State Archives - Oak Ridge Today

Four incumbents re-elected to Oak Ridge City Council

Posted at 10:34 pm November 6, 2018
By John Huotari 2 Comments

Warren Gooch

Note: This story was last updated at 12 a.m.

The four incumbents—Mayor Warren Gooch, Council members Kelly Callison and Ellen Smith, and Mayor Pro Tem Rick Chinn—were re-elected to four-year terms on Oak Ridge City Council on Tuesday, according to unofficial election results in Anderson and Roane counties.

The final results mirrored the results of early and absentee ballots in Anderson County.

There were four City Council seats up for regular election and five candidates for those seats.

Gooch had the most votes Tuesday, a total of 7,916 in the two counties (6,774 in Anderson County and 1,142 in Roane County). Gooch also had the highest number of votes in the transitional 2014 election, his first City Council election. [Read more…]

TVA, Fish & Wildlife Service announce trout stocking agreement

Posted at 4:32 pm November 1, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

The Tennessee Valley Authority and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have reached a multi-agency agreement to provide continued funding for three federal fish hatcheries that have stocked waters in Georgia and Tennessee with millions of trout. The agreement was announced Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2018, at a press conference beside the Clinch River below Norris Dam. (Photo courtesy Tennessee Valley Authority)

The partnership, which began in 2013, includes the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

Since 2013, TVA has been funding trout production by the Service at three national fish hatcheries: Dale Hollow and Erwin in Tennessee, and Chattahoochee Forest in Georgia. The trout are then provided to the following tailwaters: Apalachia (Hiwassee River), Blue Ridge, Boone, Cherokee, Fort Patrick Henry, Normandy, Norris, South Holston, Tims Ford, and Wilbur. Trout-stocked reservoirs in the plan include Fort Patrick Henry, South Holston, Parksville, Watauga, and Wilbur reservoirs.

The four partner agencies announced the new agreement Tuesday at a press conference beside the Clinch River below Norris Dam. The agreement provides partnership funding through fiscal year 2021, a press release said. [Read more…]

Photos: Clinch River bridge work in Clinton

Posted at 4:16 pm November 1, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Work is under way on the bridge to replace the Honorable William Everette Lewallen Bridge over the Clinch River on Clinch Avenue between downtown Clinton and South Clinton. The work is pictured above on Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Construction work has started on the replacement of the Honorable William Everette Lewallen Bridge over the Clinch River in downtown Clinton. Here are photos of the work, which could last three years, on Tuesday.

In August, WYSH Radio in Clinton reported that the contract to replace the bridge on Highway 25W/State Route 9 (Clinton Highway/Clinch Avenue) was awarded on August 17 to Charles Blalock and Sons Incorporated of Sevierville. Their bid for the replacement of the bridge, known to locals as the “green bridge,” came in at $27,735,269.72, WYSH said.

The bridge connects downtown Clinton to south Clinton. [Read more…]

Candidate Forum: Local candidates running for Tennessee House, Senate

Posted at 11:22 am October 22, 2018
By Mary Uziel 1 Comment

The League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge will sponsor a candidate forum on Thursday, October 25, at 7 p.m. in the Oak Ridge High School Amphitheater. This forum will feature candidates running in the Tennessee state general election for Tennessee Senate District 5 and Tennessee House Districts 32 and 33, and information on the Roane County wheel tax referendum, a press release said. Patrick Bryan, former League co-president, will moderate.

The two candidates for the Tennessee Senate District 5—which includes Anderson, Loudon, and part of Knox counties—are Randy McNally, the Republican incumbent, and Stuart Starr, his Democratic challenger. The two candidates for the Tennessee House District 32, which includes parts of Roane and Loudon counties, are Kent Calfee, the Republican incumbent, and Mary Ellen Blencoe, his Democratic challenger. The two candidates for Tennessee House District 33, which covers most of Anderson County, are John D. Ragan, the Republican incumbent, and Richard Dawson, his Democratic challenger. [Read more…]

Medicare Informational Session at Oak Ridge Senior Center on Oct. 22

Posted at 3:39 pm October 19, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Enrolling in or changing your Medicare program can be a daunting task. For those seeking more information, be sure to join the Tennessee State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) at the Oak Ridge Senior Center on Monday, October 22, at 10 a.m.

The SHIP program offers free and objective assistance for Medicare participants. Counselors will begin with a presentation on basic Medicare benefits, including Medicare Advantage Plans, Medicare Part D drug plans, and Medicare Supplement (Medigap) policies, a press release said.

If you need more individualized counseling after the presentation, SHIP counselors will be available to review your current coverage with the 2019 information and make sure you are on the best plan for your needs, the press release said.

Additional questions about the program can be directed to the Oak Ridge Senior Center at (865) 425-3999.

Meet candidates for public office at Chamber on Tuesday

Posted at 1:46 pm October 14, 2018
By Kathy Gillenwaters Leave a Comment

You can meet candidates for public office in Oak Ridge on Tuesday.

The event, called “Popcorn and Politics,” will be at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce from 4:30-6 p.m. Tuesday, October 16. It’s hosted by the Chamber’s Advocacy Committee. It will give the community the opportunity to meet candidates running for office in the November 6 election, a press release said.

All local candidates, as well as candidates running for state legislative offices and federal offices, have been invited to participate, the press release said. The event will be held in the Joyce Conference Room at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce at 1400 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

“The public is invited to come meet the candidates,” the press release said. [Read more…]

Public availability session on proposed DOE landfill is Thursday

Posted at 2:18 pm October 8, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

There is a public availability session on the proposed federal landfill in Oak Ridge on Thursday.

The U.S. Department of Energy has issued a proposed plan to build a new landfill on the Oak Ridge Reservation. The landfill, the Environmental Management Disposal Facility, would be in Bear Creek Valley west of the Y-12 National Security Complex. It is intended for disposal of radioactive, hazardous, and toxic wastes. It would be used as cleanup work ends at the East Tennessee Technology Park and the existing landfill, the Environmental Management Waste Management Facility fills up, and cleanup work moves to Y-12 and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

A press release said the Sierra Club has invited state and federal officials from DOE, Environmental Protection Agency, and Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation to be available for public questions about the Environmental Management Disposal Facility. The public availability session has been scheduled from 2 to 8 p.m. Thursday, October 11, at the TDEC office at 761 Emory Valley Road in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Signal timing project would be eligible for 100 percent federal funds

Posted at 7:34 pm October 7, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak-Ridge-Turnpike-South-Tulane-Dec-10-2015

The intersection of Oak Ridge Turnpike and Tulane Avenue is pictured above in this file photo from December 2015. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A $2.8 milion signal timing project that could affect traffic lights on Oak Ridge Turnpike would be eligible for 100 percent federal funding, according to a resolution to be considered by Oak Ridge City Council members on Monday.

The project, the second phase of a project to improve the city’s traffic signal system, could cost $2.86 million, and it would focus on 14 locations along a 2.7-mile section of Oak Ridge Turnpike between Illinois Avenue and Florida Avenue. It would include:

the installation of advanced traffic controllers at 11 intersections,
the installation of aerial and underground fiber optic cables to connect all 14 signals within the city’s existing fiber network,
the replacement of loop detectors with radar vehicle detection at stop lights, and
the establishment of a traffic operations center that would be located in the Oak Ridge Central Services Complex on Woodbury Lane to manage the signals.

In addition, the city would replace older existing traffic signal heads with LED signals that operate more efficiently, more reliably, and provide better visibility, according to a memo that accompanies the resolution and was written by Oak Ridge Public Works Director Shira McWaters. She said new pedestrian-accessible signals would be installed at appropriate locations along with new signing and pavement marking upgrades. And two signals would also be reconstructed to receive new mast arms. [Read more…]

Election 2018 Community Forum: Liberty and Justice for All

Posted at 9:14 am October 6, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Submitted photo

Submitted

A local faith-led, multiracial and interdenominational coalition of congregations, community organizations, and labor groups will present its vision for East Tennessee to candidates on October 7 from 3-5 p.m. at the University of Tennessee Cox Auditorium on the UT-Knoxville campus.

Through a months-long process of discussion and voting in a series of meetings open to all, the Alliance for Community Transformation of East Tennessee (ACT-ET) has arrived at three specific ways our elected representatives can improve the quality of life in our community:

Provide a path for all Tennessee residents to obtain a valid driver’s license.
Ensure local lending institutions provide equal opportunity to home mortgages for all families.
Increase access to necessary medical treatment for those struggling with opioid dependence.

ACT-ET member organizations include Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church and St. Mary’s Catholic Church. Members of First Christian Church of Oak Ridge, First Presbyterian Church of Oak Ridge, and Oak Valley Baptist Church participated in choosing the issues and planning the public meeting. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge voters invited to meet election candidates

Posted at 11:48 pm September 19, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Voters are invited to a Meet the Candidates event on Thursday, October 18, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the gymnasium at the Oak Ridge Civic Center.

Democracy for East Tennessee is sponsoring this event so residents of Oak Ridge can become better acquainted with the candidates for offices in the upcoming November city, state, and federal general elections, a press release said. Early voting begins October 17, and the election is Tuesday, November 6. [Read more…]

Riverside Drive in Clinton closing for bridge replacement

Posted at 10:06 am September 18, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Visual of the location of the new bridge over the Clinch River connecting downtown Clinton to South Clinton. (Image via Clinton Mayor Scott Burton/Facebook)

Blalock Construction has notified the City of Clinton that Riverside Drive will be closed between South Charles G. Seivers Boulevard (State Route 61) and Meadowbrook Street, beginning early Tuesday morning, September 18, a press release said.

For the next three years, motorists trying to reach the Riverside/Riverbend areas will need to use one of four alternate routes: Meadowbrook Street, Willow Street, Elm Street, or Redbud Drive, the press release said.

Attempting to make a left turn onto any of these four streets may present a challenge during afternoon hours, when school and work traffic is at its peak, the press release said. To help accommodate this, the City of Clinton is currently upgrading the traffic signal at Willow Street/Sunset Road, the release said. [Read more…]

Low-flying helicopters part of emergency exercise Wednesday

Posted at 1:34 pm September 17, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

There will be an emergency exercise on Wednesday, and it will include low-flying helicopters, a press release said.

The emergency exercise is being conducted by emergency responders from the U.S. Department of Energy and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, along with state and local emergency management personnel.

“The public may observe emergency responders simulating response activities in the area surrounding the Oak Ridge Reservation,” a press release said. “Additionally, low-flying National Guard helicopters will be performing training in the area. The helicopters will be flying in the Melton Hill Lake area near ORNL. These activities are part of the exercise.” [Read more…]