Strong to severe thunderstorms could move through East Tennessee this evening, according to the National Weather Service.
It’s not clear yet if the storms will affect tonight’s Oak Ridge High School graduation ceremony, which could be delayed until Friday evening if the weather is bad.
The graduation ceremony for the Oak Ridge High School Class of 2012 is at 7 p.m. today at Blankenship Field.
If the weather is bad, the ceremony will be postponed until 7 p.m. Friday at Blankenship Field. If the weather is still bad then, the graduation ceremony will be moved indoors to the ORHS Wildcat Arena.
A black bear eats at a bird feeder on Oglethorpe Place in Oak Ridge this week. (Submitted photos by Todd and Cheryl Thomas)
Residents in north Oak Ridge reported seeing a bear in yards on Orchard Circle and Oglethorpe Place and on Key Springs Road this week, eating at bird feeders and climbing up on backyard grills.
It’s not clear if the bear spotted in north Oak Ridge this week is the same bear that was spotted in Woodland on May 22. There were also reports of a mother and cub on the west end of Y-12 National Security Complex last week.
Kory Jones, left, and his father, Vern Jones, make fruit-flavored drinks for customers at Atomic Shaved Ice on Wednesday.
A store that sells shaved ice on North Illinois Avenue got a business boost Wednesday when an Oak Ridge “cash mob” stopped by to buy cold, fruit-flavored drinks.
The cash mob shopped at Atomic Shaved Ice as part of a weekly mission to promote Oak Ridge companies.
“It puts the focus on local businesses to show that they’re here and to remind people to shop the ‘moms and pops,'” organizer Kay Williamson said.
Oak Ridge Board of Education Chair Keys Fillauer, right, presents the school system's budget to City Council members Tuesday. From left are Council members Jane Miller, Charlie Hensley, and David Mosby.
The Oak Ridge City Council unanimously approved a no-tax-increase budget Tuesday that withholds about $766,000 from the school system.
The school’s money will be held in reserve until education officials transfer revenues raised under an Anderson County sales tax increase approved in 2006. That money will be used to help pay down the debt on the $66 million renovation of the Oak Ridge High School.
A new Bull Run voting precinct has been created in Anderson County, and the boundaries of other precincts have been moved.
Part of the Woodland District in Oak Ridge is now split between District 6 and District 8. That district now extends outside Oak Ridge into the Elza Gate and Lake Hills areas and includes voters on Highway 62.
Oliver Springs is now completely located within District 5, and Anderson County no longer is part of the 38th State House District, according to information from the Anderson County Election Commission.
The changes are part of the redistricting of state and county precincts following the 2010 census.
Construction work could be complete by the end of June on a five-story Holiday Inn Express on Tulsa Road.
Construction work at a five-story Holiday Inn Express on Tulsa Road could be complete by the end of June.
About 18 to 20 workers are building the hotel’s parking lot, finishing the interior, painting, and installing an elevator and furniture, among other tasks, said Russell Olmstead of building contractor DNS Builders of Sevierville.
Oak Ridge officials discuss the school system's budget in this file photo. From left are Oak Ridge Mayor Tom Beehan, School Board Chair Keys Fillauer, City Manager Mark Watson, and Schools Superintendent Tom Bailey.
Oak Ridge school officials want to keep a few hundred thousand dollars raised each year under an Anderson County sales tax increase approved in 2006.
But city officials want to continue using the money to pay down the debt on the $66 million renovation of the Oak Ridge High School.
The financial tug-of-war is expected to continue tonight as City Council members decide whether to ask education officials to wait a year to allow further negotiations between the two sides.
City officials are considering an additional step: using money that would ordinarily be distributed to the schools to instead help pay down the high school debt. About $250,000 could be at stake.
The Oak Ridge City Council will consider a budget tonight that does not include a tax rate increase.
The Oak Ridge City Council will consider a budget tonight that does not include a property tax rate increase but does include a 1.5 percent pay raise for city employees.
Council approved the budget on first reading May 14, and tonight’s vote will be the second and final reading.
More than 150 people salute as 'Taps' is played during a Memorial Day ceremony in Clinton on Monday. At center is Amy Morris, mother of U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Daniel Morris, who died in Iraq in 2006.
CLINTON—More than 150 people turned out for a Memorial Day ceremony in Clinton on Monday, an encouraging sign for Amy Morris of Clinton. Her son, U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Daniel Morris, died in Iraq in 2006.
“It’s awesome to see the turnout,” said Morris, who lives in Clinton and wore her son’s sunglasses and a 1st Cavalry Division T-shirt he gave her. “My greatest fear is that people will forget.”
Hundreds of swimmers enjoy the Oak Ridge Outdoor Pool on Providence Road on Memorial Day.
The Oak Ridge Outdoor Swimming Pool opened for the Memorial Day weekend, and it will open for the summer on June 2.
People streamed into the pool today, Memorial Day, seeking refuge from the hot sun on the holiday weekend. The pool is open until 6 p.m. today.
Local and state officials, business leaders, and family and friends celebrate the opening of Health by Design Chiropractic on Emory Valley Road on Friday afternoon.
A new chiropractic office has opened on Emory Valley Road.
Local and state officials, business leaders, and family and friends celebrated Friday afternoon with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new business, Health by Design Chiropractic.
Health by Design offers chiropractic care and trigger point therapy, owner and doctor Caleb Runne said Monday.
