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Residents discuss Dollar General in Marlow

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Anderson County residents have expressed mixed opinions in government meetings about a reported proposal to build a Dollar General store next to Oliver Springs Highway in Marlow. The area is pictured above at Marlow Circle on Monday, Jan. 23, 2023. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A handful of Anderson County residents have expressed mixed opinions in government meetings about a reported proposal to build a Dollar General store next to Oliver Springs Highway in Marlow, but the Anderson County Commission has voted 13-1 in favor of a rezoning that could allow it.

A few property owners and Anderson County Commissioner Jerry White, who represents Marlow, supported the project, saying, among other things, that it would be convenient for rural residents who need quick access to groceries and other items.

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Roane State will have manufacturing job fair

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Roane State Community College will host a manufacturing industry job fair this week at its Campbell County Campus. The job fair will include employers from Anderson County, Campbell County, and Clinton.

The job fair is scheduled from 3 to 6 p.m. Tuesday, November 29.

“The manufacturing companies attending this job fair represent hundreds of job and career opportunities,” said Tracy Powers, Roane State’s Campbell County Campus director. “These employers are offering positions with great wages and benefits, including top-tier healthcare and paid vacations. What a way to start a new year with a fantastic new job.”

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Frady named CROET president, CEO

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Teresa Frady

Teresa Frady has been named president and chief executive officer of the Community Reuse Organization of East Tennessee.

CROET is a regional economic development nonprofit organization that helps find new uses for U.S. Department of Energy facilities and property, including at sites that are no longer used or needed. The goal is to spur private development and create jobs.

Frady’s appointment was announced during the January meeting of the CROET Board of Directors. She replaces Lawrence Young, who is retiring after serving more than 26 years as CROET’s president and CEO.

“I am so pleased that Teresa has accepted the challenge of leading CROET into its next phase,” Young said in a press release. “Teresa has been an integral part of the success of the organization, and I am confident that she, as my successor, will enhance upon the legacy established by the organization’s founders.”

Frady began her career with CROET 22 years ago, the press release said. She has risen through the ranks with increasing responsibility by serving in such roles as account manager, accountant, chief accountant, chief operating officer, and executive director.

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Clinch River Fall Antique Festival starts Friday

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Clinch River Antique Festival
File photo

The Clinch River Fall Antique Festival starts in downtown Clinton on Friday, October 1.

It’s the 20th annual festival.

“The Clinch River Fall Antique Festival is an autumn tradition that keeps growing as the years
go on,” a press release said. “What was created to commemorate the Clinch River mussel pearls and their
economic contributions to East Tennessee in the early 1900s is now the largest fall event
in Anderson County. Each year, the festival that’s held just a few miles away from I-75 in
Historic Downtown Clinton, Tennessee, brings in upwards of 15,000 people to the
community over two days.”

The 20th Annual Clinch River Fall Antique Festival is hosted by the Anderson County
Chamber of Commerce. It is scheduled from noon-10 p.m. on Market Street on downtown Clinton.

Day one of this two-day event will begin with many vendors set up on Market Street beginning at noon, the press release said.

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Restaurants, retailers can re-open in AC, Oak Ridge

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Restaurants were allowed to re-open under certain guidelines in 89 of the state’s 95 counties on Monday, and retail stores can re-open under similar guidelines on Wednesday.

The guidelines include operating at 50 percent capacity and maintaining social distance (generally keeping people at least six feet apart). The state recommends no live music, and restaurant bars should be kept closed. The state also recommends that employees in both industries wear cloth face coverings and that business owners follow federal guidelines for hygiene and workplace sanitation standards for COVID-19.

The 85 counties where restaurants and retail stores can re-open include Anderson and Roane counties.

Many businesses have been closed or operating under changed conditions as Tennessee, like other states and countries, tried to reduce the spread of COVID-19, a contagious respiratory illness that can be deadly.

“Tennesseans pulled together to flatten the curve, and it is time for people to begin to get back to work and back to their businesses,” Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said. “We are pursuing a careful, measured approach to reopening our economy that does not depend on heavy-handed mandates but instead provides practical tools for businesses of all sizes.”

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Farmers market opens Saturday under CDC, state agricultural guidelines

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Farmers Market
The Oak Ridge Farmers Market will open in Jackson Square on Saturday morning, April 11, 2020. (Note: The food available at the farmers market can vary, and the products pictured above may not necessarily be available at the first market). (File photo)

The Historic Oak Ridge FARM Market will open Saturday morning, April 11, in Jackson Square, but it will be a little different this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a press release said.

The farmer’s market, which is managed by East Tennessee Farmers Association for Retail Marketing, or FARM, is marking its 43rd year of operation, the press release said. Farmers markets are designated essential services in the Tennessee.

The City of Oak Ridge is helping East Tennessee FARM in its efforts to supply fresh, local food to residents, the press release said.

Following safe shopping guidelines will mean several changes for visitors to the popular Saturday morning market, the release said:

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Winter Farmers’ Market moves outside on Saturday

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The Winter Farmers’ Market will be open on Saturday, but it will be outside because of concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Winter Farmers’ Market is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, March 28. It will be outside the gymnasium at St. Mary’s School at 323 Vermont Avenue in Oak Ridge.

Vendors will be placed at least 10 feet apart, a press release said.

Customers who are seniors or immune-compromised may order ahead of time for curbside pickup, the press release said. Information on how to do that is listed on the market’s website at www.GrowOakRidge.org.

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Shiitake Mushroom Inoculation Station at Winter Farmers’ Market on Saturday

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New shiitake mushrooms sprout on an oak log in the back yard of Jason Schmidt, a local gardener. Schmidt will be leading a “Mushroom Inoculation Station” on Saturday, March 7, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Winter Farmers’ Market, in which participants will be making their own mushroom logs to take home. Spaces are sold out, but visitors to the market are encouraged to stop and watch the event. It will be held at the main entrance of the market, which is in the gym at St. Mary’s School at 323 Vermont Ave. in Oak Ridge. (Submitted photo)

The Winter Farmers’ Market will be conducting a “Mushroom Inoculation Station,” on Saturday, March 7, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. While spaces in the station are sold out, shoppers are encouraged to stop and watch the activity at the entrance to the farmers’ market in the gym of St. Mary’s School at 323 Vermont Avenue in Oak Ridge.

“Shiitake mushrooms grow on oak trees, so it’s no surprise that Oak Ridge is an excellent place for growing these and other types of mushrooms,” said Jason Schmidt, coordinator of the project. “We will be drilling holes in four-foot oak logs early in the morning, injecting them with shiitake spawn, and then sealing the holes with locally sourced bees wax. In about six months, the spawn should fruit and produce a harvest of shiitake mushrooms that will continue in a cycle for several years.”

The workshop is sponsored by Davenport Tree Service, which provided a freshly cut oak tree for the event.

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Roane State, SL Tennessee starting apprenticeship program

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Tyra Copas, state apprenticeship director, workforce services, talks to local employers and educators about Tennessee’s initiative to boost apprenticeship programs during a question-and-answer session at Roane State Community College’s Clinton Higher Education and Workforce Training Facility. (Submitted photo)

Submitted

Roane State Community College is joining the state’s growing movement to better train new workers by sponsoring apprenticeship programs with area businesses and industries. The college is currently working with one of Anderson County’s biggest employers.

“We will be working with SL Tennessee and our Middle College students in mechatronics to develop programs of study and identify specific apprenticeship tasks,” said Kim Harris, the college’s director of workforce training and placement.

“We look forward to working closely with Roane State in starting the apprenticeship program,” said SL Tennessee Director Scott Laska. “We believe that this program will help solve our skills gap in our operation and provide meaningful career opportunities for the community.”

SL Tennessee, located in the Clinton Interstate 75 Industrial Park, manufactures automotive parts and is near Roane State’s Clinton Higher Education and Workforce Training Facility. The college’s classes in mechatronics—the engineering of electrical and mechanical systems—are offered there.

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Guidebook highlights Oak Ridge’s natural assets

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Oak Ridge Natural Assets Guidebook
Image by Legacy Parks Foundation

A new guidebook highlights Oak Ridge’s natural assets.

The “Oak Ridge Natural Assets Guidebook” by Legacy Parks Foundation is a collaborative project created at the request of the City of Oak Ridge, Roane County, and Anderson County civic and business leaders, a press release said. It’s in response to recommendations from the Oak Ridge Blueprint Plan that urged the exploration of both recreational opportunities and enhancement of the area’s natural assets.

“The Guidebook is intended to be a living, working document that will serve as a philosophical and practical set of guidelines for how to maximize the area’s natural assets so that they provide a sustainable foundation to engage residents, promote wellness, attract tourism, and increase economic development,” said Carol Evans, executive director of Legacy Parks Foundation.

The Guidebook identifies natural assets and related opportunities on public land in Oak Ridge, including U.S. Department of Energy land, but it does not consider future uses of that land for mission-related or growth purposes, Evans said.

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Winter Farmers’ Market moves to different room this Saturday only

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The Winter Farmers’ Market. (Photo courtesy Grow Oak Ridge)

The Winter Farmers’ Market will be in the Social Hall, rather than the gym, at St. Mary’s Catholic Church on Saturday, February 22, a press release said. The Social Hall is in the basement of the church chapel.

The market is open Saturdays 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., through March 28. It has free entry and free parking.

“We have the same great farmers and bakers, just a different room this week,” said market director Rebecca Williams. The move to the different room is only for this week.

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Free backyard mushroom workshop Saturday at Winter Farmers Market

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Geordie Schmidt
Geordie Schmidt of Oak Ridge holds a giant wine cap mushroom, grown in a mulch bed in his family’s backyard. Geordie’s father, Jason Schmidt, will be hosting a free workshop at the Winter Farmers’ Market on Growing Backyard Mushrooms, Sat., Feb. 15, 2020, at 11 a.m. The market is open 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., in the gym at St. Mary’s School, 323 Vermont Ave., Oak Ridge. (Submitted photo)

The Winter Farmers’ Market will offer a free workshop about “Growing Backyard Mushrooms” on Saturday, February 15, at 11 a.m. at the Winter Farmers’ Market, which is in the gym at St. Mary’s School at 323 Vermont Avenue in Oak Ridge. The market is open 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays, and the workshop is in the back room of the market.

“Oak Ridge is a great place to grow mushrooms,” said Jason Schmidt, who will be presenting the workshop. “They don’t need a lot of room, and they love shady, wooded areas, which we have in abundance.”

Participants will be able to sign up for a “Mushroom Inoculation Station” offered March 7, in which they can make their own shiitake mushroom log at the market.

The Winter Farmers’ Market features 30 local farmers, bakers, and artisans, and it is open every Saturday through March 28. 

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