Oak Ridge Today

Oak Ridge police warn of ‘spoofing’ phone scam

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Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge

Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge

 

The City of Oak Ridge and the Oak Ridge Police Department are warning of a scam telephone call that people may receive that uses a local telephone number with a 425 prefix and is titled “City of Oak Ridge.”

One of the numbers from which calls have been been received is (865) 425-1892. The calls have a recorded message that tell the person receiving the call that they have won a trip or something of value.

“This call is not from the City of Oak Ridge,” city officials said. “Rather, it is a scam which utilizes ‘spoofing’ software. Caller identification ‘spoofing’ is technology that causes the telephone network to indicate to the receiver of the call that the originator of the call is a station other than the true originating station. In other words, the software allows the caller to program the caller ID to any message or originating title.”

Again, (865) 425-1892 is not a number associated with the City of Oak Ridge. People who receive these calls should hang up immediately and ignore any recorded message from the caller, the city said.

Elks hosts Drug Awareness Day at Oak Ridge pool on Saturday

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2017 Drug Awareness Day at the Pool (Flyer)

The Oak Ridge Chapter of the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks will host the Fifth Annual Drug Awareness Day at the Oak Ridge Municipal Pool at 172 Providence Road on Saturday, June 17.

Drug awareness demonstrations will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. inside the pool area, a press release said. Hundreds of prizes will be given away to those participating in a drug awareness activity. Some of the prizes include T-shirts, coloring books, swim noodles, beach balls, and Frisbees, the press release said.

This event is a partnership with Anderson County Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department, and the Roane County Anti-Drug Coalition. [Read more…]

Front Page Follies presents musical news revue on Saturday

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The Front Page Follies cast rehearses for the June 17, 2017, event at Knoxville Convention Center. (Submitted photo)

The Front Page Follies cast rehearses for the June 17, 2017, event at Knoxville Convention Center. (Submitted photo)

 

Social media tweets and WikiLeaks figure prominently in the national news and in the 39th annual Front Page Follies, but the show will focus on finding fun in state and local stories.

The cast of local media folks and friends is ready to present the Front Page Follies on Saturday, June 17, at the Knoxville Convention Center. The musical revue of the year’s news and newsmakers offers an evening of laughs as the Front Page Foundation, host of the show, raises funds for journalism and broadcast scholarships, a press release said.

The evening will begin with a 6 p.m. reception, followed by dinner, live and silent auctions, and the stage show. Tickets to the event are $125 each. They are available on the Front Page Foundation website at www.frontpagefoundation.org, which also features a preview of auction items.

Among song highlights is “Don’t You Forget D-O-E,” on the confirmation hearing of new U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Rick Perry, to the 1980s tune “Don’t You Forget About Me.” Other Follies parodies include “Suppositions” to the tune of Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” and a Wiki-Wacky tale of “The Leaks” from the Clinton and Trump campaigns set to Ray Stevens’ “The Streak.” [Read more…]

Children’s Museum hosts Amateur Radio Kids Day on Sunday

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Amateur radio operator Jim Bogard helps children learn about amateur radio at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge. (Submitted photo)

Amateur radio operator Jim Bogard helps children learn about amateur radio at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge. (Submitted photo)

 

Children will have the opportunity to earn a “Certificate of Participation” for a two-way contact by amateur radio on Kids Day on Sunday, June 18, at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge.

Amateur Radio Kids Day will be from 1-4 p.m. in the Museum’s Discovery Lab. Participation is free with admission, a press release said.

Kids Day is designed to give on-the-air experience to young people and foster interest in getting their own amateur radio license. It also gives licensed ham radio operators a chance to share their stations and love for amateur radio with children, the press release said. [Read more…]

Atomic City Sportsmen Club has golf tournament Saturday

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The Atomic City Sportsmen Club has its 16th Annual Golf Tournament on Saturday.

The tournament is scheduled to start at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, June 17, at Centennial Golf Club at 101 Centennial Boulevard in Oak Ridge.

It’s a best ball-shotgun start, an event flyer said. The entry fee is $75 per person. It’s $90 the day of the event.

The tournament includes lunch, range balls, a goodie bag, and door prizes, the flyer said.

Contact Larry Gipson at (865) 254-1346 for more information. You may also contact any sportsman, the event flyer said.

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

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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.

ACHS baseball coach, assistant principal takes new job in Alcoa

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Information from WYSH Radio

Anderson County High School baseball coach and assistant principal Ben Downs has announced his resignation.

Downs, who has spent the last 10 years guiding the Mavericks’ baseball team, has accepted an administrative role in the Alcoa city school system.

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

Rep. Fleischmann okay after shooting at charity baseball practice

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Chuck Fleischmann

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

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Steve Emert

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…]

Barnett, former Tennessee defensive end, to be at grand opening of Dick’s Sporting Goods

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The new Dick's Sporting Goods in Oak Ridge will have a three-day grand opening celebration with a variety of giveaways and special in-store appearances from June 30-July 2, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The new Dick’s Sporting Goods in Oak Ridge will have a three-day grand opening celebration with a variety of giveaways and special in-store appearances from June 30-July 2, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 10:15 a.m. June 14.

Derek Barnett, former defensive end for the University of Tennessee Volunteers, is scheduled to be part of the grand opening of the Dick’s Sporting Goods store in Oak Ridge.

Barnett was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFL draft in April. He is scheduled to appear at the Dick’s Sporting Goods in Oak Ridge from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, July 1. Wristbands are required. They will be given on a first-come, first-served basis on the day of the appearance.

“Customers are encouraged to arrive early as we do not know the exact number of wristbands that are given out,” the company said. “However, once a customer gets a wristband, they can leave the grand opening and return.”

The new Dick’s Sporting Goods store is at Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall, at 369 South Illinois Avenue. It’s next to the new T.J. Maxx and roughly in the area of the former Sears store at the mall, between Walmart and the post office on South Tulane Avenue. [Read more…]

Applegate named Oak Ridge director of administrative services

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Bruce Applegate

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

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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…]