Oak Ridge Today

Photos: Removing dirt for eighth rowing lane

Posted at
By 1 Comment

eighth-lane-dredging-nov-16-2016-slider

Workers remove dirt for the eighth rowing lane on the Oak Ridge Rowing Course on the Clinch River along Melton Lake Drive on Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Workers have been removing dirt this month for the eighth rowing lane on the Oak Ridge Rowing Course on the Clinch River on the east end of town.

More than 250 truckloads of dirt had been removed as of November 16, according to Laurel Patrick of First Place Finish Inc., which received a $548,350 contract to add the eighth lane during a special meeting in September. The work will include a precast concrete block retaining wall and associated dredging and site work.

Oak Ridge officials announced in late October that the speed limit on a section of Melton Lake Drive would be temporarily reduced for at least three months starting Monday, October 31, while the eighth rowing lane is built, and part of the Melton Lake Greenway will be closed as necessary.

The speed limit has been reduced from 45 miles per hour to 25 mph along Melton Lake Drive between Amanda Drive and Palisades Parkway. The change will remain in place for a minimum of three months  starting October 31. Signs were to be installed to warn drivers of the reduced speed limit. [Read more…]

Weather Service: Few inches of rain possible next week

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

wetting-rains-possible-next-week-nov-26-2016

Image by National Weather Service in Morristown

 

A few inches of rain are possible starting Monday in areas hardest hit by the drought, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown.

That would be a reversal of a months-long trend as a drought persists in the Southeast. The Knoxville area hasn’t had more than one inch of rain in more than four months, or 142 days, the National Weather Service said. The last time Knoxville had more than one inch of rain was July 5.

The Weather Service said a slow-moving upper-level storm system will start affecting the region during the early to middle part of next week.

“Good chances for some beneficial rains will exist late Monday through Wednesday evening,” forecasters said. [Read more…]

Two forest fires burn near Petros

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

highway-62-fire-4-nov-23-2016-web

The Little Brushy fire burns on a ridge above Highway 62 near Petros-Joyner School and the intersection with Highway 116 on Wednesday evening, Nov. 23, 2016. The fire is a few miles south of Petros. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 10:15 a.m. Nov. 24.

PETROS—One forest fire that has burned close to 800 acres since Sunday had scorched down to the north side of Petros by Wednesday evening, and a second nearby mountain fire that residents said started Wednesday morning billowed smoke across a section of Highway 62 south of Petros, near Petros-Joyner School in Morgan County.

The first fire, the one that firefighters have been battling since Sunday, is the Bald Knob Road fire. It’s named for a road that runs east out of Petros. It had charred 790 acres as of noon Wednesday, according to the Tennessee Division of Forestry. The fire is a suspected arson, and it was 60 percent contained on Wednesday afternoon. On Wednesday evening, firefighters appeared to have set back fires, which they use to contain blazes, near several homes in Petros, including off Armes Road in north Petros.

That fire had grown from what was reported to be a few hundred acres on Monday, when it emitted a smoke plume that could be seen for miles, including in Oak Ridge, to about 450 acres on Tuesday. It had almost doubled in size by Wednesday. [Read more…]

New parking lot paved, new sign up at Belk as work proceeds quickly at Main Street

Posted at
By 5 Comments

belk-entrance-nov-22-2016-web

Work continued on the new Belk entrance and parking lot on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016. The goal has been to complete that portion of the work at Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall, by Thanksgiving. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The new sign is up and the new parking lot paved at Belk as work proceeds quickly at Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall.

With the exception of Belk and JCPenney, the mall has been demolished, and there has significant progress on the sites where new stores will be built.

First, on Saturday, concrete stands in the parking lot in front of Belk were almost finished, and some lighting poles and fixtures were installed, said Ray Evans, retail consultant for the City of Oak Ridge. The goal has been to finish the new Belk entrance and its new parking lot by Thanksgiving.

Second, there was work on piping for interior utilities where Electronic Express and PetSmart will be located between JCPenney and Walmart on South Rutgers Avenue.

Third, the pad had been completed and a stone base put down where Dick’s Sporting Goods and T.J. Maxx will be built between Walmart and the U.S. Post Office on South Tulane Avenue, in the area of the former Sears department store. [Read more…]

Updated: Arson suspected in mountain fire emitting miles-long smoke plume

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

beech-grove-fire-from-rosedale-nov-21-2016-web

Arson is suspected in a fire that has burned about 450 acres in mountain forests about five miles northeast of Petros, authorities said. Smoke from the fire is pictured above from Highway 116 in north Anderson County on Monday, Nov. 21, 2016. The smoke plume could be seen for miles. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

beech-grove-fire-from-rosedale-nov-21-2016-web

Arson is suspected in a fire that has burned about 450 acres in mountain forests about five miles northeast of Petros, authorities said. Smoke from the fire is pictured above from Highway 116 in north Anderson County on Monday, Nov. 21, 2016. The smoke plume could be seen for miles. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

PETROS—Arson is suspected in a fire that started this weekend and has burned about 452 acres in mountain forests a few miles east and northeast of Petros, authorities said Monday.

This premium content is available only to subscribers and advertisers.

Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here.

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Volunteers raise more than half of $750,000 needed for new Friendship Bell pavilion

Posted at
By 1 Comment

new-international-friendship-bell-1

Design of the Peace Pavilion for the Oak Ridge International Friendship Bell by Demian\Wilbur\Architects, Washington, D.C.

 

Note: This story was updated at 8:45 p.m.

The project to build a new pavilion for the International Friendship Bell and relocate it in Alvin K. Bissell Park could cost $750,000, and volunteers and officials have already raised more than half of that, or just over $400,000, through paid donations and pledges.

Volunteers had a public kickoff for the project at Oak Ridge Associated Universities on Thursday. At that kickoff, Oak Ridge National Laboratory donated $150,000 to the project, and Oak Ridge Rotary Clubs contributed $10,000.

The exact amount paid or pledged is about $416,579, according to a kickoff presentation.

Here are some highlights of that presentation: [Read more…]

Preservationists concerned as NOAA seeks comment on possible move from historic building

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

noaa-building-nov-16-2016

Preservationists are concerned as federal officials seek public comment on the possibility of moving out of a historic building that is one of the few World War II-era buildings remaining on main roads in Oak Ridge—and possibly the only one left on Illinois Avenue. It was once an emergency hospital and then a health department. It now houses the Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division, or ATDD, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, at 456 South Illinois Avenue. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Preservationists are concerned as federal officials seek public comment on the possibility of moving out of a historic building that is one of the few World War II-era buildings remaining on main roads in Oak Ridge—and possibly the only one left on Illinois Avenue.

The Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division, or ATDD, of the Air Resources Laboratory, which is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, is now at 456 South Illinois Avenue. It’s just north of Ole Ben Franklin Motors and across from new shopping centers on the other side of South Illinois Avenue.

During World War II, the single-story white building was an emergency hospital to serve federal plants. Oak Ridge was built in the mid-1940s, during the war, to help make the world’s first nuclear weapons as part of the top-secret Manhattan Project, and it enriched uranium for the first atomic bomb used in wartime.

After the war, the building, which is now owned by NOAA, was used as the city’s health department, said Mick Wiest of the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association, or ORHPA.

Wiest said the building is well-maintained, and it’s received a historic preservation award from ORHPA. [Read more…]

Firefighters contain brush fire on ridge off Yarnell Road in Claxton

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

yarnell-road-fire-nov-16-2016

Firefighters contained a brush fire of about two to three acres on a ridge above Yarnell Road just outside south Clinton on Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016. Pictured above are two trucks with bulldozers from the Tennessee Division of Forestry. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 7 p.m. Nov. 17.

CLAXTON—Firefighters contained a brush fire on a ridge off Yarnell Road in Claxton on Wednesday night, authorities said.

The Tennessee Division of Forestry said the fire burned seven acres, and arson was the cause.

It was in a wooded area just outside south Clinton, said Dusty Sharpe, assistant chief of the Claxton Volunteer Fire Department. It was reported at about 6 p.m. Wednesday.

Most of the firefighters came down from the fire at about 9:40 p.m. Among those who responded were firefighters from Andersonville Volunteer Fire Department, Claxton Volunteer Fire Department, Clinton Fire Department, Marlow Volunteer Fire Department, and the Tennessee Division of Forestry.

Sharpe said the fire was contained, but it had a few hot spots that would continue to burn the next few hours. There was no damage to any structures, he said. [Read more…]

Update: Three charged after Oak Ridge shooting, victim stable

Posted at
By 1 Comment

orpd-at-shooting-on-east-holston-lane-nov-15-2016

The Oak Ridge Police Department investigates a shooting on East Holston Lane at about 1 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 5:45 p.m.

Three people have been charged with especially aggravated robbery, aggravated assault, and conspiracy after a Tuesday afternoon shooting on East Holston Lane, authorities said.

The three people are:

  • Nicholas Strickland, 25, of Oak Ridge;
  • Matthew A. Mashburn, 27, of Knox County; and
  • Nicole Brewer, 19, of Oak Ridge.

The victim of the shooting is male, but his name is not being released, the City of Oak Ridge said. He has been taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville for further treatment and is listed in stable condition. [Read more…]

Governor issues regional burn ban, including Anderson, Knox, Loudon, Morgan, Roane

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

neddy-mountain-fire-cocke-county-nov-13-2016

A Chinook helicopter drops water near a home to protect it from an advancing wildfire on Neddy Mountain in Cocke County on Sunday, Nov. 13, 2016. (Photo by Tennessee Division of Forestry)

 

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam on Monday issued a proclamation declaring a regional ban on burning in 51 counties in response to the ongoing drought and destructive wildfires throughout Middle and East Tennessee.

All eastern Tennessee counties are now under the burn ban. The counties include Anderson, Campbell, Loudon, Knox, Morgan, Roane, Scott, and Union.

Effective immediately, residents in counties covered by the regional ban are not permitted to conduct any open-air burning, a press release said. The ban includes campfires, and burning of brush, vegetation, household waste, or construction debris. The ban will remain in effect until December 15. The counties under the ban are listed below.

On Monday, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture Division of Forestry was fighting 67 wildfires across nearly 16,000 acres in the Cumberland and East Tennessee districts.

One of the largest active fires in the area was a 2,432-acre fire on White Oak Circle in Morgan County. That fire was caused by arson, according to the Division of Forestry. That fire appears to be northwest of Harriman and Oakdale. [Read more…]

New water plant could cost more than $40 million

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

oak-ridge-water-treatment-alternatives

Building a new water treatment plant in Oak Ridge or rehabilitating the current one could cost between $43.1 million and $46.9 million, according to an evaluation of three alternatives prepared for the city by an engineering company. The three alternatives are show in the image above.

 

Building a new water treatment plant in Oak Ridge or renovating the current one could cost between $43.1 million and $46.9 million, according to an evaluation prepared for the city by an engineering company.

Three alternatives for renovating the existing water plant or building a new one were presented to the Oak Ridge City Council in October in an evaluation by Jacobs Engineering Group. The three options have different impacts on the raw water intake on the Clinch River in south Oak Ridge, an intermediate pump station at the Y-12 National Security Complex between the raw water intake and the existing water treatment plant, and the current 70-year-old plant, which is on Pine Ridge above Y-12.

The first alternative, which could cost $46.5 million, would rehabilitate the existing plant. It would continue to use the raw water intake, the intermediate pump station, and the water plant. It would include work at those three sites, as well as to the two underground lines that feed the water plant.

The rehabilitation would require mechanical and process equipment upgrades, pipeline replacement, electrical improvements, and slope stabilization.

The Jacobs evaluation said the building and basins at the existing plant are in good condition, and the facility works well at 8-12 million gallons per day. It has the two underground lines coming in and three going out, and two storage reservoirs on Pine Ridge, one of three million gallons and the other of four million gallons. [Read more…]

More than 4,000 acres burned in Anderson County, state records say

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

anderson-county-fires-smoke-oliver-springs-nov-10-2016-web

More than 4,000 acres have burned this month in four fires in rugged, forested parts of north Anderson County, state officials said Thursday. Smoke hangs high in the air above the mountains north of Oliver Springs on Thursday evening, Nov. 10, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 3:20 p.m. Nov. 12.

NEW RIVER—More than 4,000 acres have burned this month in five fires in mountainous north Anderson County, state officials said.

In Anderson County, 4,235 acres had been burned by the five fires as of Saturday afternoon, according to an update posted by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture Division of Forestry. That was the most acres burned by fires that were still active in Tennessee on Saturday.

Arson is listed as the cause of four of the Anderson County fires, according to the update. Debris is the cause of another.

Smoke from at least two fires hung high above the mountains north of Oak Ridge and Oliver Springs on Thursday evening. It reduced visibility to a few hundred feet on the northernmost section of Highway 116 in rural Anderson County on Friday morning. Smoke was thick near a bridge at a 90-degree bend in the highway at the Campbell County line in northern Anderson County, irritating throats and making it harder to breathe. Firefighters said there was a nearby fire that they called Bootjack, up Stoney Fork Road, which goes north into Campbell County. [Read more…]