Oak Ridge Today

Anderson County Commission planning to audit Andersonville Fire Department

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

Last week, the Anderson County Commission voted to get the ball rolling on an audit of the Andersonville Volunteer Fire Department.

Earlier this year, the department announced it was switching to a subscription-based service due to a lack of funds so severe, officials said, that the AVFD might have to close without the subscription plan.

The county has a 40-year lease with the AVFD for the land where the new Belmont Fire Station is being built, and part of the lease agreement calls for the department to be audited each year. The matter was referred to the Commission’s audit and budget committees for consideration and further discussion.

[Read more…]

Anderson County court clerk proposes new fee for school security

Posted at
By 4 Comments

Note: This story was updated at 7:33 p.m.

An Anderson County official has proposed a new fee that would be used to help provide more school security.

The new fee—a school security fee—would be added to the court costs paid by a defendant charged with a crime in Anderson County.

In a Wednesday morning press release, Anderson County Circuit Court Clerk Tyler Mayes said he’s already told Anderson County Commission Chairman Chuck Fritts and Law Director Jay Yeager that he intends to lobby local and state officials to add the new court cost fee. It would have to be approved by the Tennessee General Assembly in Nashville.

[Read more…]

With ‘fiscal cliff’ looming, ORNL says it’s as well-prepared as it can be

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

As President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner continue their high-stakes negotiations over tax revenues and spending cuts, officials at Oak Ridge National Laboratory say they have prepared as best they can for automatic spending cuts that could go into effect in January.

“We have been preparing for increased budget pressures for several years now and have taken a number of steps to reduce our costs, including workforce restructuring, benefits changes, reduction in energy consumption, and other operational costs,” ORNL Director Thom Mason said in a statement Monday. “Since we don’t know exactly how any cuts would be allocated by the various governments agencies that fund ORNL, we can’t really say with certainty what the impacts would be, other than to say we are as well-prepared for uncertainty as we can be.”

[Read more…]

Connecticut massacre focuses attention on school security in Tennessee

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The school shootings in Newtown, Conn., on Friday have focused attention on school security in Tennessee, led to pledges to increase the police presence at some schools, and bolstered calls for more school resource officers across the state.

It has also revived an intense debate about gun control in the United States.

The shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown last week killed 20 children, six adults, the gunman, and his mother. On Tuesday, the National Rifle Association said it was prepared to “offer meaningful contributions to help make sure this never happens again” and would have a major news conference on Friday.

In Tennessee, a few legislators have proposed requiring school resource officers in all schools, training at least one staff member to use firearms, or allowing teachers to carry handguns into schools not patrolled by armed police officers. But it’s not yet clear how much support—or funding—those proposals will have.

In Oak Ridge, Board of Education Chair Keys Fillauer said education officials will continue to advocate for more school resource officers, or SROs. But local officials said adding SROs could depend upon funding.

In Anderson County, Mayor Terry Frank sent out information on Tuesday on the positive measures taken this week by the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department after last week’s shooting, including four walk-throughs at Dutch Valley Elementary School on Monday.

[Read more…]

Oak Ridge athletic facility request forms now available

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Request forms are now available for those interested in using Oak Ridge athletic facilities between March 1 and July 31.

The forms are available through the Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department at the Civic Center front desk or online at www.orrecparks.org.

[Read more…]

Council appoints 43 members to 17 boards

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday appointed 43 members to 17 city boards and commissions. Some of the appointees are new board members, and others are incumbents.

Some were for designated positions. For example, two hotel representatives were appointed to the Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau, and one City Council member was appointed to the Planning Commission.

Here is a list of the appointments:

[Read more…]

Planning Commission considers Pizza Inn site plan Thursday

Posted at
By 6 Comments

Pizza Inn Site Work

J.W. Herren of Mid South Utility Contractors of Putnam County helps prepare a one-acre site on Oak Ridge Turnpike for a new Pizza Inn restaurant.

A new Pizza Inn restaurant could open on Oak Ridge Turnpike next year, and work started at the one-acre site several weeks ago.

The project’s site plan is scheduled to be considered by the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission during a 5:30 p.m. Thursday meeting.

The new diner, part of a Dallas chain that has more than 300 restaurants across the world, will be at the corner of Oak Ridge Turnpike and ORAU Way, roughly where Mickey’s Produce was.

Thursday’s Planning Commission meeting is in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Courtroom. The commission will consider a landscaping request for the Pizza Inn project.

City Council could fill 43 board, commission positions tonight

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge City Council is scheduled to fill 43 positions on 17 boards and commissions during a special meeting tonight.

The boards include two of the most high-profile bodies, the Industrial Development Board and Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission.

Others include the Beer Permit Board, Board of Building and Housing Code Appeals, Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau, and Recreation and Parks Advisory Board.

[Read more…]

Civic Center locker rooms closed through Christmas, starting Monday

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Civic Center locker rooms will be closed for maintenance starting Dec. 17 and ending Christmas, Dec. 25.

The indoor pool will be open regular hours Dec. 17 and 18 but with no access to the locker rooms. On Dec. 19, the pool will close at 1 p.m. and remain closed until Dec. 26, a press release said.

[Read more…]

After business backlash, electronic sign ordinance changes pulled from agenda

Posted at
By 15 Comments

Rivers Total Car Care Electronic Sign

Toney Stevens, owner of Rivers Total Car Care in Oak Ridge, brought attention to a Dec. 6 letter the city sent to 18 owners of electronic signs, telling them the city continues to receive complaints about the signs and asking them to fix violations within 10 days.

After a backlash from business owners, a proposal to change the city’s electronic sign ordinance has been removed from next week’s agenda for the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission.

It’s not clear when the revisions, which would govern message display times and brightness, could be considered by the city.

Business owners with electronic signs had objected to the mid-December meeting date, the short amount of time they had to prepare, and a letter they recently received that gave them 10 days to fix any violations of the city’s sign ordinance. The letter, sent to 18 businesses with electronic signs, said signs that have messages that are animated, moving, or flashing are generally prohibited in Oak Ridge.

The proposed revisions would have required that electronic sign messages be static and shown for at least 10 seconds. Animations and movements between messages would not have been allowed and neither would animated video or continuous message scrolling.

[Read more…]

TVA wins wind power award

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Tennessee Valley Authority this week said it had earned national recognition for its wind power program.

In November, TVA was named “Utility of the Year” by the American Wind Energy Association, a press release said. The AWEA presents the award each year to the U.S. electric utility that has done the most to advance wind power’s growth through its actions.

TVA added 1,100 megawatts of wind energy capacity from seven wind power sites in 2012, including in Kansas, Illinois, and Iowa. TVA now has 10 contracts with nine wind farms delivering more than 1,500 megawatts of energy, a press release said.

[Read more…]

No state-based health care exchange, Haslam says

Posted at
By 1 Comment

Governor Bill Haslam

Gov. Bill Haslam

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam announced Monday that the state will not operate a state-based healthcare exchange under the federal Affordable Care Act.

Tennessee had a Friday deadline to make a decision about the health insurance exchanges, created by the Affordable Care Act of 2010.

[Read more…]