Oak Ridge Today

Council approves water, sewer rate hikes

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Oak Ridge City Council

The Oak Ridge City Council unanimously approves water and sewer rate increases during a Monday night meeting. Pictured above from left are Council members Anne Garcia Garland, Ellen Smith, Chuck Hope, Mayor Tom Beehan, and Council member Jane Miller.

After several months of discussion, the Oak Ridge City Council unanimously approved significant water and sewer rate increases during a brief meeting Monday.

Information presented by the city showed rates could rise between 28 percent to 35 percent, depending upon a variety of factors, including the total number of gallons used. There will be a minimum monthly increase of $7 for the first 2,000 gallons of water and sewer, but the increases will be larger for bigger customers.

The first phase of the higher rates goes into effect May 1, and they will rise again in 2013.

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Council considers water, sewer rate increases tonight

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During a special meeting tonight, the Oak Ridge City Council will again consider significant increases in the city’s water and sewer rates.

Council members postponed a decision during their regular April 9 meeting to allow the public more time to study the most recent proposed rates.

The most recent proposal calls for raising total water and sewer rates between 28 percent to 35 percent, depending upon a variety of factors, including the number of total gallons used. There would be a minimum monthly increase of $7 for the first 2,000 gallons of water and sewer, but the increases could be much larger for bigger customers.

Council will consider those rate hikes during a special meeting at 7 p.m. today in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Courtroom at 200 S. Tulane Ave.

Also on the agenda is a special report by Linda M. Daugherty of the University of Tennessee on the need for a new Oak Ridge Senior Center.

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Baughn calls for lower taxes, debt ceiling

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Trina Baughn

Trina Baughn

In her first run for an elected office, Oak Ridge City Council candidate Trina Baughn said she would like to cap the city’s debt, cut the property tax rate, and help attract industry.

Baughn, a 38-year-old communications professional and consultant, said the city ought to have a debt ceiling and debt reduction plan.

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Chamber ‘Primetime’ networking event April 19

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The Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce will have a networking event on Thursday, April 19.

Called Fiesta! Primtetime, the business-to-business expo will start at 4:30 p.m. at the New Hope Center near the front entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex.

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Democratic meet-and-greet on Friday

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Oak Ridge resident Pat Fain is having a Friday night meet-and-talk session with Mary Headrick, one of two Democratic candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives in Tennessee’s Third Congressional District.

The meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. at 926 W. Outer Drive, is open to all Democrats interested in learning more about the candidates in the Aug. 2 primary.

Secret City Mini Golf opening soon

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Secret City Mini Golf

Secret City Mini Golf is under construction at the site of a former putt-putt course on Tuskegee Drive in Oak Ridge.

Unused for years, the former putt-putt course on Tuskegee Drive could soon be resurrected as Secret City Mini Golf.

Workers have chopped down trees and removed blue rug junipers that covered part of an old 18-hole course, and they’re remodeling it, adding waterfalls, moats, and a rock garden, said John Cass, Secret City Mini Golf owner.

The remodeled 18-hole course, near the intersection of Tuskegee Drive and East Tulsa Road behind Kmart, could open within a few weeks, Cass said.

Renovated batting cages will open soon after that, said Cass, owner of CJP Construction LLC, now headquartered at the former 84 Lumber in Oak Ridge.

Two small buildings are being remodeled on the 2.5-acre property, and Cass wants to add a game room there and sell pizza and ice cream.

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Council OKs parking changes, defers water rate increases

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The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday approved parking ordinance changes that prohibit parking on curbs and sidewalks, among other things, and members also postponed a vote on potentially significant increases in water and sewer rates.

The Council also voted 6-0 to approve $217,000 worth of projects—including additional sidewalks alongside busy roads—that are designed to make Oak Ridge safer for pedestrians and bicyclists. The seven projects will be funded with money collected from citations issued by four local red-light and traffic camera systems.

Council postponed a decision on the water and sewer rate increases until a special meeting tentatively scheduled for April 16. The total monthly water and sewer rate increases could range from 28 percent to 35 percent, depending upon a variety of factors, including the number of total gallons used.

There would be a minimum monthly increase of $7 for the first 2,000 gallons of water and sewer, but the increases could be much larger for bigger customers.

The first phase of the rate increases would go into effect May 1, and the rates would rise again in 2013.

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Demand low, Bull Run plant idled

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The Bull Run Fossil Plant in Claxton is idled due to mild weather and low power demand

The Bull Run Fossil Plant in Claxton, which can produce close to 900 megawatts of electricity, is currently idled due to mild weather and low power demand. Residents have noticed that the normal white plume of smoke, mostly water vapor, is not being emitted from the plant’s shorter smokestack. The single-unit Bull Run plant will be brought back online when it is needed in the Tennessee Valley Authority’s power mix.

Note: This story is from Spring 2012, but it has apparently been picked up by someone and widely shared, which would explain how it ended up in our most popular posts list today. I apologize that the photo caption runs off the right side of the main content column. This photo was posted when we were using a wider version of this site earlier this year. We’re using a version that’s more narrow now. (John Huotari – 10/31/2012)

Hundreds run, bike in lupus fundraiser

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Butterflies for Hope bike ride

Roughly 140 bicyclists rode Saturday in Oak Ridge during the second day of an awareness fundraiser for lupus, a chronic inflammatory disease.

Several hundred runners, walkers, and bicyclists participated in a two-day awareness fundraiser this past weekend for lupus, a chronic inflammatory disease.

The first-time fundraiser, called Butterflies for Hope, included a 5K run and walk Friday evening, and a 25-mile to 62-mile bicycle ride on Saturday afternoon. Organizer Donna Sullivan, co-owner of Hot Bagel Co., estimated that more than $7,000 was raised for the Lupus Foundation of America’s Mid-South Chapter.

The chapter covers Alabama, Tennessee, and Kentucky, where about 90,000 residents have lupus, said Sherry Hammond, president and chief executive officer of the Mid-South Chapter. She and Shannon Wagner, the chapter’s development manager, were in town for the fundraiser.

Lupus is an incurable autoimmune disease that can affect various parts of the body, especially the skin, joints, blood, and kidneys. Hammond said the effects can range from mild to life-threatening.

Sullivan, whose 23-year-old daughter Katie has lupus, said the disease can be very expensive to treat. One of her daughter’s medicines, for example, costs $323 for a six-week supply.

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Gooch: I will not raise taxes

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Warren Gooch, the Democratic candidate for Anderson County mayor, talks to Claxton residents Carol Brown and Kathy Martin after a Tuesday evening forum at Claxton Elementary School.

Warren Gooch, the Democratic candidate for Anderson County mayor, talks to Claxton residents Carol Brown, left, and Kathy Martin, center, after a Tuesday evening forum at Claxton Elementary School.

CLAXTON—Warren Gooch has a time-honored, easy-to-remember campaign promise. “I will not raise taxes,” he’s proclaimed on billboards alongside busy roads in Anderson County.

It’s a message that Gooch, the Democratic candidate for Anderson County mayor, continued to deliver this week, this time in person, during a Tuesday evening forum at Claxton Elementary School. It was the first of four forums Gooch has scheduled this month.

“Raising taxes is simply not an option,” said Gooch, a 60-year-old Oak Ridge attorney.

Gooch points out that there was already a significant property tax rate increase in Anderson County last year to help pay for projects that include a jail expansion, new alternative school, and the purchase of industrial land.

Also, the current economic recovery is very fragile, Gooch said.

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Oak Ridge could gain more than 100 jobs

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A company that provides services to the nuclear industry and is headquartered in Kennewick, Wash., plans to expand into Oak Ridge and add more than 100 jobs during the next three years.

Babcock Services Inc. intends to purchase 2.5 acres at Heritage Center in west Oak Ridge at the former K-25 site and construct a 13,300-square-foot building. The property will be used to manage, recover, and refurbish radioactively contaminated components from commercial nuclear power plants.

The estimated 114 new jobs created during the next three years could pay an average wage of $66,000 plus benefits, according to a project briefing distributed to Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board members.

BSI could invest close to $4 million in the project during the next three years.

On Monday, the IDB agreed to sponsor an application for a state FastTrack Infrastructure Grant on behalf of BSI. BSI would contribute a local match if the grant is approved.

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Oak Ridge Mall could have new owners within six months

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A sign announces retail space is available at the Oak Ridge City Center, a mall that is for sale for $10.5 million in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

Most of the Oak Ridge City Center, also known as the Oak Ridge Mall, has been empty for years, and now the roughly 60-acre shopping center is for sale for $10.5 million.

The mostly empty Oak Ridge City Center could have new owners within about six months, a local economic development leader said Monday.

Also known as the Oak Ridge Mall, the roughly 60-acre City Center is for sale for $10.5 million, said Parker Hardy, president and chief executive officer of the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce.

Sears is closing its store at the mall, meaning only two stores remain: Belk and JCPenney.

Hardy gave an update on the mall sale during an Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board meeting Monday.

He said the 500,000-square-foot mall will likely be on the market for about eight weeks, followed by a four-week due diligence period and a four-week closing period.

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