John Huotari - Author at Oak Ridge Today

No injuries reported when fire destroys vacant home

Posted at 1:27 pm October 20, 2017
By John Huotari 2 Comments

A fire destroyed a vacant home on South Walker Lane on Thursday night, Oct. 19, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

No injuries were reported when a fire destroyed a vacant home on Thursday night, authorities said.

The fire was reported at 112 South Walker Lane at about 11:40 p.m. Thursday.

More than a dozen personnel from the Oak Ridge Fire Department responded, and they were able to get the fire under control within about 10 minutes, the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release. No injuries were reported. [Read more…]

Photos: DOE, UCOR announce K-25 History Center plans

Posted at 10:57 am October 20, 2017
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Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch, seated at right, and UCOR President and Project Manager Ken Rueter, also seated, sign a license that allows UCOR, the federal cleanup contractor in Oak Ridge, to start construction of the K-25 History Center on the second floor of the city-owned Fire Station Number Four at East Tennessee Technology Park on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017. Also pictured standing is Jay Mullis, acting manager of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management. (DOE photo by Lynn Freeny)

Construction of the K-25 History Center could start early next year on the second floor of Oak Ridge Fire Station Number Four at the East Tennessee Technology Park in west Oak Ridge. Officials celebrated with a signing ceremony and tours of the future home of the history center on Thursday. Here are photos from that event. [Read more…]

The legacy of Bill Wilcox lives on at K-25 History Center

Posted at 10:01 am October 20, 2017
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Ray Smith, Y-12 National Security Complex historian and city historian, announces a book published posthumously that was written by Bill Wilcox, a former city historian, former technical director at K-25 and Y-12, and a passionate advocate for historic preservation, including of the former K-25 site. Smith announced the book at a ceremony unveiling plans for a K-25 History Center on the second floor of the city-owned fire station at K-25, now known as East Tennessee Technology Park, on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

He was a passionate advocate for preserving Oak Ridge’s history.

He was known for his bow ties and captivating storytelling. He once led the effort to save the former K-25 Building in west Oak Ridge, or at least part of it.

Now the legacy of Bill Wilcox will live on at the K-25 History Center.

Construction on the history center could start early next year on the second floor of Oak Ridge Fire Station Number Four. That fire station, previously transferred to the city, is on the south side of the former K-25 Building at East Tennessee Technology Park in west Oak Ridge.

Officials preparing for the construction of the history center gave tours of its future home at the fire station on Thursday. The tours followed a lunchtime celebration that featured tributes to Wilcox and included speeches and presentations by U.S. Department of Energy and Oak Ridge officials, and federal contractors and historic preservation advocates. Wilcox was hailed as the “father of K-25 historic preservation.”

“He would have been really proud,” said Ray Smith, Wilcox’s friend and Y-12 National Security Complex historian and city historian. “His legacy lives on.” [Read more…]

You can see the future home of the K-25 History Center on Thursday

Posted at 11:10 pm October 18, 2017
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A rendering of the K-25 History Center at the Oak Ridge Fire Station Number 4 at East Tennessee Technology Park in west Oak Ridge. (Image courtesy U.S. Department of Energy)

A celebratory event on Thursday will formally launch a project to commemorate the history of the former Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant, a uranium-enrichment site that was once known as K-25 and built to help make the world’s first atomic weapons during World War II.

Thursday’s celebration will be followed by a public tour from 2 to 4 p.m.

Co-sponsored by the City of Oak Ridge, the event is part of the city’s 75th Anniversary celebration. It will feature a walk-through of the future home of the K-25 History Center, which will be located in the city’s Fire Station Number 4 at the East Tennessee Technology Park. The U.S. Department of Energy and URS|CH2M Oak Ridge LLC, or UCOR, DOE’s lead cleanup contractor, will unveil plans and the layout for the History Center before construction starts, a press release said.

Large graphics placed throughout the building will provide the visitor a preview of the finished center, the press release said. [Read more…]

Woman pleads guilty in fatal car-pedestrian crash on Clinton Highway

Posted at 12:56 pm October 18, 2017
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Destany Lynn Cotner

A Clinton woman has pleaded guilty in a fatal car-pedestrian hit-and-run crash on Clinton Highway in March.

Destany Lynn Cotner, 25, pleaded guilty in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Friday to two charges of leaving the scene of an accident involving death and driving under the influence (first offense).

As part of the plea agreement, two other charges were dismissed. Those charges were driving with a suspended or revoked license (first offense) and possession of contraband in a penal facility.

It was a plea by information, meaning Cotner had not yet been indicted by the Anderson County Grand Jury.

Cotner initially told the Tennessee Highway Patrol that she was the driver the night of the crash, but she later changed her story to say her co-defendant Isaac Irwin, 26, also of Clinton, was the driver, according to a narrative filed in the case and attached to warrants.

Cotner received a two-year prison sentence on the conviction of leaving the scene of an accident involving death. As a standard offender, her release eligibility is 30 percent. Her sentence on this felony conviction was suspended, and she will be placed on supervised probation. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge girls’ soccer photos

Posted at 5:17 pm October 17, 2017
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Seniors on the Oak Ridge girls’ soccer team are pictured above on Senior Night on Thursday, Sept. 28, 2017, with family members. From left they are Alex Rouse (11), Zoe Van Hook (17), and Katie Roach (6). (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Here are photos from a few recent girls’ soccer games by John Huotari of Oak Ridge Today and Linda Ripley and Luther Simmons. See summary of recent games here. [Read more…]

Lady Wildcats finish as district runner-up, play Farragut in Region 2 semifinal Tuesday

Posted at 4:43 pm October 17, 2017
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Oak Ridge freshman Katelyn Mattus (13) scored four goals in the 5-0 shutout win over Halls in a District 3-AAA semifinal win at the Pro2Serve Oak Ridge Soccer Complex on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2017. (Photo by Linda Ripley)

Oak Ridge freshman Katelyn Mattus (13) scored four goals during the 5-0 shutout win over Halls in a District 3-AAA semifinal game at the Pro2Serve Oak Ridge Soccer Complex on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2017. (Photo by Linda Ripley)

The Oak Ridge girls’ soccer team finished second in District 3-AAA, and the Lady Wildcats will play Farragut in a Region 2-AAA semifinal game today (Tuesday, October 17).

Today’s game is an elimination game, meaning the season is over for the loser. The winner will be guaranteed at least two more games, the Region 2-AAA championship and a Class AAA sectional game. The sectional games will determine which eight teams will play in the Class AAA state tournament.

The District 3-AAA tournament championship game was Thursday at Powell Middle School. Powell, the top seed in the district tournament, won 6-0. Oak Ridge was the number two seed.

It was the third year in a row that Oak Ridge (10-8-1, 3-1 District 3-AAA) and Powell (13-3-1, 4-0) played for the District 3-AAA championship—and the fourth time in five years. The Lady Wildcats won last year 2-0, and the Lady Panthers defeated Oak Ridge 1-0 in 2015.
[Read more…]

Gaddis gets 300th coaching win

Posted at 11:51 pm October 13, 2017
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Oak Ridge Coach Joe Gaddis talks to the Wildcats football team after a 42-6 win over Clinton on Blankenship Field on Friday, Oct. 13, 2017. It was Gaddis’ 300th coaching win. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

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

Oak Ridge Coach Joe Gaddis got his 300th win as a football coach during a 42-6 win over Clinton on Friday.

Gaddis is only the seventh football coach in Tennessee to get 300 career wins, and he is one of only two active coaches with 300 wins, Oak Ridge school officials said. Gary Rankin of Alcoa is the other. Rankin was the first in Tennessee to win 400 games, the Knoxville News Sentinel reported in September.

Fans and players, parents and coaches, and students and school officials celebrated Gaddis’ milestone 300th win with a brief ceremony on Blankenship Field on Friday that included fireworks and photos, and signs and a football painted with the number 300 that was presented to Gaddis.

More than half of Gaddis’ wins have been at Oak Ridge, where he is 162-36. Gaddis first coached at Oak Ridge for 11 seasons, from 1988 to 1998, and he is in his fifth season back, after returning in 2013.

“I’m coaching at the best place there is to coach,” Gaddis said. “This is just a special place.” [Read more…]

Oak Ridge mom emerges as new champion on ‘Jeopardy!’

Posted at 5:41 pm October 13, 2017
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Scarlett Sims, right, of Oak Ridge is pictured above with Alex Trebek, host of the television quiz show “Jeopardy!” (Photo courtesy Jeopardy Productions Inc.)

Scarlett Sims, a stay-at-home mom from Oak Ridge, emerged as the new champion on “Jeopardy!” on Thursday, a press release said.

The 12-game winning streak of New York City bartender Austin Rogers came to an end during that episode of the television quiz show. Rogers’ run netted him $411,000 in prize money and attracted legions of fans who made the quirky contestant a viral sensation, the press release said.

Rogers finished his run in fifth place on the all-time regular-season (non-tournament) winnings list, the press release said. He will return for the “Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions,” airing November 6-17.

“Jeopardy!” airs in Knoxville on WBIR-TV in Knoxville. [Read more…]

Playoffs today: Volleyball regional tournament, girls soccer district tournament

Posted at 12:25 pm October 10, 2017
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The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats volleyball team will play in the Region 2-AAA tournament at Oak Ridge High School on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2017. (Photo courtesy Oak Ridge volleyball)

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats volleyball team will play in the Region 2-AAA tournament at home today, and the girls’ soccer team will play in the District 3-AAA tournament, also at home.

The volleyball team (24-9) won the District 4-AAA championship on Tuesday, October 3. With a 6-0 district record, the girls were undefeated in District 4-AAA and the top seed in the district tournament.

Oak Ridge, the District 4 champion, will play Heritage, the District 3 runner-up, in a regional semifinal in Wildcat Arena at 5:30 p.m. today (Tuesday, October 10).

The two teams met twice during the regular season. The Lady Mountaineers won the first one 3-0 at Heritage on September 25. The Lady Wildcats won the second game 2-1 in the Courtside at Concord Tournament on September 30. [Read more…]

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Posted at 4:49 pm October 6, 2017
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See the future home of the K-25 History Center

Posted at 11:31 am October 6, 2017
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Image courtesy DOE Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management

The public is invited to walk through the future home of the K-25 History Center on Thursday, October 19.

The K-25 History Center will be built on the second floor of Oak Ridge’s Fire Station Number 4. The fire station is at East Tennessee Technology Park, the former K-25 site in west Oak Ridge.

The public walk-through is scheduled from 2-4 p.m. October 19.

The K-25 History Center is expected to help preserve the history of the World War II-era Manhattan Project. Oak Ridge was built during that top-secret project to help build the world’s first atomic weapons.

K-25 was one of three major federal sites built in the city that is now Oak Ridge as part of the Manhattan Project. [Read more…]

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