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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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Read city manager’s retirement letter

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Mark Watson

This is a copy of the January 17 retirement letter from Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson to the seven Oak Ridge City Council members.

Since August of 2010, I have been proud to serve the City of Oak Ridge as its City Manager.

During that time, I have engaged the community in visionary changes that move the City toward a bright future creating economic vitality, jobs for our citizens, and a stronger quality of life for all.

Over the past twelve years, we have seen major changes and improvements to our internal organization and our external relationships with surrounding communities. This year, I was recognized for 45 years of public service by my profession. It is now time for me to announce my retirement. Serving in four states, eight cities, seven city manager positions and working for over 100 mayors and city council members, I believe it is time to begin the process of selecting a successor for Oak Ridge.

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Library restrooms will be renovated

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The restrooms at the Oak Ridge Public Library will be renovated starting February 1.

The renovations are expected to be completed by June 1.

The renovations will result in increased accessibility under Americans with Disabilities Act, cleaner restrooms, and new fixtures, a press release said.

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Breakfast with Legislators resumes Monday

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Breakfast with the Legislators begins this year on Monday.

The monthly breakfasts are scheduled each year while the Tennessee General Assembly is in session. They are hosted by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge, and this is the 36th year they have had the breakfasts.

Monday’s breakfast is scheduled from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. January 23 in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center at 1401 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

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Former AC Commissioner Hitchcock dies

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Harry “Whitey” Hitchcock

Note: This story was updated at 11:30 a.m.

Harry “Whitey” Hitchcock, who represented part of Oak Ridge in three terms on Anderson County Commission, died January 10. A former teacher, he was 76.

Hitchcock served on Anderson County Commission from 2006 to 2018. He represented District 6 in Oak Ridge, including the City Hall, Robertsville, and West Hills voting precincts.

At the request of Commissioner Catherine Denenberg, the Anderson County Commission had a moment of silence in honor of Hitchcock during their monthly meeting on Tuesday, January 17.

Later in the meeting, Anderson County Commissioner Tracy Wandell said he appreciated Hitchcock’s friendship and leadership.

“He did a lot of things in a short amount of time,” Wandell said. “He always did things that made our county better.”

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NRC accepting comments on environmental review for nuclear fuel facility

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TRISO-X has proposed a nuclear fuel fabrication facility on 110 acres at Horizon Center in west Oak Ridge. (Photo from TRISO-X environmental report to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission)

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission will have a public meeting in Oak Ridge next week to accept public comments about the environmental review for a proposed nuclear fuel facility at Horizon Center.

It would be the first manufacturing facility of its type in the United States. It has been proposed by TRISO-X, which wants to manufacture coated particle uranium fuel for new types of nuclear reactors—advanced and small modular reactors. The fuel could power reactors for electrical and chemical use, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

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Planning Commission approves Weigel’s site plan

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The proposed Weigel’s site at South Illinois Avenue and Union Valley Road is pictured above on Thursday, Jan. 19, 2023. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission approved a site plan Thursday evening for a new Weigel’s at South Illinois Avenue and Union Valley Road.

The plan for the 6,600-square foot store on an undeveloped 3.6-acre site was approved 9-0 in a voice vote Thursday.

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President appoints ORNL researcher to National Science Board

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Image courtesy Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Note: This story was updated at 2 p.m. Jan. 22.

President Joe Biden will appoint Merlin Theodore of Oak Ridge National Laboratory to the National Science Board, the White House said in an announcement last week.

Theodore is the first full-time researcher from a national laboratory to serve on the National Science Board, the governing board for the National Science Foundation, according to ORNL.

“Merlin’s appointment to the National Science Board is indicative of her accomplishments as a researcher, her contributions to national missions, and her advocacy for women and minorities in science,” said interim ORNL Director Jeff Smith.

Theodore is one of eight new board members. The National Science Board is made up of 25 members appointed by the president, and they serve six-year terms.

The National Science Board pursues the goals and function of the NSF, including the duty to “recommend and encourage the pursuit of national policies for the promotion of research and education in science and engineering,” according to the White House news release.

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Railroad could jeopardize airport

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If not removed, this section of railroad tracks at Heritage Center, the former K-25 site, would be a “deal-killer” for the proposed Oak Ridge Airport because the runway would be built in this area but could not be with the railroad tracks there. This is looking east across the main entrance to Heritage Center on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2023. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Railroad tracks at Heritage Center, the former K-25 site, have emerged as a potential “deal-killer” for the proposed Oak Ridge Airport.

On Tuesday, Oak Ridge city leaders said a new company in west Oak Ridge might want to use the rail line to ship materials, but the tracks run through and roughly perpendicular to where the airport runway would be. Officials had expected the rail line, which had been “very inactive,” to be transferred.

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Oak Ridge city manager retiring

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Mark Watson

Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson is retiring in May.

Watson, who has been city manager since 2010, announced his May 5 retirement during an Oak Ridge City Council work session on Tuesday.

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Lawsuit seeks 2020 election audit, voting machine restriction

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The Howard H. Baker Jr. United States Courthouse is pictured above in Knoxville on Jan. 19, 2020. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

An unconventional 483-page lawsuit filed in Anderson County Circuit Court seeks an audit of the 2020 election, asks for the results to be re-counted and possibly decertified, accuses federal legislators of treason, and demands a restraining order against electronic voting machines.

Two of the three plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit are Oak Ridge residents. One of those plaintiffs has also unsuccessfully filed federal lawsuits in Washington, D.C., against the president and vice president, chief justice, a former acting attorney general, and many members of Congress, according to court records.

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Cold, powerful magnet will help control hot plasma in fusion reactor

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A team at ITER, an international experimental fusion reactor in southern France, prepare on Feb. 10, 2022, to move one of six modules for a central solenoid, a powerful superconducting magnet being built by General Atomics in California under the management of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo used with permission. © ITER Organization, http://www.iter.org/)

A magnet so powerful it could lift an aircraft carrier six feet into the air was designed in a project managed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory. It will be used in an international experimental reactor in southern France to produce energy using fusion, the same process used by the sun and other stars to create heat and light. If successful, the reactor could revolutionize energy production, potentially showing how to provide a nearly limitless energy supply without planet-warming carbon dioxide emissions or long-lived radioactive wastes.

Six modules for the reactor’s central superconducting magnet, plus a spare, are being made by General Atomics in Poway, California. Two of the modules have already been shipped to France. Two more are completed, with one of those expected to ship this year. The remaining three are more than 60% complete, and manufacturing should be done this year, said John Smith, General Atomics senior director of engineering and projects. 

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