Oak Ridge Today

Jeep Jamboree at Windrock Park this weekend

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Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank and coordinator Bob Yarbrough welcome nearly 250 participants and their 125 jeeps from 26 states to the Tennessee Mountains Jeep Jamboree on Thursday morning, April 27, 2017, at the American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge. (Photo courtesy Terry Frank)

Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank and coordinator Bob Yarbrough welcome nearly 250 participants and their 125 jeeps from 26 states to the Tennessee Mountains Jeep Jamboree on Thursday morning, April 27, 2017, at the American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge. (Photo courtesy Terry Frank)

 

There is a Jeep Jamboree at Windrock Park north of Oliver Springs this weekend, and close to 250 participants in 125 Jeeps from 26 states are reported to be attending.

The Tennessee Mountains Jeep Jamboree is an event inspired by local coordinator Bob Yarborough. Participants kicked off their three days of off-road trail adventures Thursday morning at the American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge with a hearty welcome, discussion of trail guides and ground rules, and a review of the schedule of events that includes an awards dinner, the Anderson County Mayor’s Office said.

Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank and Yarbrough welcomed the participants at AMSE on Thursday.

According to organizers, “the mountain vistas create a dynamic back drop for this scenic” jamboree, the Mayor’s Office said. Frank said she welcomed participants to Anderson County and encouraged them to have fun and enjoy the beauty of Anderson County and East Tennessee.

Land Bank perspective on Oak Ridge housing to be discussed Tuesday

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Charlie Jernigan July 11 2016

Charlie Jernigan, chair of the Oak Ridge Land Bank Corp. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

“Housing in Oak Ridge is a topic of great interest for a large and diverse group of people as well as government and business entities,” said Charlie Jernigan. “To really understand what is happening with housing, it is important to know its status now, the important entities involved, and the game plans going forward.”

Jernigan will be the guest speaker at Lunch with the League on Tuesday, May 2, from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, located at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

“Now is an exciting time for Oak Ridge, with growth and positive change in many different arenas,” Jernigan said. “Housing is one of those areas presenting significant challenges, as well as opportunities for significant improvement. The city has reached a hinge point regarding housing: we have several options for our way forward, and one of these paths will take us where we need to be. Instead of choosing the current route of stagnation and further decay, we can decide to move in the direction of renewal and growth, and blaze a trail of improved housing throughout the city.” [Read more…]

Reminder: Second year of Arts & Antiques in the Square kicks off Saturday

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The second year of Arts & Antiques in the Square kicks off Saturday, April 29, in Jackson Square. Vendor spaces are available, and you can have items appraised at the kickoff. Pictured above are Linda Johnston, right, owner of Through the Looking Glass Antiques and Collectibles and Meghan O'Neal of Southern Bliss Boutique. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The second year of Arts & Antiques in the Square kicks off Saturday, April 29, in Jackson Square. You can have items appraised at the kickoff. Pictured above are Linda Johnston, right, owner of Through the Looking Glass Antiques and Collectibles and Meghan O’Neal of Southern Bliss Boutique. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Reminder: The second year of Arts & Antiques in the Square kicks off Saturday, April 29, in Jackson Square.

You can have items appraised at the kickoff. The appraisals will be done by Case Antiques Inc. of Knoxville. It’s the Tennessee Treasures Appraisals Fair, which is part of the April 29 kickoff of Arts & Antiques in the Square. Items can be appraised for $10 per item, or $50 for six items. The appraisals will be done from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 29, in Jackson Square.

“Browse our shops and Arts & Antiques vendors while your items are appraised,” the Jackson Square Merchants Association said. If you have furniture to be appraised, you don’t have to bring it. You can bring photos or send them in advance.

Arts & Antiques in the Square itself is scheduled from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 29.

The series is usually, but not always, held on the last Saturday of the month. The events highlight the arts: dance, music, visual arts, and theater. They also allow vendors to showcase and sell their products.

“We’re trying to revitalize Jackson Square to its former glory,” said Linda Johnston, owner of Through the Looking Glass Antiques and Collectibles. “This used to be where everybody came.” [Read more…]

Cast your vote in ‘Dream It. Do It.’ middle school competition

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CLINTON—The videos are in, and it is now time to vote in Anderson County’s “Dream It. Do It.” middle school competition. The program is in its second year and has grown from four to six schools, including two from the Oak Ridge school system.

“Dream It. Do It.” is sponsored by the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce, Anderson County Schools, Oak Ridge Schools, and Consolidated Nuclear Security LLC, or CNS, the managing contractor at Y-12 National Security Complex. It is designed to bring student awareness of job opportunities in advanced manufacturing, a press release said.

Using GoPro cameras provided by CNS, six teams of eighth-graders were paired with area industries to create videos to tell the companies’ stories. These videos are then posted online for public voting. Each winning team member receives a GoPro camera, also provided by CNS.

This year’s participant teams included: Clinton Middle School and Aisin, Jefferson Middle School and Protomet, Lake City Middle School and Techmer PM, Norris Middle School and Eagle Bend, Norwood Middle School and Clayton Homes, and Robertsville Middle School and SL America. [Read more…]

Anderson County Chamber of Commerce has job fair in Oak Ridge on Thursday

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The Anderson County Chamber of Commerce will host a Job Fair to recruit employees for local businesses and industries on Thursday, April 27, from 3-7 p.m. at New Hope Center in Oak Ridge. This one-day event allows job seekers to connect face-to-face with local businesses and industries seeking employees, a press release said.

Attendees may be able to submit resumes, complete applications, schedule interviews, and make contacts for future job openings. Admission and parking are free, the press release said.

New Hope Center is at the Y-12 National Security Complex at 602 Scarboro Road. [Read more…]

Main Street Oak Ridge update: New stores will open soon

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Dick_s Sporting Goods sign

Crews used a crane to lift the Dick’s Sporting Goods sign into place at Main Street Oak Ridge on Thursday afternoon, April 20, 2017. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

 

This story and photos are from the April 2017 City of Oak Ridge newsletter.

Another new store sign went up at Main Street Oak Ridge last week: Dick’s Sporting Goods. Crews used a crane to lift the sign into place (see video here) on the afternoon of Thursday, April 20, the City of Oak Ridge said in a newsletter.

This is the second sign to go up at Main Street Oak Ridge, the city said. The first was at T.J.Maxx. Crews installed a sign on both entrances for the store in late March. T.J.Maxx and Dick’s Sporting Goods are expected to be the first stores to open at Main Street Oak Ridge later in the spring or early summer.

Workers are also continuing to make progress on the buildings that will house six other new stores: four of them (Ulta, Rack Room Shoes, Rue 21, and Maurice’s) will be located next door to Belk. Construction on PetSmart and Electronic Express began in February. Crews are still working on the exterior of that building, which is located opposite of Belk. Preliminary and framing work on some additional retail space is also under way, the city said.

Vertical construction began earlier this year with the T.J.Maxx and Dick’s Sporting Goods complex near Walmart. [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…]

ORNL to collaborate with five small businesses to advance energy tech

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Five small companies have been selected to partner with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory to move technologies in commercial refrigeration systems, water power generation, bioenergy, and battery manufacturing closer to the marketplace.

The firms are among 38 selected to participate in the third round of DOE’s Small Business Vouchers, or SBV, pilot, a press release said. SBV helps provide access to the world-class capabilities of the DOE national labs for American small businesses and bring next-generation energy technologies to the marketplace faster, the press release said.

“Innovation drives American competitiveness and creates new jobs for a stronger economy and a brighter, cleaner future for our nation,” said Moe Khaleel, associate lab director of energy and environmental sciences at ORNL. “ORNL is helping small businesses tackle fundamental science challenges and to carry out the research needed to accelerate the delivery of solutions to the marketplace.”

DOE has connected 12 of its national labs with 76 small businesses since the first round of SBV, a Technology-to-Market program launched in September 2015, the press release said. With Friday’s announcement, 114 small businesses have been partnered with the labs enabling them to tap into the intellectual and technical resources needed to overcome critical technology challenges for their advanced energy products and gain a global competitive advantage, the release said. [Read more…]

Like what we’re doing? Subscribe to Oak Ridge Today

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If you appreciate what we do here at Oak Ridge Today, please consider becoming a voluntary subscriber. You don’t have to subscribe to read our stories, but your contribution will help us cover local news for you day and night, as best we can.

We currently offer three subscription levels: $5, $10, or $25 per month. We accept payments through PayPal. You can also send check payments to our P.O. box. Please visit our subscription page for information on these options.

There isn’t currently a difference between the three monthly subscription levels. It’s mostly a matter of what you can contribute or want to contribute. We believe that most of our subscribers support us because they like what we’re doing and want to see us succeed. We like to think of the voluntary subscriptions as like a tip jar. So, if you appreciate our service, please consider subscribing. [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…]

Performers for Celebrate Oak Ridge (Secret City Festival) to be announced at Primetime on April 27

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Ann Bratton, co-owner of Downtown Hardware, helps an attendee register for a door prize at last spring's Primetime Fiesta. This year's event will take place on Thursday, April 27, 2017, and it will feature the announcement about the performers at Celebrate Oak Ridge (Secret City Festival). (Submitted photo)

Ann Bratton, co-owner of Downtown Hardware, helps an attendee register for a door prize at last spring’s Primetime Fiesta. This year’s event will take place on Thursday, April 27, 2017, and it will feature the announcement about the performers at Celebrate Oak Ridge (Secret City Festival). (Submitted photo)

 

Performers for Celebrate Oak Ridge (Secret City Festival) will be announced at the Spring Primetime networking event at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, April 27.

More than 40 member organizations of the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce have already reserved exhibit space for the event, which is titled “Fiesta Primetime,” a press release said.

The event will be held from 4:30-6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 27, under the tent in the parking lot of the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, which is at 1400 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Primetime is one of the Chamber’s biggest networking events of the year, the press release said. Anyone—Chamber member or not—is encouraged to attend. During the event, organizers for Celebrate Oak Ridge (Secret City Festival) will announce the performers for the festival this summer. [Read more…]

Council to receive housing study from Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday

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The Oak Ridge City Council will receive a housing study from the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday.

The Council is scheduled to receive the study during a non-voting work session at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 18, in the Central Services Complex Multipurpose Room. The Central Services Complex is on Woodbury Lane, off Wilberforce Avenue behind the Kmart shopping center.

The Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce Housing Study will be presented by Melinda Hillman, chair of the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce Housing Study Committee. [Read more…]