temporary location at the Civic Center with a free Chili Cook-Off on Monday, January 30.
Around 70 people sampled chili and soup from area restaurants and assisted living facilities, a press release said. Participants providing food included Brookdale Senior Living, Greenfield Senior Living, Canterfield Assisted Living, Morning Pointe of Clinton, The Soup Kitchen, Pizza Inn, and Razzleberry Lab.
Lunch guests were able to check out the Senior Center’s new facility inside the Oak Ridge Civic Center on Oak Ridge Turnpike and register for door prizes before sampling and voting for their favorite dish, the press release said. The winner was chili from Greenfield Senior Living, represented by Leah Dailey and Mark Roseberry. [Read more…]
The view from the water of the new wall installed for the eighth lane of the Oak Ridge rowing course. Calhoun’s restaurant is in the background at center right. (Photo by Laurel Patrick)
Laurel Patrick of First Place Finish Inc. in Oak Ridge has been posting pictures on Twitter showing the progress on work on the eighth lane of the Oak Ridge rowing course.
Here are pictures by Patrick starting November 16, used here with her permission. We have posted them below in chronological order.
First Place Finish Inc. received a $548,350 contract to add the eighth lane during a special Oak Ridge City Council meeting in September. The work includes a precast concrete block retaining wall and associated dredging and site work.
Oak Ridge officials announced in late October that the speed limit on a section of Melton Lake Drive would be temporarily reduced for at least three months starting Monday, October 31, while the eighth rowing lane is built, and part of the Melton Lake Greenway will be closed as necessary. [Read more…]
Registration is now open for a Lifeguard Certification Course being offered by the Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department over spring break. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)
Registration is now open for a lifeguard certification course being offered by the Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department during spring break.
The course will be held Monday, March 20, through Friday, March 24, at the Oak Ridge Civic Center’s indoor pool facility. The class begins at 10 a.m. each day, and it is scheduled to run until 2:30 p.m.
There are some pre-requisites for the course. Registrants must be at least 15 years old and be able to pass the pre-swim test for admission. The test will be held on the first day of class. [Read more…]
All programs are back on schedule after crews had to replace a piece of equipment that controls the temperature of the water in the Oak Ridge Civic Center’s indoor pool. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)
All programs are back on schedule after crews had to replace a piece of equipment that controls the temperature of the water in the Oak Ridge Civic Center’s indoor pool.
The pool was forced to close on Wednesday, January 4, but it re-opened at noon on Saturday, January 14, once crews were able to make the needed repairs. The new pool heater is more energy-efficient than the previous model, a press release said. The water was back up to its normal temperature of 83 degrees shortly after re-opening.
Here’s a list of some of the Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department programs currently under way at the indoor pool facility: [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge City Council is scheduled to discuss on Tuesday evening a new long-range development plan, or “city blueprint”; the city-owned Tennessee Centennial Golf Course; and moves of the administrative offices of the Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department and the Oak Ridge Senior Center.
The Tuesday evening meeting is an Oak Ridge City Council work session. It starts at 6 p.m. Tuesday, January 17, in the Multipurpose Room at the Central Services Complex on Woodbury Lane. See the agenda here.
Learn more about a January 26 kickoff meeting for the city blueprint here. That’s a public meeting that starts at 4 p.m. at High Places Community Church in Grove Center. [Read more…]
