Government Archives - Oak Ridge Today

City Council to consider $16.5 million in bonds for Preschool, Senior Center projects

Posted at 1:09 am September 10, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A rendering of the new Oak Ridge Preschool at Scarboro Park. (Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge/Studio Four Design)

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday will consider whether to issue bonds of up to $16.5 million to build a new Oak Ridge Preschool and Oak Ridge Senior Center, and redevelop Scarboro Park.

The two projects have an estimated cost of roughly $16 million, according to the City Council agenda for Monday. The bond resolution includes about $500,000 extra for the costs of issuing the bonds and for project contingencies.

The Preschool and Scarboro Park improvements have a total estimated cost of about $12.5 million. About $11.1 million of that is for construction.

The Senior Center has a total estimated cost of roughly $3.5 million. About $3.1 million of that is for construction. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge opens bidding for Preschool, Senior Center

Posted at 11:45 pm September 9, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

A rendering of the new Oak Ridge Preschool at Scarboro Park. (Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge/Studio 4 Design)

A rendering of the new Oak Ridge Preschool at Scarboro Park. (Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge/Studio Four Design)

The City of Oak Ridge has opened the bidding period for two major projects: the new Oak Ridge Preschool with Scarboro Park improvements and the new Oak Ridge Senior Center. Interested parties must submit bids before the deadline early next month. Studio Four Design Inc. of Knoxville is the architectural firm chosen to design both buildings.

The new preschool will be a single-story facility of about 33,000 square feet on Carver Avenue. The build site is inside Scarboro Park, a roughly 10-acre parcel, a press release said. The project includes improvements to the adjacent park area such as lighted basketball/tennis courts, a baseball field, a public pavilion, green space, and a walking trail.

The current senior center is temporarily operating out of the Civic Center’s Recreation Building. The new senior center will be built next door, just to the west of the Recreation Center. The single-story, approximately 11,000 square foot facility will overlook part of A.K. Bissell Park. Plans include a large kitchen, craft and exercise rooms, billiards parlor, lounge, and other common space, the press release said. [Read more…]

TVA evaluating power generators, including Bull Run Fossil Plant

Posted at 6:13 pm August 27, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Tennessee Valley Authority’s Bull Run Fossil Plant is pictured above in Claxton on Monday, Aug. 27, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was updated at 8:50 p.m.

An assessment by the Tennessee Valley Authority will evaluate its power generators, including the coal-burning Bull Run Fossil Plant in Claxton, and determine whether the plants will be needed in the future, a spokesperson said Monday.

The focus of the assessment, which could take three to six months, will be on plants that are the least efficient, least cost-effective, and expected to have the highest future costs, TVA spokesperson Scott Brooks said. Plants that fit into that category are the Bull Run Fossil Plant, the one remaining unit (Unit 3) at the Paradise Fossil Plant in western Kentucky near Drakesboro, and combustion turbines (gas turbines), Brooks said. The assessment will look at whether TVA needs Bull Run or Paradise or combustion turbines in the future.

No decisions have been made yet, Brooks said.

He said TVA is assessing its entire generating asset base, including coal, nuclear, natural gas, and hydropower. The public utility is always evaluating its energy mix and making decisions, Brooks said. TVA President and Chief Executive Officer Bill Johnson cited a “mismatch” between energy supply and customer demand, according to S&P Global, which attended a quarterly TVA board meeting in Knoxville on Wednesday.

The results of the assessment will be provided to the TVA board of directors. It’s not clear yet if the assessment will include a recommendation to the board, but the board could make a decision based on the assessment. [Read more…]

State grant will help with national park signs, waterfront improvements

Posted at 7:08 pm August 1, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Pictured above during a state grant announcement at the Oak Ridge Municipal Building for national park signs and waterfront improvements on Tuesday, July 31, 2018, are, from left, Dave Jones, East Tennessee division manager of the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development; Amy New, assistant commissioner of community and rural development for the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development; Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch; Jody Sliger, community development director for the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development; and Marc DeRose, president of Explore Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A state grant of more than $50,000 that was announced Tuesday will help create interpretive signs for historic sites in Oak Ridge that are related to the Manhattan Project National Historical Park and improve the waterfront for events such as rowing, cycling, and festivals, officials said.

The $56,250 Tourism Enhancement Grant, part of the third round of grants, was announced Tuesday at the Oak Ridge Municipal Building. A few Oak Ridge officials attended, and so did representatives of the Tennessee Department of Tourism Development and Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development.

“Through this grant, the City of Oak Ridge, in partnership with Explore Oak Ridge, will receive funds to support projects that improve some of the city’s key tourist attractions,” a press release said.

Marc DeRose, president of Explore Oak Ridge, said there are two parts to the grant. One is to enhance the city’s component of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. The grant funding could be used to create interpretive signs at historic places like the Guest House and Chapel on the Hill. The interpretive signs will be accessible and include pictures and content, DeRose said. [Read more…]

Updated: Council approves $800,000 contract for synthetic turf at Blankenship

Posted at 6:00 pm June 20, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Blankenship Field and Jack Armstrong Stadium are pictured above on Tuesday, June 19, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was published at 4:15 p.m. June 19 and updated at 6 p.m. June 20.

The Oak Ridge City Council on Tuesday approved a $800,000 contract to buy and install synthetic turf at Blankenship Field.

Council approved the contract in 5-0 vote during a special meeting Tuesday evening in the Multipurpose Room in the Central Services Complex in central Oak Ridge.

The contract was awarded to Field Turf USA Inc. of Montreal in Quebec, Canada. The company has a regional office in Calhoun, Georgia.

The contract says the purchase and installation of the synthetic turf are not to exceed $800,000. [Read more…]

Demolished building once helped protect city, enriched uranium at Y-12

Posted at 2:18 pm June 1, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A building that was mostly demolished on Wednesday, May 30, 2018, once helped to protect enriched uranium at Y-12, and it was used by military police and the Oak Ridge Police Department to help protect the city. Part of the building, a former secure federal communications center, was still standing among the demolition debris late Wednesday afternoon. This picture was taken looking southeast from near the intersection of Bus Terminal Road and Oak Ridge Turnpike. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was last updated at 8:30 a.m. June 2.

A building that was mostly demolished on Wednesday once helped to protect enriched uranium at Y-12, and it was used by military police and the Oak Ridge Police Department to help protect the city.

The building at 101 Bus Terminal Road was once connected by radio to a Y-12 building that stored the world’s only supply of enriched uranium-235, according to a 2010 newspaper article published by D. Ray Smith, who cited Bill Sergeant, head of security after World War II.

A small section of the Bus Terminal Road building that still had historic artifacts—two holding cells and a heavy, bulletproof steel door—remained standing, surrounded by demolition debris, on Wednesday and Thursday. It’s not clear why that one section hadn’t been demolished yet, but the 2010 newspaper article by Smith said it had been a secure federal communications center and was built to be safe from attack. That small section of the building, which had no external windows, was reported to have a concrete ceiling that was one foot thick.

The building, which is at the intersection with Oak Ridge Turnpike, is now being completely demolished so a Taco Bell restaurant can be built there. The building had been extensively modified, and it’s not clear how much of it might have been considered historic.

Smith said the Bus Terminal Road building was once connected by radio to Building 9213, which stored uranium-235 for about a year at Y-12. Building 9213 is on the south side of Chestnut Ridge, which is on the south side of Y-12. After it briefly stored uranium, Building 9213 was used for criticality experiments for years, Smith said. It’s also been used to train the National Guard to identify and isolate radioactive sources as part of their training for homeland security. [Read more…]

Public meetings on June 5 to discuss Clinch River Nuclear Site

Posted at 3:40 pm May 17, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Clinch-River-Site-Bear-Creek-Road-Entrance-March-27-2016

The small nuclear reactors that could be built along the Clinch River could provide enough electricity to power several cities the size of Oak Ridge. The Bear Creek Road entrance to the Clinch River Site, where the reactors could be built by the Tennessee Valley Authority, is pictured above on Sunday, March 27, 2016. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission will have two public meetings on June 5 to discuss the draft environmental impact statement for the Clinch River Nuclear Site in west Oak Ridge.

The two public meetings will be in Kingston, and they will be transcribed, the NRC said.

They will allow the public to comment on the draft environmental impact statement, or DEIS, for the early site permit application for the Clinch River Nuclear Site, where small modular nuclear reactors could eventually be built. The DEIS is available here. [Read more…]

Updated: Council approves Rails to Trails engineering contract

Posted at 12:17 pm May 14, 2018
By John Huotari 1 Comment

The former CSX railway is pictured near Jefferson Middle School in central Oak Ridge on Dec. 30, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The former CSX railway is pictured near Jefferson Middle School in central Oak Ridge on Dec. 30, 2016. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

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

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday unanimously approved an engineering contract for the Rails to Trails project, which would convert a former CSX railroad into a bicycle and pedestrian pathway.

The consulting contract, worth an estimated $358,317, was awarded to A. Morton Thomas and Associates of Kingsport.

The agreement, approved 7-0, is to provide environmental testing, master planning, design and engineering of the trail, and help with construction bidding, Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Director Jon Hetrick told City Manager Mark Watson in a May 4 memo.

There is still much work to be done, including buying the former railroad, and the project might not go out to bid until May 2020, or two years from now, according to a draft timeline presented at the City Council meeting on Monday. And that’s assuming all goes well.

“Design and engineering will provide construction cost estimates and a phasing schedule, along with a basis for negotiating the acquisition of the rail line from CSX Rail,” Hetrick said. “Because the current programmed funding will not cover the entire project cost, the master plan will be used to leverage additional funding for construction from various funding sources, including federal highway and private funds.” [Read more…]

Despite censure, lawsuit, calls for resignation, Jones still running in May 1 primary

Posted at 7:57 am May 1, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

The Anderson County Commission, which is pictured above on March 20, 2018, unanimously censured Anderson County Circuit Clerk William Jones on Feb. 20, and asked him to resign after sexual harassment allegations were reported. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Anderson County Commission, which is pictured above on March 20, 2018, unanimously censured Anderson County Circuit Court Clerk William Jones on Feb. 20, and asked him to resign after sexual harassment allegations were reported. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was updated at 10:40 a.m.

CLINTON—He’s been accused of inappropriate behavior that includes unwelcome sexual advances, unwanted touching, and lewd and vulgar text messages. He’s been unanimously censured and asked to resign by the Anderson County Commission. He’s been sued in federal court. And some residents have joined commissioners in asking him to resign, or at least not seek re-election.

Despite those pleas, though, Anderson County Circuit Court Clerk William Jones, who has denied many allegations and called others false, is seeking re-election in the Anderson County Republican Party primary election on Tuesday, May 1. Jones has filed counterclaims in federal court and filed a defamation lawsuit in state court.

Some of the sexual harassment allegations appear to have been forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other agencies, including the Tennessee Attorney General, Tennessee Department of Labor, and Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts, according to records released by Anderson County. It’s not clear which outside agencies, if any, might be investigating the complaints, or whether the local district attorney general might be investigating.

Willliam T. Jones

Commission censures Jones, asks him to resign

The accusations against Jones, who is seeking his second four-year term, were publicly disclosed during a review of a sexual harassment complaint at an Anderson County Commission meeting on February 20.

During that meeting, Kim Jeffers-Whitaker, Anderson County’s chief deputy director of human resources and risk management, said her department had received five reports of inappropriate workplace behavior by Jones.

“The five reports create a harassing pattern,” Jeffers-Whitaker said.

She said the reports are supported by two affidavits and four sworn statements that the county’s human resources department obtained from the victims, who include four past or present employees and one citizen.

According to Jeffers-Whitaker, the alleged instances of unprofessional conduct include: [Read more…]

Rally for Second Amendment, Constitution on Saturday

Posted at 3:16 pm April 20, 2018
By John Huotari 2 Comments

Anderson County residents have organized a rally to show support for the Second Amendment and the U.S. Constitution in Clinton on Saturday.

“Aware of the threat to the Bill of Rights and the Constitution of our great nation, some very concerned citizens of Anderson County, Tennessee, have banded together to demonstrate to those who attack our liberties that they will not be successful in their attempts to destroy America,” a press release said.

“While recognizing there is no immediate threat to to our liberties in East Tennessee, we feel strongly that we must stand with those in other parts of our county who are seeing immediate threats to their right to keep and bear arms, a right that is guaranteed and protected by the Constitution of our country,” the press release said.

The rally is scheduled to start at noon Saturday, April 21, on the steps of the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton. It is meant to “show support and solidarity with freedom-loving citizens throughout the United States,” the press release said. [Read more…]

Senior Board has public progress meeting on Oak Ridge Senior Center on Thursday

Posted at 9:32 am February 10, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Senior Advisory Board will hold a progress meeting on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018, from 3 to 4:30 p.m. in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center regarding the new Oak Ridge Senior Center. The proposed design at Alvin K. Bissell Park is pictured above.

The Oak Ridge Senior Advisory Board will have a progress meeting on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018, from 3 to 4:30 p.m. in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center regarding the new Oak Ridge Senior Center. The proposed design at Alvin K. Bissell Park, just west of the Civic Center, is pictured above.

The Oak Ridge Senior Advisory Board will have a progress meeting on Thursday, February 15, from 3 to 4:30 p.m. in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center regarding the new Oak Ridge Senior Center.

The Board will meet with representatives of Studio Four Design, the Knoxville-based architecture and design firm selected for the project, to review progress and plans for the new center, a press release said. Board members and all other interested residents are encouraged to attend.

Anyone with questions prior to the meeting should contact Oak Ridge Recreation Manager Linda McGhee at [email protected] or (865) 425-3999.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

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Council to consider Blankenship design agreement, money for relocated court

Posted at 1:51 pm February 7, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The renovation work at Blankenship Field and Jack Armstrong Stadium could start in January and be complete by June, officials said Thursday, Dec. 14, 2017. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday, Feb. 12, 2018, will consider an in-kind design agreement for renovation work at Blankenship Field and Jack Armstrong Stadium. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday will consider an in-kind design agreement for renovation work at Blankenship Field and Jack Armstrong Stadium and $70,000 in funding for renovations for Anderson County General Sessions Court, Division II, which is moving to a county-owned building on Emory Valley Road.

The Blankenship Field design contract would be awarded to Barge Design Solutions of Knoxville. It would be an in-kind donation to the project, valued at up to $50,000, and used to help meet the requirement to have matching funds for a Local Park and Recreation Fund grant awarded to the city by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. That $496,000 grant required a 50 percent local match, which is to come from the Blankenship Field Revitalization Foundation.

The Barge Design Solutions work would include surveying, civil engineering, landscape design, permitting, and construction administration.

The roughly $1 million project is called the Oak Ridge Blankenship Field Renovation and Trailhead Improvement Project. [Read more…]