Oak Ridge Today

Dover Development wins national preservation award for Alexander Inn

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Alexander Guest House Front Entrance Sept. 23, 2015

The front entrance is pictured above at the Alexander Guest House, which converted the historic but long-vacant Alexander Inn hotel into a beautifully restored assisted living center. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Rick Dover and Dover Development of Knoxville have won a national preservation award for their work to convert the historic Alexander Inn, a dilapidated, vacant two-story hotel in Oak Ridge, into the Alexander Guest House, a beautifully restored assisted living center.

Knox Heritage, which played a key role in the project, announced the award on Friday. Also playing a key role was the East Tennessee Preservation Alliance.

Dover Development won the Chairman’s Award for Achievement in Historic Preservation from the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, or ACHP, a press release said. Members of the ACHP are appointed by the president of the United States.

It’s one of the highest awards given for historic preservation, the press release said. [Read more…]

Manhattan Project Park program: Oak Ridge, past to present, at Alvin K. Bissell Park

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Bridge-in-A.K.-Bissell-Park

Alvin K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge is pictured above. (Submitted photo)

 

During a walk this month, the National Park Service will discuss how and why Oak Ridge was developed and how people were encouraged to stay during World War II. The free walk will be led by a ranger at Alvin K. Bissel Park at 10 a.m. Thursday, July 28.

The walk will begin at the Secret City Commemorative Walk, and it will end at the International Friendship Bell.

The walk will also feature Shigeko Uppuluri, who will discuss her role in bringing the Friendship Bell to Oak Ridge. She will discuss the history and meaning of the bell.

The Secret City Commemorative Walk is located at the end of the parking lot next to the Oak Ridge Public Library at 1401 Oak Ridge Turnpike, near the intersection of Oak Ridge Turnpike and South Tulane Avenue. [Read more…]

Like what we’re doing? Subscribe to Oak Ridge Today

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If you appreciate what we do here at Oak Ridge Today, please consider becoming a voluntary subscriber. You don’t have to subscribe to read our stories, but your contribution will help us cover local news for you day and night, as best we can.

We currently offer three subscription levels: $5, $10, or $25 per month. We accept payments through PayPal. You can also send check payments to our P.O. box. Please visit our subscription page for information on these options. [Read more…]

Methodist Medical Center announces July classes

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Whether you want to get in shape, prepare for the birth of a baby, or find support from others going through a similar experience, Methodist has a class for you!

Classes will be held at the hospital, located at 990 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge, unless otherwise noted. For more information and registration, call (865) 835-4662 or 1-800-468-6767.

Support Groups

Mended Hearts Support Group, Thursday, July 21 at 6 p.m.

Mended Hearts offers peer-to-peer support for those affected by heart disease including patients, families, and caregivers. The group meets the third Thursday of the month in the Cheyenne Ambulatory Center Conference Room, 944 Oak Ridge Turnpike. To learn more call (865) 806-3013.

Grief Support Group, Wednesday, July 27 at 10 a.m. or 3 p.m. [Read more…]

Lokitz named ORAU corporate secretary

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Rachel-Lokitz

Rachel Lokitz

Rachel Lokitz, ORAU associate general counsel, has been elected corporate secretary by the ORAU Board of Directors. Lokitz will perform these duties in a dual capacity while still maintaining her position as associate general counsel.

In her new role, Lokitz will play an integral role in ORAU’s corporate governance and provide counsel to the board and ORAU senior leadership on board roles, responsibilities, and other governance requirements, a press release said. Primarily, Lokitz will guide the board in discharging their fiduciary responsibility to ensure the business follows its corporate rules and will be responsible for recording the board’s actions.

In her role as associate general counsel, which she has held since 2010, Lokitz provides ORAU’s programs and internal business clients with counsel concerning legal rights, contractual obligations, compliance, and risk. Lokitz also serves as primary contact for development of corporate policies. [Read more…]

Roane State’s Oak Ridge campus to host fair for adults who want to go back to college

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Roane State Community College’s Oak Ridge campus will host an information fair for adults who want to go back to college.

The Adult Information Fair will be held on Thursday, July 21, from 5-6:30 p.m. at the Oak Ridge campus at 701 Briarcliff Avenue. The fair is free and open to the public. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Schools receives three funding awards from Carl Perkins Reserve Grant

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Oak Ridge Schools Logo

Oak Ridge Schools has received three competitive grant awards from the Carl Perkins Reserve funds. The first award in the amount of $50,000 is designated for the continuation of a large competitive grant that was won to increase the offerings at Oak Ridge High School in advanced manufacturing, a pathway that includes welding, robotics, and new courses in mechatronics engineering and machining technologies.

The second award is for $10,000, and it will continue the schools system’s efforts in assisting students by paying for industry certification vouchers in nursing, Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Cloud, and AutoCAD concept-to-production toolsets, a press release said. [Read more…]

Anderson County Commission candidates at forum Thursday; Roane County forum on July 19

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Voter Registration Month

The League of Women of Voters of Oak Ridge will present two forums featuring candidates on the ballots in the August 4 elections in Anderson and Roane counties. The first forum, featuring candidates for Anderson County Commission, District 8, is tonight (Thursday, July 14).

Tonight’s forum will be held at the Oak Ridge campus of Roane State Community College in Room-111. It starts at 7 p.m. Thursday, July 14.

Three candidates are running to fill the unexpired term of Robin Biloski, who resigned from her District 8 in Oak Ridge in August 2015. The three candidates are Myra Mansfield, Angeleque McNutt, and Phil Yager. McNutt was appointed to the seat by Anderson County Commission in August, and that appointment was to last through the county’s general election this August.

District 8 includes the Emory Valley, Hendrix Creek, and Woodland voting precincts in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Photo: Water utility work before mall demolition at Main Street Oak Ridge

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Oak Ridge Public Works Main Street Oak Ridge Water Line July 14 2016 Full

The Oak Ridge Public Works Department cuts and plugs an unused fire line near the former Sears store at the former Oak Ridge Mall on Thursday, July 14, 2016. The work is being done in preparation for the demolition of the former mall, which will be replaced by Main Street Oak Ridge, a 58-acre mixed-use development. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 1:15 p.m.

The Oak Ridge Public Works Department was cutting and plugging an unused fire line near the former Sears store at the former Oak Ridge Mall on Thursday morning, preparing for the demolition of the former mall and construction of Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre mixed-use redevelopment that will replace it.

About 4,000 feet of construction fencing was put up Tuesday and Wednesday around the unused enclosed space between the mall’s two remaining anchors, Belk and JCPenney. That fencing was erected before the start of demolition, which could start next week, according to RealtyLink, the Greenville, South Carolina, company redeveloping the property.

A groundbreaking has been scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday, July 20.

Water meters on unused lines or areas of the mall that are being demolished were disconnected on Monday and Tuesday at the request of the developer, said Rick Irwin, Oak Ridge Public Works operations and maintenance manager. [Read more…]

Reminder: Anderson County Commission candidates at Thursday forum

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Reminder: A Thursday morning forum will feature three candidates for Anderson County Commission.

The three candidates are Myra Mansfield, Angeleque McNutt, and Phil Yager. They are running for one of two seats in District 8, which includes the Emory Valley, Hendrix Creek, and Woodland voting precincts in Oak Ridge.

The candidate forum is from 7:30-9 a.m. Thursday, July 14, at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, which is at 1400 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Gene Patterson will be the moderator. The forum is free and open to the public.

See previous story here: [Read more…]

Lee, a construction superintendent, running for Oak Ridge City Council

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Joe Lee

Joe Lee (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Joseph “Joe” Lee, a commercial construction worker who is now a field superintendent for a project at the University of Tennessee, is running for Oak Ridge City Council in the November 8 election.

Lee, an Oak Ridge native, announced his candidacy this month, and he said he has qualified to be on the ballot in November.

Lee is a 1970 graduate of Oak Ridge High School, and he attended Warren Wilson College in Asheville, North Carolina. He returned to his hometown in 1987 and was employed by Downtown Management Company as construction manager during the time known as “The Mall Wars,” a press release said. He met Julie Easterday there, and they were married in 1989. They now have two daughters, Lindsay and Loren.

The press release said​ Lee has worked his entire career in the commercial construction industry as either carpenter, superintendent, or construction manager. He has worked throughout the Southeast on industrial, institutional, and commercial projects, the release said. [Read more…]

Council approves backyard chickens, growlers (tap beer to go)

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Mark-Watson-and-Kayla-Wyatt-April-19-2016

Pictured above during an Oak Ridge City Council work session on Tuesday, April 19, 2016, are Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson, left, and Kayla Wyatt, an advocate for allowing a small number of hens at Oak Ridge homes. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

An earlier effort to allow backyard chickens in Oak Ridge failed. This one succeeded.

On Monday, the Oak Ridge City Council approved backyard chickens in the second and final vote.

The ordinance change allows up to six female chickens, or hens, at homes in the city, possibly by August 1. Roosters will not be allowed.

Council approved a few amendments to the proposed ordinance on Monday, agreeing to not allow the slaughter of any chickens, as opposed to just hens, and lowering the building permit for a henhouse and fenced enclosure from $50 to $25.

The amended ordinance passed 5-1, with Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch casting the lone “no” vote. Council approved an earlier version of the ordinance in a 5-2 vote in May. City Council member Rick Chinn, who was absent from this week’s meeting, joined Gooch in voting against the ordinance in May. [Read more…]