Oak Ridge Today

Oak Ridge Farmers Market opens April 18

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East TN Farmers Association Logo

The Oak Ridge Farmers Market opens for its 39th season in Historic Jackson Square on Saturday, April 18.

The market will be open from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.

The market will also be open on Wednesdays beginning May 6.

Here’s what’s new at the market this year:

  • Senior Day every Wednesday! Seniors over the age of 60 get 5 percent off their purchases at the Oak Ridge Farmers’ Market.
  • FARM Fan Club—Members receive text reminders and shopping rewards. To sign up, visit the website at www.EastTNFarmMarkets.org.
  • Kids’ Day, May 23, from 9-­11:30 a.m., with live farm animals, crafts, games, and a FARM scavenger hunt for children ages 5 to 12!

The Oak Ridge Farmers’ Market will also host live music and workshops on topics such as herb gardening and composting all summer long. [Read more…]

Planning for Manhattan Project Park, National Park Service, DOE to visit Oak Ridge on March 26

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Warren L. Gooch

Warren L. Gooch

It took years to win approval of a Manhattan Project National Historical Park, and now that the park bill has been signed into law, planning is starting.

As part of that process, officials from the National Park Service and U.S. Department of Energy will visit Oak Ridge next week. The visit will include a Thursday morning open house hosted by the City of Oak Ridge. The open house is scheduled from 10 to 11 a.m. Thursday, March 26, in the A/B Room at the Oak Ridge Civic Center. It’s open to the public, and reservations are not required.

The team of NPS and DOE officials are visiting Oak Ridge to begin planning for the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. The planning team is expected to include senior National Park Service representatives from Washington, D.C., the Southeastern Regional Office in Atlanta, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and Big South Fork. [Read more…]

Bobby Osborne, Rocky Top X-press to headline Rocky Top Bluegrass Festival

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Bobby Osborne

Bobby Osborne (Submitted photo)

 

Bobby Osborne and Rocky Top X-Press will headline the inaugural Rocky Top Bluegrass Festival.

The festival is scheduled for 5:30 to 11 p.m. Friday, April 24, and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, April 25, at the George Templin Memorial Athletic Field located at 214 North Main Street in Rocky Top (formerly Lake City).

“Mr. Osborne contacted us because the Osborne Brothers were the first to perform and record ‘Rocky Top,’ and he wanted to be the first to perform the song in our newly named town of Rocky Top, Tennessee”, said Mike Lovely, Rocky Top mayor. “As a result of his interest, we decided to have a festival featuring some of the top groups in bluegrass.” [Read more…]

Bradshaw, Whitson to be honored at Oak Ridge Chamber Luncheon on Thursday

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David Bradshaw

David Bradshaw

Stephen Whitson

Stephen Whitson

The Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce will honor two area businessmen—David Bradshaw and Stephen Whitson—at its annual program of work kickoff luncheon to be held on Thursday, March 19, at the Riverside Grille.

Bradshaw and Whitson will receive the Chamber’s most prestigious awards at the event, the One Voice—One Vision Luncheon, a press release said.

Bradshaw, president of the Oak Ridge branch of CapitalMark Bank and Trust, will receive the Eugene L. Joyce Lifetime Achievement Award. The award is given to a nominee who has truly distinguished himself or herself and embodies the essential values of volunteerism, community service, and dedication to the economic vitality of our community. It is the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce’s preeminent award given to honor the memory of the late Eugene L. Joyce. [Read more…]

Suck It Up Buttercup KTM 5k is Sunday, May 3

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The Suck It Up Buttercup KTM 5k is Sunday, May 3, in Oak Ridge.

The race is in memory of Kerry Trammell. Proceeds from the 2015 race will go to the Aven Crane Cancer Foundation and the Colton Stout Scholarship Foundation.

Th race starts at 8 a.m. May 3 on the peninsula of the Oak Ridge Marina on Melton Lake Drive. [Read more…]

First Oak Ridge Schools on the Run 5k is Saturday, March 21

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The first Oak Ridge Schools on the Run 5k is on Saturday, March 21. Organizers want to make it an annual event.

The 5k is sponsored by Oak Ridge Schools Office of Coordinated School Health. The race will take place on March 21 at Melton Lake Park. Race-day registration will open at 6:30 a.m. at the Melton Lake Pavilion, and the race will begin promptly at 8 a.m. Organizers encourage race participants to arrive about 30 minutes before the start of the race to ensure smooth registration.

Registration is $10 for students and $20 for school and city employees, and standard registration is $25. The price includes a race‐day T‐shirt and a participation ribbon. [Read more…]

Signups for Boys, Girls Club youth baseball extended through next week

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Signups for youth baseball at the Boys and Girls Club have been extended through next week.

Youth baseball is for boys and girls from ages five to 12. Signups are held at the club’s front desk from 2 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Children must be five years old prior to May 1. There is a $25 activity fee, and an active $15 club membership is required for children ages six to 10.

See the registration form here: Baseball Registration 2015.

Democratic Women’s Club to hear about Selma anniversary on Monday, March 23

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The Anderson County Democratic Women’s Club will hear about the recent 50th anniversary observance of the Selma-to-Montgomery March at its meeting at 6 p.m. Monday, March 23, at Shoney’s Restaurant at 204 South Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge.

Heidi Brenner, who attended the Selma anniversary with about 20 members of the Oak Ridge United Universalist Church, will be the guest speaker. Other local organizations that sent members to Selma, Alabama, included Organizing for Action, the NAACP, and the Oak Ridge Sportsmen’s Club. [Read more…]

AC Commission meeting wrap-up

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Anderson County Commission met for the first time since January on Monday night and voted unanimously to release the $20,000 in funding that had been held back from the Andersonville Volunteer Fire Department and place them back in the rotation (beginning next year) for county purchase of a new fire truck after the department abandoned its controversial and wildly unpopular subscription program and returned to all-volunteer status.

Commissioner Phil Warfield said that the department “went above and beyond what Commission asked of them” as far as making things right with county leaders and more importantly the citizens they serve.

Commissioners were also introduced to the new fire chief, Del Kennedy. [Read more…]

Repair work done, Johnson Gap Road bridge open again

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Johnson Gap Road Bridge

The repair work is down, and the Johnson Gap Road bridge re-opened last week. (Photo by Robert McKamey)

 

Information from WYSH Radio

The bridge on Johnson Gap Road in Anderson County’s Dutch Valley community re-opened last week, a year and a half after it was shut down due to safety concerns.

State inspectors ordered the 100-year-old wooden bridge closed in July 2013 after finding that the wooden support structures were compromised and posed a safety hazard.

The bridge is owned by CSX Railroad, and it is the primary shortcut that Dutch Valley residents use to get to and from Clinton and Oak Ridge, and the shutdown frustrated many.

Work to repair the bridge finally got under way last month.

THP: Man killed, boy injured in Wednesday crash

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Information from WYSH Radio

A Heiskell man was killed and a 12-year-old boy was injured in a single-vehicle crash last week, according to a report released Sunday by the Tennessee Highway Patrol.

Ronald Henderson, 65, of Heiskell was not wearing a seat belt when his 1994 Ford Mustang ran off the road and struck a utility pole Wednesday morning, according to the THP. The investigating trooper indicated in his report that a seat belt could have saved Henderson’s life. [Read more…]

Hargett, president of CVMR-USA, to speak at Oak Ridge Chamber Luncheon

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Michael Hargett and Kamran Khoza of CVMR USA

CVMR President Michael Hargett, left, and Kamran Khozan, chairman and chief executive officer, joined local, state, and federal officials on Friday to announce they’re moving company headquarters from Toronto to Oak Ridge, investing $313 million and adding 620 jobs.

 

Michael Hargett, president of CVMR-USA, which announced Friday that it’s moving from Toronto to Oak Ridge, will be the keynote speaker at an Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce luncheon on Thursday, March 19.

The One Voice—One Vision Luncheon will be at noon Thursday, March 19, at the Riverside Grille in Oak Ridge.

CVMR announced at a special event on Friday that the company will be locating its international headquarters in Oak Ridge. The company plans to invest $313 million and will bring 620 new jobs to the city. [Read more…]