Oak Ridge Today

Softball: Lady Wildcats to honor Coach Johnson during last regular-season game tonight

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The 2017 Oak Ridge High School softball team is pictured above. (Submitted photo)

The 2017 Oak Ridge High School softball team is pictured above. (Submitted photo)

 

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats will honor retired Coach Marianne Johnson during the last regular-season game today (Thursday, April 27).

Coach Johnson retired in July 2016 after serving the student-athletes of Oak Ridge High School from 1985-2016, an event flyer said.

“Enjoy a night of memories with Coach Johnson and the ‘Pink Out’ night softball game with the Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats versus Concord Christian Lions,” the flyer said. “Come join us in celebrating Coach Marianne Johnson Appreciation Night.” [Read more…]

Oak Ridge received more than 6.3 inches of rain during storms, city says

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Fallen Tree House April 2017 Storms 1

Oak Ridge received more than 6.3 inches of rain during the storms this past weekend, officials said Monday, April 24, 2017. That amount of rain made the ground extremely soggy and caused large trees to start falling all across the area, the city said. Several homes and cars were damaged, and there were reports of power outages. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

 

Oak Ridge received more than 6.3 inches of rain during the storms this past weekend, officials said.

That amount of rain made the ground extremely soggy and caused large trees to start falling all across the area, the city said. Several homes and cars were damaged, and there were reports of power outages.

Power was nearly 100 percent restored, but the cleanup was still under way Monday afternoon. [Read more…]

Anderson, Roane schools closed Monday; Briceville Highway closed due to ‘slide issues’

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State Route 116 in Anderson County, also known as Briceville Highway, is closed at Hawkins Road due to “slide issues,” the Tennessee Department of Transportation said Sunday. Also Sunday, Anderson County Schools and Roane County Schools both announced they will be closed Monday.

TDOT said traffic on Briceville Highway is being diverted to county roads.

“Use caution in this area,” TDOT said.

Hawkins Road is southwest of Rocky Top (the former Lake City) and northeast of Briceville.

Briceville Highway had earlier been reported to be closed in Briceville due to sinking pavement on Sunday afternoon. [Read more…]

Trees fall, roads flood, driver escapes floodwaters as rains continue

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The driver was reported to have made it out of floodwaters before emergency responders arrived on Saturday afternoon, April 22, 2017, but her black Nissan Altima remained partially submerged on Airport Road near Oliver Springs on Sunday. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 8 p.m.

Roads flooded and trees fell—sometimes on homes, power lines, and roads—as rain continued to fall in East Tennessee on Sunday. One driver was reported to have escaped from her car in floodwaters on Airport Road near Oliver Springs on Saturday afternoon, but the black Nissan Altima remained partially submerged in the water on Sunday.

There appeared to have been at least 10 reports of fallen trees in Oak Ridge during the severe thunderstorms that started Saturday afternoon and continued with rain showers on Sunday. Most of those trees were reported to have fallen on homes, power lines, across roadways, or on personal property such as an automobile. There were five reports of fallen trees between about 3 and 4:30 p.m. Sunday, including a tree that fell across both lanes of Melton Lake Drive near Calhoun’s restaurant, causing a temporary closure of that two-lane road.

There were more reports of trees that had fallen but not damaged anything.

Large trees are falling due to excess rain, the City of Oak Ridge said Sunday. Electric crews have been out all night, and backup is on the way, the city said, but it may be tomorrow (Monday, April 24) before all power is back.

At various times on Sunday, there were reports of flooding or flood watches across Oak Ridge, including on Vermont Avenue, near Heritage Center (the former K-25 site), on California Avenue, and at Jefferson Avenue and North Jefferson Circle.

There were also reports of trees down and road closures in Clinton. Briceville Highway was reported to be closed in Briceveille due to sinking pavement on Sunday afternoon. Earlier Sunday, State Route 71 in Anderson County was closed for several hours at Norris Dam State Park because trees were blocking the road, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation.

Some school districts have announced they will be closed Monday. Roane County Schools said it will be closed due to “concerning road conditions throughout the county.” Anderson County Schools said it will be closed because of dangerous conditions with flooded roads and trees being down.

The National Weather Service in Morristown said a record for daily rainfall was set at Knoxville Mcghee Tyson Airport on Sunday. The NWS said 1.89 inches had fallen as of 5 p.m. Sunday, breaking the old record of 1.63 inches in 1977.

[Read more…]

Emergency workers respond to car crash, fallen trees, flooding

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Floodwaters rose close to road level at the intersection of Oak Ridge Turnpike and Illinois Avenue after heavy rains fell in Oak Ridge on Saturday afternoon and evening, April 22, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge emergency workers responded to a car crash that injured two people, two fallen trees, and a possible apartment complex evacuation due to flooding during the severe thunderstorms on Saturday.

Heavy rain from the storms led to widespread flooding in Oak Ridge starting late Saturday afternoon. The water appeared to have receded in places a few hours later, or by early Saturday night.

Emergency workers made preparations Saturday evening to possibly evacuate apartments on Royce Circle, where water covered part of the roadway and rose near the first floor of an apartment complex at the northeast end of the circle. The apartments, which are next to Robertsville Road and just east of Willow Brook Elementary School, are in a low-lying area between two creeks that flow down along Jefferson Avenue and intersect with East Fork Poplar Creek, which was swollen with floodwaters on Saturday.

Authorities had made preparations to see how many people lived on the first floor of the Royce Circle apartment complex in case the residents had to be evacuated, Oak Ridge Fire Department Chief Darryl Kerley said. Of the 10 people there, all but one had another place to go, he said. Authorities were watching the water, Kerley said.

“We think it’s receding,” he said Saturday night. [Read more…]

General Assembly approves bill that would establish CROET as ETTP manager

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The East Tennessee Technology Park, now known as Heritage Center in west Oak Ridge, is pictured above in this aerial photo from 2015. The large building that extends from left to right at left-center is the former K-27 Building, where demolition work was completed in August 2016. (Photo courtesy CROET)

The East Tennessee Technology Park, now known as Heritage Center in west Oak Ridge, is pictured above in this aerial photo from 2015. The large building that extends from left to right at left-center is the former K-27 Building, where demolition work was completed in August 2016. (Photo courtesy CROET)

 

The Tennessee General Assembly has approved legislation that would establish the Community Reuse Organization of East Tennessee, or CROET, as the manager of the 1,300-acre East Tennessee Technology Park in west Oak Ridge, a press release said.

The legislation was sponsored by Tennessee Senator Ken Yager and Representative Kent Calfee, both Kingston Republicans. It has been sent to Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam for his signature.

East Tennessee Technology Park, or ETTP, is also known as Heritage Center and the former K-25 site. It once housed the K-25 Gaseous Diffusion Plant, which was built during World War II as part of the Manhattan Project. That was a top-secret federal program to build the world’s first atomic weapons, before Germany could.

The ETTP site, once used to enrich uranium, is slowly being cleaned up. K-25 operations ended in 1985, and the site was permanently shut down in 1987. Now, it is being slowly converted into a large industrial park. Proponents hope it will become one of East Tennessee’s prime locations for new industry, the press release said.

CROET President Lawrence Young said the state legislation “is the latest step in efforts by the Department of Energy and CROET to reindustrialize the former K-25 site and help diversify the region’s economy.” [Read more…]

Soccer: So far, Oak Ridge undefeated in district

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Oak Ridge senior forward Austin Vinyard (9), battling Daniel Van Buren (25) of Powell here, scored two goals against the Panthers in a 6-0 win at the Oak Ridge Soccer Complex on Tuesday, April 11, 2017. Pictured at right is freshman forward Warren Stetzl (23). (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Oak Ridge senior forward Austin Vinyard (9), battling Daniel Van Buren (25) of Powell here, scored two goals against the Panthers in a 6-0 win at the Oak Ridge Soccer Complex on Tuesday, April 11, 2017. Pictured at right is freshman forward Warren Stetzel (23). (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

With two district games remaining, the Oak Ridge Wildcats are undefeated in District 3-AAA. The Wildcats improved to 8-3-2 overall at Karns on Thursday and to 6-0 in District 3-AAA.

Oak Ridge defeated Karns 4-1 on Thursday and, in their previous district game, beat Powell at home 6-0 on Tuesday, April 11.

The two remaining district games are at Central on Monday, April 24, and at Campbell County at 6 p.m. Monday, May 1.

In the meantime, Oak Ridge plays Hardin Valley Academy at home in a rescheduled non-district game that starts at 7 p.m. today (Friday, April 21). [Read more…]

Soccer photos: Oak Ridge-Powell

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Oak Ridge freshman Jonathan Rodriguez (11) scored two goals in the second half of a 6-0 win over Powell at the Oak Ridge Soccer Complex on Tuesday, April 11, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Oak Ridge freshman forward Jonathan Rodriguez (11) scored two goals in the second half of a 6-0 win over Powell at the Oak Ridge Soccer Complex on Tuesday, April 11, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

With two district games remaining, the Oak Ridge Wildcats are undefeated in District 3-AAA. The Wildcats improved to 8-3-2 overall at Karns on Thursday and to 6-0 in District 3-AAA.

The Wildcats boys’ soccer team has two district games remaining. The first is at Central on Monday, April 24, and the second is at Campbell County at 6 p.m. May 1.

Oak Ridge plays Hardin Valley Academy at home in a rescheduled non-district game that starts at 7 p.m. today (Friday, April 21).

Here are photos from an April 11 game against Powell at home at the Oak Ridge Soccer Complex. [Read more…]

Top 5 during City Blueprint meeting: Senior Center, green space, disc golf, animal shelter, public transportation

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Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge

Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge

 

The Oak Ridge city staff has tallied the top five comments received during the City Blueprint initiative, which kicked off with a public meeting in Grove Center in January. Here are the top comments:

  1. Seniors need their own, updated senior center.
  2. More green space.
  3. Improve disc golf.
  4. New animal shelter.
  5. Public transportation to and from Knoxville.

There is an effort under way to build a new senior center.

The city estimated that about 500 people attended the January 26 kickoff meeting for the City Blueprint at High Places Community Church in Grove Center. There were 670 suggestion cards turned in, with 775 comments on the cards and another 100 comments shared on Facebook. [Read more…]

Housing report recommends more new homes, rental units

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The Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce and its Housing Task Force, which was chaired by Melinda Hillman, right, presented a housing report to the Oak Ridge City Council during a non-voting work session on Tuesday, April 18, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce and its Housing Task Force, which was chaired by Melinda Hillman, right, present a housing report to the Oak Ridge City Council during a non-voting work session on Tuesday, April 18, 2017. At left is Parker Hardy, Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce president. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The competition to provide housing for workers is fierce, and Oak Ridge needs more new homes in the $180,000-$280,000 price range and more rental units in the $900-$1,200 price range, according to a housing report presented to Oak Ridge City Council by the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday.

Also proposed in the housing report: the development of attractive, convenient mixed use gathering spaces; improving the appearance of existing neighborhoods through aggressive codes enforcement; beautification projects in public spaces to make Oak Ridge more appealing; developing and implementing a consistent “brand” for Oak Ridge that encompasses livability, economic development, and tourism; incentivizing home improvements in the Manhattan District Overlay; and developing public/private partnerships to work on housing.

The report, which was presented to City Council in a non-voting work session on Tuesday, studied where Oak Ridge employees live, based upon the zip codes of 7,372 employees from eight major Oak Ridge employers. It found that 22 percent of Oak Ridge workers live in Oak Ridge. That’s compared to 44 percent who live in Knox County, primarily in Farragut, Hardin Valley, Northshore, Karns, and Cedar Bluff.

Ten percent of the Oak Ridge workers live in Roane County, 6 percent live in Clinton, and less than five percent each live in Loudon, Blount, Morgan, and other counties, the report said.

The housing report only reviewed Oak Ridge as it compares to the five most popular communities where people who work in Oak Ridge choose to live (Farragut, Hardin Valley, Northshore, Karns, and Cedar Bluff).

“Competition for residents is fierce, and Oak Ridge competes with some of the most desirable communities in the region,” the report said. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge will host NCAA Women’s Rowing Championships in 2020

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The Oak Ridge rowing course is pictured above during the 2016 SIRA Championship Regatta in Oak Ridge on Sunday, April 17, 2016. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The 2020 NCAA Women’s Rowing Championships will be in Oak Ridge.

The selection was announced by the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) on Tuesday, April 18. The NCAA said it has selected more than 600 host sites for preliminary rounds and finals of predetermined championships in Divisions I, II, and III to be held from 2017-18 through 2021-22. The selections for Division I are posted online at the NCAA website.

The hosts for the 2020 NCAA Women’s Rowing Championships at the Oak Ridge rowing course are the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge Rowing Association.

The championships will be in Indianapolis in 2019 and in Sarasota, Florida, in 2021 and 2022.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Soccer: Wildcats play AC, Clinton, Gibbs possibly for last time—at least as district rivals

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Christian Avila (14) of Oak Ridge breaks away from a Gibbs defender during a 5-0 win for the Wildcats at the Oak Ridge Soccer Complex on Tuesday, April 4, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Christian Avila (14) of Oak Ridge breaks away from a Gibbs defender during a 5-0 win for the Wildcats at the Oak Ridge Soccer Complex on Tuesday, April 4, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Oak Ridge Wildcats boys’ soccer team has played the Anderson County Mavericks, Clinton Dragons, and Gibbs Eagles for what could be the last time—at least as district rivals during the regular season.

It is possible, though, that the teams could meet as non-district foes in regular season games, such as in regular-season soccer tournaments.

The Anderson County, Clinton, Gibbs, and Central boys’ soccer teams will be in the smaller Class AA classification for the 2017-2021 seasons.

Teams that will still be in District 3 (Region 2) in Class AAA are Oak Ridge and Campbell County, Halls, Karns, and Powell.

The Wildcats beat Anderson County 7-3 on Tuesday, March 28. They defeated Clinton 5-0 on Friday, March 31. [Read more…]