Oak Ridge Today

Andersonville Fire Department to hold open house, grand opening today

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Andersonville Volunteer Fire Department will officially open its third fire hall in mid-September, but the department is offering citizens a chance to get a look at the new station during an open house and grand opening celebration set for today (Tuesday) at 4 p.m.

The Belmont station, built by volunteers at a cost of $110,000, is located at the intersection of Park Road and Sequoyah Lane on the former site of the Belmont School, which burned down in the mid-1960s. The new fire station is 5,000 square feet in size. [Read more…]

Dog park under construction at Big Turtle Park

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Oak Ridge Dog Park Construction

Construction continues at the dog park at Big Turtle Park in west Oak Ridge. (Photo courtesy Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department)

Construction continues at Petsafe Dog Park located at Big Turtle Park on the west end of Oak Ridge.

The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department has posted pictures of the work. They show sign structures, sidewalks, and site improvements that are currently under way.

The dog park construction is being funded by a $100,000 donation from Radio Systems Corp. in Knoxville. [Read more…]

Officials, volunteers celebrate new Cedar Barren kiosk near JMS

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Oak Ridge Cedar Barrens Celebration

Officials and volunteers celebrate a new kiosk with a ribbon-cutting at Oak Ridge Cedar Barrens near Jefferson Middle School on Aug. 17. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge Cedar Barren has a new kiosk, thanks to Thomas Crout and his Eagle Scout project. There was a ribbon cutting on Saturday, Aug. 17, followed by a brief interpretive tour and some cleanup work.

Located next to Jefferson Middle School in Oak Ridge, this barren is a joint project of the City of Oak Ridge, the State Natural Areas Division, and Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning. This area is one of just a few cedar barrens in East Tennessee.

DOE provides more funding for small nuclear reactor project

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mPower Containment

Conceptual drawing of an underground containment structure housing two B&W mPower™ reactor modules. (Image courtesy B&W)

Federal officials have agreed to spend another $20.5 million on a project that could result in a small modular nuclear reactor in west Oak Ridge within a decade.

The Babcock & Wilcox Co. announced Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Energy has allocated the additional funding to an agreement with Babcock & Wilcox mPower Inc. (B&W mPower) under what is known as the Small Modular Reactor Licensing Technical Support Program.

The small modular reactor, which can generate 180 megawatts of electricity, could be built at the former Clinch River Breeder Reactor site in west Oak Ridge by 2022. [Read more…]

Roane State employees honored

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Casey Cobb

Casey Cobb

Lon Bird

Lon Bird

Roane State Community College faculty member Casey Cobb and staff members Lon Bird and Rebecca Calfee have been honored for their work.

Cobb, associate professor of history, received the 2013 Sarah Ellen Benroth Award for Outstanding Teaching. [Read more…]

Children’s Halloween Party scheduled, game booth sponsors needed

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The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department will host the 2013 Children’s Halloween Party on Thursday, Oct. 24, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. This annual event will be attended by hundreds of children and their parents. Activities will be planned for every room in the Oak Ridge Civic Center, and a hay ride will be offered in A.K. Bissell Park, weather permitting.

Businesses and organizations are invited to sponsor a game booth for the event. Sponsors will supply two to four volunteers to operate the game throughout the event. The Recreation and Parks department will provide the games and prizes unless sponsors wish to provide their own. Games should be age-appropriate for children age 10 and under. Applications can be emailed or picked up at the Civic Center front desk. [Read more…]

Top neutron scientists named to positions at ORNL

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Neutron Sciences Directorate, or NScD, home organization for the Spallation Neutron Source and High Flux Isotope Reactor, has filled two high-level administrative positions with leaders in the neutron scattering field.

Rob McQueeney, recently with Iowa State University and Ames Laboratory, has been named NScD’s deputy associate laboratory director. Alan Tennant, currently with the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin in Germany, has been named chief scientist for the NScD. [Read more…]

Corker calls for air strikes in Syria after possible chemical attacks

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U.S. Senator Bob Corker

Bob Corker

U.S. Sen. Bob Corker on Monday said he would support a decision by the president to engage in surgical strikes against the Syrian government given the evidence of the Assad regime’s continued use of chemical weapons, a press release said.

However, he cautioned against any further involvement beyond supporting “vetted, moderate members of the Syrian opposition,” the release said. The senator urged the Obama administration to eventually seek congressional authorization for any use of military force in Syria.

Corker is a Tennessee Republican and ranking member of the Foreign Relations Committee. [Read more…]

Council to discuss utility rates, consider pedestrian safety

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Oak Ridge City Council

The Oak Ridge City Council will discuss a utility rate review and consider more than $500,000 worth of projects to improve pedestrian safety during a work session and special meeting tonight. (File photo)

The Oak Ridge City Council will consider pedestrian safety projects valued at more than $500,000 and a $175,000 contract with the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce during a special meeting at 8 p.m. today (Monday).

That meeting will follow a non-voting work session that starts at 7 p.m. During the work session, Council will discuss a proposal to a build a storm water holding tank along Emory Valley Road on land that could be donated by Anderson County, hear a presentation on the purchasing and financing of three replacement fire engines, and discuss a utility rate review by Chris Mitchell of Management Consultants LLC. [Read more…]

Girl on bike hit by car, now in stable condition at UT, authorities say

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Note: This story was updated at 1:50 p.m.

A nine-year-old girl who was riding a bicycle when she was hit by a car on Highland Avenue on Sunday night is in stable condition at the University of Tennessee Medical Center, authorities said.

The girl was struck at about 5:38 p.m. near Hillside Drive, according to a Monday morning news release from the Oak Ridge Police Department. The car was a 2002 black Lexus driven by Roy Kirk, 67, of South Hollywood Circle in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

First Wildcat Day for all sports draws players, fans, Coach Gaddis

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Oak Ridge High School Wildband at Wildcat Day

Members of the Oak Ridge High School Band play at the opening of a Wildcat Day pep rally at the Ben Martin field on Saturday.

Enthusiastic fans and players flocked to Oak Ridge High School on Saturday for a first-of-its-kind pep rally that incorporated all sports and featured a football coach that helped the Wildcats win their last state championship and is leading the team once more.

The pep rally was part of what had officially been proclaimed Wildcat Day by the Oak Ridge City Council. The rally featured short cheerleader routines, music by members of the Oak Ridge High School Band, short speeches from city and school officials, an introduction to the ORHS Wildcats football team and coaches, and fireworks. [Read more…]

New manager announced at Y-12 Federal Credit Union in Roane County

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Amber Wyrick

Amber Wyrick

Y-12 Federal Credit Union recently announced that Amber Wyrick has been named branch manager of the Roane County Branch, located at 1715 Roane State Highway in Harriman.

Wyrick has worked at the Roane County Branch for more than 12 years, a press release said. She started as a teller and also held the positions of head teller and assistant branch manager before being promoted to branch manager. [Read more…]