Oak Ridge Today

Main Street Oak Ridge site plan to be considered Aug. 6

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Oak Ridge Mall

A site plan for Main Street Oak Ridge, the $80 million redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall, which is pictured above, will be considered by city officials on Thursday, August 6, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A site plan for Main Street Oak Ridge, the $80 million redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall, will be considered by city officials next week.

The site plan was submitted on Monday, June 29. It’s one of several steps that have been recently announced on the eagerly anticipated 60-acre redevelopment. Other steps include pre-demolition activities and bid reviews, and roughly $500,000 worth of pledges from six local employers to help cover public infrastructure costs.

The City of Oak Ridge has also received and is considering a preliminary subdivision plat that details construction plans for East and West Main Street and Wilson Street, which are private roads but could become public streets. [Read more…]

After several hours of negotiating, man threatening suicide gives up gun

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Crisis Negotiations on Robertsville Road

A man who had threatened to commit suicide with a gun at a home on Robertsville Road gave up his gun after several hours of negotiations on Thursday night, authorities said. (Photo by Oak Ridge Police Department)

 

A man who had threatened to commit suicide with a gun at a home on Robertsville Road gave up his weapon after several hours of negotiations on Thursday night, authorities said.

The Oak Ridge Police Department received the call at about 8:42 p.m. Thursday, a press release said.

“As tactical officers stood by, an ORPD crisis negotiator spent several hours persuading him to come outside to speak with officers,” the release said. “When the man came outside, he insisted he had no intention of harming himself, and voluntarily handed a firearm over to them for safekeeping. After officers verified his wellbeing, he was allowed to return to his home.”

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Copyright 2015 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Pay raises, new money for schools in jeopardy

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Anderson County Teachers at County Commission

Roughly three-quarters of those attending the budget deliberations at Anderson County Commission on Monday, July 20, 2015, wore red—”Red for Public Ed.” Teachers thought they could be getting a 2 percent pay raise, but after a special Thursday night meeting to adopt the new tax rate, it’s not clear if that will still happen. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated with a poll at 10 a.m. July 31.

CLINTON—Pay raises for county employees and educators and new money for three school systems, including Oak Ridge’s, are in jeopardy after the Anderson County Commission rejected a property tax rate increase on Thursday.

A 10-cent rate hike had been anticipated in a budget approved by the Anderson County Commission in a 9-5-1 vote on Monday, July 20.

But the Commission failed to adopt the new higher tax rate during a follow-up meeting on Thursday, July 30. Commissioners rejected the higher rate in an 8-5 vote. Nine votes were needed for passage.

The higher tax rate was expected to help fund 2 percent pay raises for Anderson County Schools teachers and staff and county employees. It was also expected to generate another $423,000 in funding for Oak Ridge Schools and $134,000 for Clinton Schools. [Read more…]

Photos: Oak Ridge Velo Classic bike races, bike rodeo

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Oak Ridge Velo Classic Men Pro/I Race 2015

Organizers of the annual Oak Ridge Velo Classic describe the criterium races as being like NASCAR on bikes. Above is the Men Pro/I race on Sunday, July 26, 2015, at Horizon Center. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A bicycle racing event in Oak Ridge this past weekend (July 25 and 26) featured three types of races, a Family Wellness Festival, and a Kids Bike Rodeo. It was the URS-CH2M Oak Ridge LLC (UCOR) Oak Ridge Velo Classic.

There were three types of races that included 13 categories of competitors. Road races and time trials were staged from the parking area of the East Tennessee Technology Park on Saturday, July 25, and the criterium races were held at the Horizon Center on Sunday. This year’s criterium races—which are very much like “NASCAR on bikes”—were designated the state championships by the Tennessee Bicycle Racing Association.

The race promoters expected almost 400 competitors for the two-day event. Riders came from as far away as Florida and Ohio.

The Velo Classic also featured a Family Wellness Festival at the Horizon Center that kicked off with a noncompetitive Family Fun Ride on Sunday morning. The Wellness Festival included a Kids Bike Rodeo. [Read more…]

City Council to consider tax rate on second, final reading on Monday

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Oak Ridge City Council on July 27, 2015

The Oak Ridge City Council raised the trash pickup fee by $3.50 during a special budget meeting on Monday, July 27, 2015, and the Council set aside an extra $260,000 for capital projects such as buildings and schools. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Oak Ridge City Council will have a second and final meeting on Monday, August 3, to adopt the new property tax rate of $2.52.

The previous tax rate had been $2.39 per $100 of assessed value, so the new rate is 13 cents higher than the old one.

The new tax-neutral rate provided by Tennessee officials went up because overall property assessments went down in Anderson and Roane counties in the five-year reappraisals completed this year. Since property assessments went down in those two counties, the tax-neutral rate went up in the counties and cities within them, including Clinton, Norris, Oliver Springs, and Rocky Top.

Oak Ridge is the only one of those seven governments that, as of now, does not plan to increase its property tax rate beyond the tax-neutral rate. With the help of some last-minute changes, Oak Ridge officials were able to balance the budget in a way that doesn’t require a local increase in the property tax rate. And the budget still proposes 2 percent pay raises for municipal workers and Oak Ridge Schools teachers and staff. [Read more…]

Dryer fire injures none, Briceville fire under investigation

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Sulphur Springs Road Fire

A Sunday morning fire on Sulphur Springs Road in Anderson County injured no one but caused significant damage to the roof and laundry room of a home, according to WYSH Radio in Clinton. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Information from WYSH Radio

ANDERSON COUNTY—A Sunday morning fire on Sulphur Springs Road injured no one but caused significant damage to the roof and laundry room of the home.

The house was fully engulfed in flames when Anderson County Sheriff’s Department deputies arrived on the scene shortly after 10 a.m., and the blaze was extinguished by crews from the Marlow and Medford volunteer fire departments.

Homeowner Buster Phillips told authorities that he had heard a loud pop come from the laundry room. When he went to investigate, Phillips said, he saw a large fire behind the dryer. He and the other occupant of the house made it out safely.

It was apparently the home of Office on Aging Executive Director Cherie Phillips. WYSH reported on Wednesday that Cherie Phillips lost her home to a fire on Sunday morning, and a GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family. [Read more…]

Marczak picked as schools director in Maury County

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Christopher J. Marczak

Christopher J. Marczak

Note: This story was last updated at 10:50 a.m.

Oak Ridge Schools Assistant Superintendent Chris Marczak has been selected as director of schools in Maury County.

The Maury County School Board voted unanimously to hire Marczak, the Columbia Daily Herald reported Wednesday night. Marczak was the final candidate of the seven interviewed by the school board over a three-day period. Marczak was interviewed Wednesday.

Nine out of 11 board members chose him as their top candidate, board member Wayne Lindsey told the newspaper, which is based in Columbia, Tennessee, south of Nashville.

“I hate to go, but I couldn’t pass up an opportunity,” Marczak said in a telephone interview on Thursday morning. “This has been my home for two years, and I’ve loved it.”
[Read more…]

UCOR recognizes small businesses at awards ceremony

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Karen Reeve and Tim Melberg

Karen Reeve, UCOR small business manager, and Tim Melberg, UCOR supply chain manager, present the 2015 UCOR Small Business Awards. (Photo courtesy UCOR)

 

UCOR, the U.S. Department of Energy’s cleanup contractor for the Oak Ridge Reservation, presented awards to seven small businesses at its annual Small Business Awards ceremony, held Monday, July 27, at the Double Tree Hotel in Oak Ridge.

The categories and winners are: [Read more…]

New tax revenues plus cuts will fund pay raises in Anderson schools

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Rachel Minardo at Anderson County Commission

Rachel Minardo, president of the Anderson County Education Association, had advocated for a 4 percent pay raise for county school teachers and staff. Above, she talks to the 16-member Anderson County Commission in Clinton on Monday, July 20, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

CLINTON—New tax revenues of about $700,000 plus about $100,000 in cuts will allow Anderson County Schools to fund 2 percent pay raises for teachers and staff, the county budget director said Wednesday.

The Anderson County Commission approved a 10-cent increase in the property tax rate on Monday, July 20, and eight cents of that was for schools. Anderson County Schools will get about $700,000 from the tax rate increase, but at last week’s meeting, school officials said they still had to come up with another $100,000 or so to fund the 2 percent raises.

Chris Phillips, Anderson County accounts and budget director, said the school system was able to do that in a revised budget submitted to the county government on Wednesday. [Read more…]

AC Senior Center dealt serious setback

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Information from WYSH Radio

The one company that had expressed interest in leasing a building on South Seivers Boulevard to be used as an Anderson County Senior Center informed county leaders on Tuesday that they were withdrawing the offer.

B&B Properties had offered to lease the 10,000-square foot building to the county for five years at a cost of $1,896 per month but, in a letter to Anderson County Commission Chairman Robert McKamey, said that was no longer feasible.

The company recently leased space in Oak Ridge’s Jackson Tower to a group of doctors, which has resulted in a lack of parking for both the insurance operations housed there and the medical practice, so the company said it will be relocating some of those insurance operations to the building near downtown Clinton. [Read more…]

Clinton alumni propose multi-sport facility

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Clinton High School Multi-sports Complex

A group of Clinton Senior High School alumni have proposed a better facility for current and future student athletes. Pictured above is a proposed 12,000-square-foot modern sports facility. It would include universal access for all student athletes, with enough room for multiple teams to practice at the same time. (Image courtesy CSHS Legacy)

 

Alumni from Clinton High School have proposed a better facility for current and future student athletes. They have plans for a 12,000-square-foot multi-sport complex that could be used as a practice facility for several sports and host volleyball matches and wrestling meets.

The facility would include a weight training area, and artificial surface practice field for football, band, cheerleaders, and dance teams. A second story would have office space for coaches and a film room, according to plans posted on the website CSHS Legacy.

WYSH Radio in Clinton reported that the Anderson County Board of Education has given officials at Clinton High School the go-ahead to start exploring the possibility of constructing the new multi-sport facility at no cost to taxpayers.

WYSH said the proposed project would also renovate the existing, but aging, football field house. A second and separate part of the proposed project would also renovate the Don Lockard Gymnasium. [Read more…]

Civic Center Recreation Building to be temporarily closed for floor maintenance

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Oak Ridge Civic Center Gym

Pictured above is a basketball game in the Oak Ridge Civic Center gym. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

 

The Oak Ridge Civic Center Recreation Building will be closed Saturday, August 1, through Tuesday, August 4, for gym floor refinishing. This will include the gymnasium, the game room, all meeting rooms, and the indoor swimming pool.

The indoor swimming pool will reopen on Wednesday, August 5. The offices, meeting rooms, and game room will reopen on Thursday, August 6, at 8 a.m. The gym will remain closed until Monday, August 10.

During this time, visitors to the Civic Center Recreation Building will need to use the main entrance that faces the fountain. Staff will be available at both the Scarboro Community Center at (865) 425-3950 and the Oak Ridge Senior Center at (865) 425-3999.