Oak Ridge Today

State will help companies with UPF project, recruit new ones

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Uranium Processing Facility

The proposed Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex is pictured above. (Submitted image)

Many business leaders and public officials consider it a great opportunity.

The proposed Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex could cost up to $6.5 billion and employ up to 1,500 workers during the peak construction period. It’s been called the largest federal capital project in Tennessee since the Manhattan Project, and construction could last another decade.

On Monday, Tennessee officials announced they will help companies that are already in the state and interested in working on the project, and recruit out-of-state businesses, particularly in the nuclear industry. Those new companies will be encouraged to stay in the state, said Bill Hagerty, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. [Read more…]

Household trash pickup starts Monday

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The Oak Ridge household trash pickup program starts Monday.

Household rubbish, old appliances, and minor remodeling materials will be picked up. Compressors must be removed from refrigerators and air conditioners, however.

A city press release said workers will follow the schedule as closely as possible, but it is a general guide and can vary considerably from the actual schedule due to weather conditions and the amount of trash left by residents. [Read more…]

Learn about electronic lending at Oak Ridge library Thursday

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A Thursday seminar at the Oak Ridge Public Library will focus on using Kindles to check out audiobooks and eBooks.

The free class will be taught by Joan Kearney, and it starts at 10:30 a.m. Thursday in the library’s auditorium. [Read more…]

Anderson Chamber has workers’ compensation seminar Wednesday

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This month’s seminar at the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce will feature a discussion of workers’ compensation reform.

Led by Amanda Inman Lowe, it’s scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday at the chamber office in Clinton. [Read more…]

Judges say resigning jail alternatives director made ‘no real attempt’ to work with them

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Mike Baker

Mike Baker (Photo by D. Ray Smith)

Note: This story was updated March 31 to add a link to the judge’s letter.

Mike Baker, the director of Anderson County’s alternatives to jail program, was critical of the judiciary and the county mayor when he announced his resignation last week, saying he didn’t have their support.

This week, though, three Anderson County judges said Baker, whose last day is April 4, had made “no real attempt” to work with them. When Baker started his job about a year ago, they said, he lacked knowledge of Tennessee laws related to prisoner release programs, and he had no relevant experience in the state or Anderson County. [Read more…]

After board declares them unfit, city posts ‘Danger’ signs on four Applewood buildings

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Applewood Apartments Danger Signs

The Oak Ridge municipal staff has posted yellow “Danger” signs on units at four Applewood Apartment buildings on Hunter Circle.

A few days after a city board declared them unfit, the Oak Ridge municipal staff posted yellow “Danger” signs on four Applewood Apartment buildings on Hunter Circle, officials said.

Posted on Tuesday, the placards say the 48 apartment units have been deemed unfit for human occupation or use, said Denny Boss, Oak Ridge code enforcement supervisor. The notices cannot be removed until the structures are repaired or demolished.

Joe Levitt, the Knoxville attorney who owns the apartments, disagrees that they are dangerous.

“The buildings are in satisfactory engineering and architectural condition,” he said Thursday. “There’s no question about that.” [Read more…]

Guest column: ORCVB, Chamber funding should be reduced 50-100 percent, festivals outsourced

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Note: This is an edited version of a letter submitted by Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn at a March 25 work session.

Mr. Watson and Fellow Council Members:

At our last retreat, I proposed that we each share our specific positions regarding the Economic Diversification Fund. A successful economic development strategy must focus on both retaining and increasing business and residents with a primary goal of establishing a more competitive financial position. For Oak Ridge, that means becoming a more affordable place to live and work. With that in mind, I present my point-by-point response to Mr. Watson’s Eight Point Economic Statement:

1) I support the city manager’s proposal to eliminate this fund and distribute the costs within the general fund if that distribution includes some reduction and/or reallocation of funds to the direct benefit of our taxpayers. Of the $1.4 million we currently spend, I recommend that we attribute half toward a reduction in the property tax rate (the equivalent of 7.7 cents). Such a reduction will benefit every existing and future business and home owner. [Read more…]

State Democratic Party chair to speak at chili supper Thursday

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Roy Herron, chairman of the Tennessee Democratic Party, will be guest speaker at a Thursday meeting of the Anderson County Democratic Party.

It’s the party’s annual chili supper and potluck, and it starts at 6 p.m. Thursday in the Claxton Elementary School Cafeteria. [Read more…]

Haslam unveils health care reform plan, says ‘no’ to Medicaid expansion

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Governor Bill Haslam

Bill Haslam

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam on Wednesday said he will not expand TennCare rolls under the Affordable Care Act.

Instead, the governor said, he wants to use federal dollars as part of a plan to purchase private health insurance for Tennesseans who would not otherwise have access to coverage.

In a Wednesday press release, Haslam called his plan “real health care reform.” [Read more…]

Protomet could use tax break to double plant size, add workers

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A tax break recommended by an Oak Ridge board on Monday could help a parts manufacturer more than double the size of its plant and add 20-30 workers, an executive said.

The Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board endorsed the five-year, 100 percent property tax break for Protomet—which makes marine, automotive, and homeland security equipment—in a special meeting Monday.

But Oak Ridge City Council member Anne Garcia Garland suggested there could be some opposition later. She said residents want to know why Protomet, which has become successful with the help of one tax abatement, should receive another. [Read more…]

DOE, ORNL to celebrate carbon fiber facility, announce manufacturing initiative

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Officials from the U.S. Department of Energy and Oak Ridge National Laboratory will celebrate a unique carbon fiber facility on Tuesday morning.

DOE will also announce a new U.S. manufacturing initiative during the ceremony at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Carbon Fiber Technology Facility at Horizon Center Business Park in west Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Clinton Fire Department receives $389,000 grant

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Information from WYSH Radio

Clinton officials announced Friday morning that the Clinton Fire Department has received a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response—or SAFER—grant that will pay the salaries and benefits for four more firefighters for the next two years.

The city was notified Friday by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security that the grant award totals $388,944. City leaders thanked the area’s congressional delegation for their assistance in obtaining the funding. There is no local match for the grant.