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Letter: Eby a valuable resource to schools, community

Posted at 2:17 pm November 1, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Letters Leave a Comment

To the Editor:

Bob Eby has served as both a member and chairman of the Oak Ridge Board of Education. During most of his time on the Board, I was employed as superintendent of the Oak Ridge Schools, which gave me the opportunity to work closely with Bob on many school-related issues.

Bob was a tremendous help in responding to problems and decisions facing the Oak Ridge Schools at the time. His leadership and guidance were invaluable to the Board and certainly to me as superintendent of schools.

Bob has strong private-sector experience including excellent organizational skills which were, and continue to be, very helpful in analyzing and deciding issues facing the schools. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Letters, Opinion Tagged With: Bob Eby, Bob Smallridge, community involvement, East Tennessee Economic Council, education, leadership, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation, Oak Ridge Schools, private sector experience, re-election, superintendent

Letter: Smith informed, intelligent, civil, sensible

Posted at 2:06 pm November 1, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Letters 1 Comment

To the Editor:

Oak Ridgers are fortunate in having a candidate of the caliber of Ellen Smith willing to once again serve on City Council, where, between 2007 and 2012, we benefited greatly from her wise, intelligent, and highly informed voice.

In addition to her service on Council, Ellen has long been involved in community affairs, and has participated in local government. This, plus her professional background, has made her a strong and consistent advocate for protecting the environmental values of lands and waters of the city and of the Oak Ridge Reservation.

Her activities have also given her a broad understanding of governmental matters additional to the diverse environmental issues and concerns that face Oak Ridge. She is committed to be part of a community leadership that recognizes the challenges we face and makes choices that maximize our assets and opportunities. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Letters, Opinion Tagged With: Advocates for the Oak Ridge Reservation, AFORR, City Council, City of Oak Ridge, community affairs, election, Ellen Smith, environmental issues, Environmental Quality Advisory Board, Environmental Sciences Division, EQAB, geology, greenways, Liane Russell, LOC, local government, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Reservation, Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee, surface mining, U.S. Department of Energy, Waste Management, water quality, water resources management

Letter: Congressional debate, candidate answers available online

Posted at 1:29 pm November 1, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Letters Leave a Comment

To the Editor:

Oak Ridge voters in the Third Congressional District might like to know that they can view the Monday night, October 27, debate between Rep. Chuck Fleischmann and Dr. Mary Headrick at https://www.facebook.com/EastTennesseePBS.

Voters might also like to see answers from City Council and School Board candidates to questions asked of them by DFET (Democracy for East Tennessee) following the Candidates’ Reception sponsored by the group on October 9 in Oak Ridge at www.dfet.org.

DFET Executive Committee:

Tom Burns, Leslie Agron, Joan Cassens, Virginia Jones

Oak Ridge

Filed Under: Letters, Opinion Tagged With: candidate answers, Candidates Reception, Chuck Fleischmann, City Council, Democracy for East Tennessee, DFET, Joan Cassens, Leslie Agron, Mary Headrick, school board, Third Congressional District, Tom Burns, Virginia Jones, voters

Letter: Fleischmann a good fit for Third District

Posted at 12:59 pm November 1, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Letters Leave a Comment

To the Editor:

I have known Chuck Fleischmann for over five years and know him to be a good family man and a person of integrity. Chuck Fleischmann has served nearly three terms in the United States House of Representatives and has never strayed from his conservative values. He has voted in a fashion that fits the values of the majority of the Third District of Tennessee. Chuck, quite simply, is a good fit for the district.

Chuck opposes amnesty, votes to protect the Second Amendment, and supports the free market. He has repeatedly championed our free enterprise system. Chuck is a committed conservative, which can be seen in his voting record.

His commitment to veterans can be seen in the three new Veteran’s Affairs clincs in our district. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Letters, Opinion Tagged With: amnesty, Appropriations Committee, Chuck Fleischmann, conservative, Energy and Water Subcommittee, free enterprise, Oak Ridge, Second Amendment, Tennessee, Third District, U.S. Department of Energy, United States House of Representatives, Veterans Affairs

Letter: Proud of Progress PAC endorsement, positive campaign

Posted at 12:08 pm October 24, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Letters 8 Comments

To the Editor:

I read the article in Wednesday’s The Oak Ridger where the reporter contacted the five candidates who were not endorsed by the Progress PAC for comments. I wonder why The Oak Ridger did not contact all the candidates.

Either way, I found most comments professional, and in particular Mike Mahathy’s and Jean Hiser’s and in general Andrew Howe’s. Both Andrew Howe’s and Laurie Paine’s, however, referenced me so I feel necessary to respond. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Letters, Opinion Tagged With: Andrew Howe, Board of Education, Bob Eby, candidates, Centrus Energy, Chamber membership, ethics, Jean Hiser, Laurie Paine, Mike Mahathy, PAC, Progress PAC, term limits, The Oak Ridger, Trina Baughn, USEC

Letter: Questions candidate’s criticism of Library

Posted at 11:55 am October 24, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Letters 1 Comment

To the editor:

Sadly, as a voter I have come to accept a certain amount of hyperbole, half-truths, and skewed statistics from candidates for federal and state offices. I’m sorry to see it reach our municipal election.

I’m talking specifically about the candidate for City Council, Doc Savara, whose platform and door-to-door campaign includes sharp criticism of the Oak Ridge Public Library, the library director, and staff. He alleges inefficient use of taxpayer dollars, bloated fees, and over-staffing, and he bases his findings on a check of national statistics and a story he has heard from a library patron who obviously had an unhappy experience. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Letters, Opinion Tagged With: campaign, candidates, City Council, Doc Savara, municipal election, Oak Ridge Public Library, Susie Stooksbury

Guest column: Smith responds to Progress PAC endorsement

Posted at 5:07 am October 22, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Guest Columns 9 Comments

Ellen Smith

Ellen Smith

By Ellen Smith

I was surprised and gratified by the recent news that the Progress PAC (the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce political action committee) endorsed my candidacy for City Council. To my dismay, several citizens have told me that this endorsement indicates that I have somehow “sold out” to the Chamber of Commerce. I am writing to respond to their allegations.

The Progress PAC endorsement was a surprise to me because I have never been aligned with the Chamber, I have strongly opposed some Chamber initiatives in the past, and I am not shy about my support for principles like conservation of publicly owned open space and putting the interests of existing residents and owners ahead of the interests of new business development.

However, I respect the Chamber as the main representative of and advocate for a very important element of our community—and a group whose members and volunteers who are passionate about the future of Oak Ridge. We share many common goals and interests for this community, and if we are going to make progress as a community, it’s necessary for government, the business community, our nonprofit sector, and (ideally) all citizens to try to understand each other’s interests and needs and work together for the benefit of all. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Guest Columns, Opinion Tagged With: business development, candidate, Chamber of Commerce, community, donations, Ellen Smith, endorsement, Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, Oak Ridge City Council, open space, PAC, political action committee, positive outcomes, Progress PAC, volunteers

Guest column: Running for BOE to give hope, a voice to the 47 percent

Posted at 4:52 am October 22, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Guest Columns 3 Comments

Laurie Paine

Laurie Paine

By Laurie Paine

47 percent.

What do you think of when you hear that number? As a parent, I can tell you that if that was my child’s grade I would be heartbroken, concerned.

“How can I help?” would be my next thought.

Well…

47 percent is roughly how many Oak Ridge students are economically disadvantaged. This is one of the most frequently quoted statistics recently, and sadly, it is often used to justify spending for less-than-stellar results. Rarely, the children behind this number are even given a face or a name…

So who are the 47 percent? [Read more…]

Filed Under: Guest Columns, Opinion Tagged With: 47 percent, children, economically disadvantaged, Laurie Paine, math, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge High School, Oak Ridge Schools, reading, school system, spending, students, teachers

Letter: Callison appreciates Progress PAC endorsement

Posted at 4:36 am October 22, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Letters Leave a Comment

Kelly Callison

Kelly Callison

To the Editor:

I appreciate the endorsement from the Progress PAC and the support from a broad range of residents.

As I have campaigned across the city from Glenwood to West Hills to Woodland, the concerns are the same as those of the PAC: the desire for exceptional schools, quality housing, and retail and industrial growth. These are the things Oak Ridgers are concerned about, and I intend to focus on these issues and bring the city together to move in a positive direction.

Kelly Callison

Oak Ridge City Council candidate

Filed Under: Letters, Opinion Tagged With: candidate, endorsement, housing, industrial growth, Oak Ridge City Council, Progress PAC, retail, schools

Letter: Baughn endorses Garcia Garland

Posted at 11:41 am October 19, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Letters 14 Comments

Trina Baughn

Trina Baughn

To the Editor:

This election cycle, some candidates have characterized City Council deliberations as combative or regressive. The truth is, however, that of the hundreds of decisions made every year by City Council, the majority are made by unanimous vote. The same is true of the Board of Education and our boards and commissions.

A well-balanced government should not be stacked with all like-minded people whose primary goal is to achieve harmony. Some might argue that unanimity, which should not be mistaken for progress, is what has gotten us into many of the messes we are in. No, an elected body should allow for all voices to have the opportunity to be heard and considered. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Letters, Opinion Tagged With: accountability, Board of Education, City Council, harmony, Oak Ridge City Council, transparency, Trina Baughn, unanimity

Guest column: ‘One-shot’ voting unwise in Oak Ridge

Posted at 9:37 am October 19, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Guest Columns 4 Comments

Aditya "Doc" Savara

Aditya “Doc” Savara

By Aditya “Doc” Savara

“One-shot” voting is unwise in Oak Ridge.

This year, there are four seats for City Council and three seats for the Board of Education up for election in Oak Ridge.

A column that appeared online at Oak Ridge Today and in the print version of The Oak Ridger advocated “one-shot” voting—where a person only votes for a single candidate instead of using all four of their votes for City Council (or three for Board of Education). I disagree with that view and tell my supporters to vote for whomever they want on City Council.

There are 10 candidates for City Council. Let’s call them A,B,C,D…Suppose you like only two out of the 10 candidates, A and B, but like candidate A the most. With four seats available, the only time you would want to “one-shot A” is if you are afraid A and B are “neck and neck” for the last position with B beating A—for example, if the results turned out D,C,E,B,A,F,…where the first four win the election.

For any other situation, you would want to vote for both A and B. For example with D,B,A,C,E,F…you would want to vote for both A and B to make sure they both beat C. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Guest Columns, Opinion Tagged With: Aditya "Doc" Savara, Board of Education, candidates, City Council, combinations, election, Oak Ridge, one-shot voting, permutations, vote, voting

Letter: Oak Ridge needs Chinn’s perspective, expertise

Posted at 9:17 am October 19, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Letters 1 Comment

To the Editor:

Although I have never written an endorsement for any political candidates, I feel sincerely compelled to at this time.

Twenty-five years ago, I moved my family to Oak Ridge. I was not born here, had no family members here, nor did I relocate due to a job transfer or employment contract. I moved my family to this beautiful city for I desired to live in this community. I voluntarily chose Oak Ridge.

I started a business almost 24 years ago and earlier this year sold that business and am presently thoroughly enjoying retirement. Oak Ridge has been good to me and my family and God favored me over this past quarter of a century. And having the advantage of being a local business person, I want to cast my ballot in this year’s City Council election for Rick Chinn. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Letters, Opinion Tagged With: business, business person, City Council, election, Keith Lay, Oak Ridge, Rick Chinn, small business

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