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.
The speed limit has been reduced from 45 miles per hour to 25 mph along Melton Lake Drive between Amanda Drive and Palisades Parkway. The change was to remain in place for a minimum of three months starting October 31. Signs were to be installed to warn drivers of the reduced speed limit.
The project also required about 500 feet of greenway to be removed and replaced at the end of construction. As a result, a section of Melton Lake Greenway between Amanda Drive and Palisades Parkway was to be temporarily closed, city officials said in October.
The construction of the eighth rowing lane is funded by a combination of state appropriations, City Capital Improvement funds, and a state tourism grant awarded to the Anderson County Tourism Council specifically for the eighth lane project. The Oak Ridge Rowing Association (ORRA), Explore Oak Ridge (the Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau), and Visit Knoxville also contributed.
“These entities have come together to fund a project that will allow the world-class Oak Ridge Rowing Course to attract more and larger events,” the city said in a press release in the fall. “The new lane also ensures that the Oak Ridge course will remain competitive as one of the top-ranked rowing venues in the United States.”
Rowing has an annual economic impact of $2 million in Oak Ridge and the surrounding communities, the press release said.
For more information, call the Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department at (865) 425-3450.
More than 250 truckloads of dirt had been removed to make way for the eighth lane on the Oak Ridge rowing course as of Nov. 16, 2016. (Photo by Laurel Patrick)
Construction work on the eighth lane of the Oak Ridge rowing course is pictured above on Nov. 29, 2016. (Photo by Laurel Patrick)
Construction work on the eighth lane of the Oak Ridge rowing course is pictured above on Dec. 28, 2016. (Photo by Laurel Patrick)
Construction work on the eighth lane of the Oak Ridge rowing course is pictured above on Dec. 28, 2016. (Photo by Laurel Patrick)
The view from the water of the new wall installed for the eighth lane of the Oak Ridge rowing course, as pictured on Jan. 18, 2017. (Photo by Laurel Patrick)
The new trail could be poured soon on the Melton Lake Greenway as part of the construction of the eighth lane of the Oak Ridge rowing course. The work is pictured above on Jan. 24, 2017. (Photo by Laurel Patrick)
More information will be added as it becomes available.
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