Oak Ridge Today

City brush pick-up starts Monday, April 27

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The citywide brush pick-up program in Oak Ridge will start Monday, April 27.

Tree limbs and bagged yard clippings/leaves will be picked up. City collection efforts will follow the accompanying schedule as closely as possible, a press release said. The proposed schedule is a general guide and can vary considerably from the actual schedule due to weather conditions and/or the amount of participation by residents.

Residents have always been very cooperative and we ask for their continued cooperation this year by following a few guidelines, the release said: [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Reservation Alliance to meet April 27

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The Oak Ridge Reservation Communities Alliance will meet on Monday, April 27, at 2 p.m. in the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, DOE-Oversight Office, at 761 Emory Valley Road in Oak Ridge.

The meeting is open to the public.

Alliance representatives include Terry Frank, Tim Burchett, Bill James, Don Edwards, George Thacker, Warren Gooch, Amy Fitzgerald, Ron Woody, and Scott Stout.

See the agenda here: ORRCA Agenda April 27, 2015.

Clinton Public Library seeks teen volunteers

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Clinton Public Library

Source: ClintonPublicLibrary.org

 

Teens ages 13 to 18 are invited to volunteer at the Clinton Public Library this summer. Volunteers will be registering children and adults for the Summer Reading Club, assisting at programs, helping to prepare for story times, and more.

All teens interested in volunteering at the Library this summer ​must ​attend an orientation at the Library on ​Thursday, May 7, ​or on ​Tuesday, May 19, ​at 5:30 p.m. This orientation will provide you with more information about volunteering and prepare you to complete tasks. All teens must be accompanied by a parent/guardian.

Only 20 volunteers are needed, so please call the Library at (865) 457­-0519 to reserve a spot. Clinton Public Library is located at 118 South Hicks Street in Clinton.

Reminder: City, schools have Community Wellness Fair today (April 22)

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Reminder: The City of Oak Ridge and Oak Ridge Schools will have a Community Wellness Fair today (Wednesday, April 22).

The Wellness Fair is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 22 at the Oak Ridge Civic Center. It includes a wide range of activities that include blood pressure checks, doctor’s chats, exercise tips, shingle vaccines, breast and men’s health, and dental, hearing, and diabetic foot screenings.

There will be a Medic Mobile blood drive from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Civic Center. [Read more…]

Council to consider restart on ORPD review during special meeting Tuesday

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Oak Ridge City Council on Feb. 9, 2015

The Oak Ridge City Council will have a special meeting on Tuesday, April 21, to consider three recommendations related to the 30-day review of the Oak Ridge Police Department that was approved in March. (File photo)

 

A 30-day review of the Oak Ridge Police Department had barely gotten started before it came under fire. But the Oak Ridge City Council will try to fix that on Tuesday.

The concern centers on a report that the list of ORPD employees randomly selected for the first 20 interviews was sent to Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi and all Police Department employees, raising questions about the impartiality and anonymity of the review. The reviewer, Rex Barton of the Municipal Technical Advisory Service at the University of Tennessee, apparently sent the list to the police chief for scheduling purposes, seeking to minimize overtime and minimize stress on the officers’ off-duty life.

But those who have pressed for an investigation, including Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn, quickly objected when they learned that the list of interviewees had been sent to the police chief, who has been the subject of much of their scrutiny.

So, in a special meeting Tuesday evening, the City Council will ask Barton, an MTAS police management consultant, to create a new, random list of officers to interview. Council will also consider determining a point of contact in the Oak Ridge Police Department who can help coordinate the schedules of officers participating in the interviews. [Read more…]

Today: UT MBA students present study on human-powered sports in Oak Ridge

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Mark Watson

Mark Watson

Students in the University of Tennessee MBA program will present a recent study on human-powered sports in Oak Ridge during a meeting this afternoon (Monday, April 20).

The presentation is hosted by the City of Oak Ridge, City Manager Mark Watson said.

The student team, working under the direction of Austin Lance, has been researching and benchmarking to develop a predictable set of recommendations as to how the Oak Ridge community can develop a unique brand position in human-powered and related sports to enhance its image and monetize its recreational assets, a meeting notice said.

The results will be presented at 3 p.m. Monday, April 20, in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Court Room, which is at 200 S. Tulane Avenue.

Weekly update: Sewer rehab work for week of April 20

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Sewer rehabilitation continues for the week of April 20, with Hurst Excavating and Morgan Contracting working under contract for the city to rehabilitate the city’s sewer collection pipes within city easements in yards and in roadways.

Residents should have already received color-coded letters and door hangers (orange for Hurst Excavating and purple for Morgan Contracting) providing general information and the applicable contractor’s contact information.

Motorists, pedestrians, and cyclists are urged to use extra care and caution when traveling on the streets with sewer work areas, a press release said. Temporary road repairs will be made, and loose gravel should be expected until the patches are permanently paved. [Read more…]

State grant of $250K will help build eighth lane at Oak Ridge rowing course

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Oak Ridge Rowing Lane Announcement

Tennessee Rep. John Ragan, an Oak Ridge Republican, announces a $250,000 state grant for an eighth lane at the Oak Ridge rowing course on Sunday. Also pictured from left are Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank, Sen. Randy McNally, Anderson County Chamber of Commerce President Rick Meredith, Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Director Jon Hetrick, Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau President Marc DeRose, Oak Ridge City Council member Rick Chinn, and Oak Ridge Rowing Association President Russell Byrd.

 

A $250,000 state grant announced Sunday will be used to help build an eighth lane at the Oak Ridge rowing course. And that’s expected to significantly increase the economic impact of rowing races, or regattas, officials said.

The eighth lane has been on the city’s wish list for years, and it will allow the Oak Ridge Rowing Association to compete for bigger races and international regattas and provide more on-water capacity, allowing more competitors in events like this weekend’s SIRA Regatta.

According to rough estimates, the eighth lane could cost about $350,000 total, said Oak Ridge City Council member Rick Chinn, the father of two former rowers and a rower himself. That means the City of Oak Ridge might have to contribute up to $100,000 to complete the project.

Tennessee Representative John Ragan, the Oak Ridge Republican who spearheaded the effort to get state funding, said the regional impact of the regattas in Oak Ridge is estimated at $13 million now, but it could increase to $33 million, according to a University of Tennessee study. [Read more…]

This year’s final Breakfast with Legislators is Monday, April 27

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This year’s final Breakfast with the Legislators will be held on Monday, April 27, at the Oak Ridge Civic Center. Senators Ken Yager and Randy McNally and representatives John Ragan and Kent Calfee have been invited to speak about and sum up the legislative activities of this session of the Tennessee General Assembly and to respond to questions from the audience, a press release said.

The breakfast is scheduled from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. April 27 in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center, which is at 1401 Oak Ridge Turnpike. A free continental breakfast will be served.

“The Tennessee General Assembly 2015 legislative session is winding down,” the press release said. [Read more…]

Blankenship Field parking lot project could cost $225,000

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Blankenship Field Parking Lot

The lower parking lot at Blankenship Field, which is used for football games and high school graduation.

 

A parking lot paving project at Blankenship Field could cost $225,000, according to an engineering estimate, a city official said Monday.

The City of Oak Ridge is working with the Blankenship Field Revitalization Foundation to address some questions about the work, Public Works Director Gary Cinder said at a City Council meeting on Monday.

The Oak Ridge City Council agreed in May 2014 to use $180,000 in traffic camera money for improvements to the lower parking lot at Blankenship Field, which is used for football games and high school graduation. [Read more…]

Jackson Square fountain won’t be ready by Lavender Fest, but other work should be

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Jackson Square Parking Lot Work

The interactive fountain in the center of the Jackson Square parking lot won’t be finished before the Lavender Festival in June, but work around the fountain should be completed by then, a city official said Monday.

 

The interactive fountain won’t be in place by the Lavender Festival in June, but other perimeter work around the Jackson Square parking lot should be completed, a city official said Monday.

Construction work on the $1 million rebuild of the parking lot area at Jackson Square started in January. The construction contract was awarded to Rich Construction Inc. of Lenoir City by the Oak Ridge City Council in October.

The work is funded with help from a $741,609 Tennessee Department of Transportation Enhancement Grant that was awarded to the city in June 2012. The TDOT grant covers 80 percent of the work, and it requires a 20 percent city match.

Jackson Square is Oak Ridge’s original town center. [Read more…]

City agreed to use $150K, but low bid on Preschool paint job is $25K

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Oak Ridge Preschool and School Administration Building

The Oak Ridge City Council has agreed to use $150,000 in unspent red-light camera to repair the lead-based paint on the Oak Ridge Schools Preschool and Robert J. Smallridge School Administration Building on New York Avenue. Officials say the building needs to be renovated or vacated for the Head Start program to receive funding in the 2015-2016 school year. (File photo)

 

The Oak Ridge City Council had agreed to use $150,000 in red-light camera money to repair the lead-based paint on the city’s Preschool, but the low bid came in significantly lower—$24,700, Public Works Director Gary Cinder said Monday.

The five bids ranged up to about $112,000, Cinder told the Oak Ridge City Council.

The low bidder has done some of this type of work at the Preschool before, Cinder said.

The work is expected to be done by this fall. It provides what officials hope will be a temporary fix while they develop a plan to permanently repair, replace, or move the Preschool. [Read more…]