Government Archives - Page 94 of 322

Manhattan Project public program: Bike with a Ranger on North Boundary Greenway on Saturday

Posted at 2:17 pm June 14, 2017
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Join a park ranger for a bike ride on the North Boundary Greenway in Oak Ridge to see how the former communities of the area have changed during the past 70 years. The Manhattan Project National Historical Park will present a free program at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 17, 2017. (Photo courtesy National Park Service)

Join a park ranger for a bike ride on the North Boundary Greenway to see how the former communities of the area have changed over the past 70 years. The Manhattan Project National Historical Park will present a free program on Saturday, June 17, at 10 a.m.

The program will begin at the Turnpike Gatehouse and travel down Quarry Trail, a press release said.

“Along the ride, we will explore the former communities that were here before the Manhattan Project,” the press release said. “Rangers will stop several times along the bike ride to point out the rich history that is found within the Oak Ridge area.”

The Turnpike Gatehouse is located at 2900 Oak Ridge Turnpike. [Read more…]

Norris Bulletin: Norris hires new police chief, separates public safety departments

Posted at 10:44 am June 14, 2017
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Information from WYSH Radio

The town of Norris will have a new police chief beginning July 3.

According to the Norris Bulletin, it was announced during the Norris City Council meeting on Monday that William “Chip” Kain has been hired to serve as Norris’s next police chief. Kain is currently chief of police in the town of Baneberry, Tennessee. Kain has previously served with the University of Tennessee Police Department and the Clinton Police Department. He also once co-hosted a sports talk show on a Knoxville radio station. He succeeds Danny Humphrey, who stepped down earlier this year.

The Bulletin also reported that the City Council voted to reorganize the city’s Public Safety Department. The reorganization will essentially create separate police and fire departments, a move that supporters say will allow members of both to be more efficiently trained and supervised. That reorganization was unanimously approved.

WYSH Radio in Clinton is an Oak Ridge Today news partner.

Rep. Fleischmann okay after shooting at charity baseball practice

Posted at 9:15 am June 14, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Chuck Fleischmann

Note: This story was updated at 10:05 a.m.

U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann, a Republican whose district includes Oak Ridge, is okay after a shooting that injured five people during a Wednesday morning practice for an annual charity baseball game in Alexandria, Virginia, officials said.

House Majority Whip Steve Scalise and two Capitol police officers were among those hit, according to WJLA, an ABC affiliate in Washington, D.C. The others who were shot sometime around 7:15 a.m. Wednesday reportedly included a staffer and a lobbyist. Scalise is reported to be in stable condition at George Washington University Hospital.

Conner Ingram, spokesperson for Fleischmann, said the congressman was at the practice and is okay.

“I have been told by staff that he is okay,” said Alan Beauchamp, a close friend of Fleischmann’s who has worked on his campaigns since 2009. “He is safe, from what I understand.” [Read more…]

Anderson County Budget Committee sends budget with no tax increase to County Commission

Posted at 2:35 pm June 13, 2017
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Steve Emert

The Anderson County Commission Budget Committee has completed its work on the county budget and forwarded it to County Commission for consideration and approval at its June 13 special-called meeting, a press release said. The full budget is available on the county web site at andersontn.org under the Finance Department tab.

“The Budget Committee and Finance Department had several challenges in preparing next year’s budget,” said Myron Iwanski, Budget Committee chair. “This is the first year operating under the 81 Financial Management Law. It has resulted in changes in the Finance Department’s role and its organizational structure and staff. There have also been the challenges of having to take $1.5 million dollars from our fund balance to address Ambulance Service shortfalls; the continuing costs for legal fees that have accumulated over the last four years; the computer breach; and increases in medical insurance cost.”

The press release said the proposed budget keeps spending in departments at current levels, but it includes funding for an Information Technology staff. It provides funding for a capital outlay note to purchase a county Senior Center building, relocate the General Session Court in Oak Ridge to a county-owned building, and fund several needed building upgrades. [Read more…]

Applegate named Oak Ridge director of administrative services

Posted at 1:20 pm June 13, 2017
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Bruce Applegate

Bruce Applegate, who had been interim personnel director, has been named director of administrative services for the City of Oak Ridge, a press release said.

Applegate is a former assistant to the city manager. He had been leading the Personnel Department after the retirement of long-time Personnel Director Penelope Sissom in the summer of 2016, the press release said. Applegate was named interim department director while the city launched its search for a new personnel director.

Applegate has been selected to fill that position, although Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson said he chose to “re-title and re-tool the position” as director of administrative services. That decision came after careful consideration of the future of the position and how it can best serve the needs of all departments, the press release said. The new position will continue to oversee all Human Resources processes and personnel, but will also focus on strategic projects that have major impacts on the city. [Read more…]

Council to consider engineering contract for pedestrian improvements on Turnpike, Illinois

Posted at 5:07 pm June 11, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge City Council on Thursday will consider an engineering contract of roughly $300,000 for pedestrian improvements on Oak Ridge Turnpike and South Illinois Avenue.

Under the resolution to be considered by Council, the $298,800 engineering services contract would be awarded to Kimley-Horn of Nashville.

The estimated budget for the entire project, including both engineering and construction, is about $975,811. The work is being funded mostly with a Tennessee Department of Transportation Multimodal Access Grant of $927,021.40, Oak Ridge City Engineer Roger Flynn said in a May 24 memo to City Council members. The grant money will be allocated in three phases during a three-year period.

A 5 percent match of $48,790 is required, Flynn said. [Read more…]

Council to consider $75,000 in funding for 2017 Secret City Festival expenses

Posted at 4:40 pm June 11, 2017
By John Huotari 12 Comments

The Oak Ridge City Council on Thursday will consider whether to approve up to $75,000 in funding for expenses associated with the 2017 Secret City Festival.

The money would allow Celebrate Oak Ridge, the new nonprofit organization responsible for the festival, to pay expenses for this year’s festival, which started Friday, June 2, and ended Saturday, June 10.

The city has previously provided $50,000 in start-up funding for the new organization. That funding was considered in December.

On June 6, Celebrate Oak Ridge, an organization run by volunteers, requested additional funding from City Manager Mark Watson to “timely meet contractual obligations associated with the festival, including entertainment costs and other vendors fees,” according to a resolution that City Council members will consider Thursday.

“Celebrate Oak Ridge does not have sufficient capital reserves to meet their contractual obligations during the final week of the festival, which would impact this and potentially future events,” the resolution said. [Read more…]

Climate data: Knox County could have 20-80 more days above 95 by 2100

Posted at 11:20 pm June 8, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

By 2100, Knox County could have 20-80 more days when the maximum temperature is above 95 degrees Fahrenheit, according to climate data used by the City of Knoxville and developed with help from Oak Ridge National Laboratory and NOAA Climate Explorer.

The additional 20 days with a high over 95 is considered the best-case scenario. That would be almost three more weeks of high temperatures.

The 80 more days with a high over 95 would be a worst-case scenario. That would be close to three more months of high temperatures.

The higher and lower number of days appear to be correlated with, or caused by, higher and lower emissions.

There could be some variability in the temperature increases from year to year, but the overall trend would be up, according to the data, which used the NOAA Climate Explorer. (NOAA is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.)

An animated image based on the data shows projected changes from 2011 to 2050 in an eight-county region, including Knox and Anderson. Overall, there would be a general increase in the number of days with a maximum temperature above 95 degree Fahrenheit, compared to a 1981-2005 average. There could be some variability by location, even between counties. You can the animated image here: ORNL Climate Data Summary Movie. (The movie moves quickly through the slides after the animation; you can find a PDF version of those slides in the link at the end of this article.) [Read more…]

Senior Center has Lunch & Learn programs in June

Posted at 2:42 am June 8, 2017
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The Oak Ridge Senior Center will be offering two Lunch & Learn programs during the month of June in support of Cancer Survivor Month, a press release said.

On Wednesday, June 14, join the Thompson Cancer Survival Center at 12 p.m. for an hour-long informational session about nutrition and how it relates to cancer treatment and survival. Lunch for this program will be sponsored by Brookdale Senior Living.

On Wednesday, June 28, at 12 p.m., the United Cancer Support Fund will present a special educational program that contains information and resources on specific types of cancer as well as applications for free screenings. Lunch will be provided. [Read more…]

Council approves budget with no tax rate increase

Posted at 1:54 am June 8, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge City Council is pictured above in December 2016. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge City Council approved a budget with no property tax rate increase on Monday.

If the budget is adopted in a second and final vote next week, it will be the 10th year in a row without a tax rate increase in Oak Ridge.

The Council had been asked to consider a four-cent increase in the property tax rate in order to fund a 2.5 percent pay raise for Oak Ridge Schools teachers and staff. That increase would have pushed the city’s property tax rate to $2.56 per $100 of assessed value. But that request was denied.

Instead, Council voted 4-2 to keep the tax rate at $2.52.

But Council did agree, in another 4-2 vote, to give the schools about $538,000 in additional funding that the city agreed to provide on a recurring basis. That means the city will have to continue to provide that extra money in the funding that it transfers to Oak Ridge Schools each year as part of what is known as maintenance of effort. The city had also given the schools an additional $538,000 last year, but it was on a one-time basis for a digital device initiative that includes convertible laptops for students, among other expenses.

This year, members of the Oak Ridge Board of Education sought to make that $538,000 a recurring part of the school system’s funding, and they wanted to add another $318,000—or about $856,000 total—for the 2.5 percent pay raise for teachers and staff. Council members approved the first part of that request (the recurring $538,000), but not the second (the extra $318,000). [Read more…]

See design concepts for new Oak Ridge Preschool

Posted at 12:36 pm June 5, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Design concepts for the new Oak Ridge Schools Preschool at Scarboro Park, as published in May 2017. (Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge/Studio Four Design)

The City of Oak Ridge has posted the design concepts for the planned Oak Ridge Schools Preschool at Scarboro Park.

The design concepts are from Studio Four Design, an architectural firm in Knoxville. A general concept for the preschool building’s design is shown above.

Those who attended a public forum-style meeting at the Scarboro Community Center on Thursday, May 25, voted for their favorite of two potential site design concepts, which are shown below, the City of Oak Ridge said. Option one received 18 votes, and option two received 13.

Here are the two potential site design concepts, with option one first and option two second: [Read more…]

TDOT: Edgemoor Road project in Anderson County in earliest development stages

Posted at 6:31 pm June 2, 2017
By John Huotari 1 Comment

Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge

The Edgemoor Road project in Anderson County that is listed in a state three-year transportation program is in the earliest development stages, and officials don’t have details yet, including about road widening or traffic signals.

The three-year transportation plan includes a reference to 6.2 miles of SR 170 (Edgemoor Road) between SR 9/US 25W (Clinton Highway) and SR 62 (South Illinois Avenue).

“The first step, which is under way now, is the completion of what’s known as a planning document,” said B.J. Doughty, director of community relations and communications for the Tennessee Department of Transportation. “Until we get further into the engineering process, we won’t have details about the features of the project—widening, traffic signals, etc.”

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam and Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner John Schroer released TDOT’s annual three-year transportation program in May. It features approximately $2.6 billion in infrastructure investments for 101 individual project phases in 40 counties, as well as 15 statewide programs. [Read more…]

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