• About
    • About Us
    • What We Cover
  • Advertise
    • Advertise
    • Our Advertisers
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Send News

Oak Ridge Today

  • Home
  • Sign in
  • News
    • Business
    • Community
    • Education
    • Government
    • Health
    • Police and Fire
    • U.S. Department of Energy
    • Weather
  • Sports
    • High School
    • Middle School
    • Recreation
    • Rowing
    • Youth
  • Entertainment
    • Arts
    • Dancing
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Television
    • Theater
  • Premium Content
  • Obituaries
  • Classifieds

Oak Ridge city manager retiring

Posted at 8:27 pm January 17, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Mark Watson

Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson is retiring in May.

Watson, who has been city manager since 2010, announced his May 5 retirement during an Oak Ridge City Council work session on Tuesday.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

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

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Filed Under: Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge, Premium Content, Top Stories Tagged With: Charlie Hensley, Chuck Hope, city manager, Ellen Smith, Jim Dodson, Mark Watson, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge City Council

CTF: Drugs for sale, cash, gun found in home with young children

Posted at 4:26 pm January 16, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

More than 100 pills and about 100 grams of marijuana along with $9,000 in cash and a Glock 26 9 mm pistol were found in a home with three children younger than eight this month, law enforcement officers said.

The Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force searched the home on Utica Circle with a narcotics warrant on January 10.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

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

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Filed Under: Anderson County, Anderson County, Courts, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Top Stories Tagged With: Bucky Hart, Buprenorphine, child abuse, CTF, Haley Hart, marijuana, pills, Roxicodone, Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, Suboxone, Tim Buckner

Fentanyl, meth allegedly found during narcotics search

Posted at 3:38 pm January 16, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Fentanyl, methamphetamine, other suspected drugs, and a gun were found during a narcotics search of an Oak Ridge home this month, according to law enforcement officers.

The Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force in Anderson County searched the home on Jasper Lane on Monday, January 9.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

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

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Filed Under: Anderson County, Anderson County, Courts, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County General Sessions Court, Danielle Brown, fentanyl, Jegarian Cobb, meth, methamphetamine, narcotics search, Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, Tim Buckner

ORNL isotope center estimated to cost $250 million

Posted at 12:17 am January 14, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge National Laboratory had a groundbreaking ceremony on Oct. 24, 2022, for the U.S. Stable Isotope Production and Research Center. A design image of the new center is pictured above.

Note: This story was last updated at 4 p.m.

A new center to research and produce isotopes at Oak Ridge National Laboratory could cost an estimated $250 million.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

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

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, Premium Content, Science, Slider, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Inflation Reduction Act, isotopes, Jennifer Granholm, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, SIPRC, stable isotopes, U.S. Stable Isotope Production and Research Center, Y-12 National Security Complex

Man received 3-year sentence for assault on officer

Posted at 10:41 pm January 13, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A man who had been accused of fighting with Oak Ridge police officers and significantly injuring one of them was sentenced to three years in prison when he pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and reckless endangerment against one of the officers.

That officer had been taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville with a significant arm injury, and two other officers had been taken to Methodist Medical Center to have their injuries evaluated, the City of Oak Ridge said at the time. One had been hit with a taser taken by the defendant, according to affidavits filed at the time.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

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

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Top Stories Tagged With: aggravated assault, Anderson County Criminal Court, Christina Askren, Joe Gibson, Lauren Gray, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Police Department, ORPD, plea agreement, reckless endangerment, Toravanno Ramsey Dewerff, Zach Gauthier

Weigel’s proposed at Union Valley

Posted at 8:21 pm January 12, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A Weigel’s store site plan for about 3.6 acres at South Illinois Avenue and Union Valley Road, as presented to the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, Jan. 12, 2023.

A new Weigel’s store has been proposed along South Illinois Avenue.

The 6,600-square-foot store would be on about 3.61 acres at the intersection with Union Valley Road.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

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

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Filed Under: Business, Business, Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge, Premium Content, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission, South Illinois Avenue, State Route 62, Union Valley Road, Weigel's

Lead trial court prosecutor retires

Posted at 5:48 pm January 9, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Pictured above are Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark, left, and Deputy District Attorney General Anthony Craighead. (Photo courtesy Dave Clark)

Anthony Craighead, deputy district attorney general in Anderson County, has retired.

“This week marks the well-deserved but bittersweet retirement of my friend and crime fighting partner, Deputy District Attorney General Tony Craighead,” Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark said on Saturday. “Tony has been fighting for justice and victims for 30 years in Tennessee, and for the last eight years, he has been our leading trial court prosecutor here in Anderson County.

“The job of being a chief law enforcement officer for a portion of our state is a great privilege and an awesome responsibility. The pressure, emotional, physical and psychological burden of the responsibility for resolving the homicides, child abuse, home burglaries and child pornography cases collectively wear on one’s soul. Tony has carried that load for all of us for a long time.”

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County, Anthony Craighead, Dave Clark, deputy district attorney general, Sarah Keith, Seventh Judicial District, Tony Craighead, trial court prosecutor

Subscribe to Oak Ridge Today

Posted at 4:54 pm January 9, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Over the past decade (about 10.75 years), we have published 14,906 articles on Oak Ridge Today.

That’s about 1,386 posts per year, or close to four per day, every day.

We’re trying to bring you as much news as we can with a small staff, mostly one person.

If you value what we do and have done, please consider subscribing. You can subscribe for as little as $5 per month. A subscription gives you access to subscriber-only stories. These are generally the stories that are exclusive or require more time, effort, and money. A subscription also helps to keep us going. Reporting the news requires a significant amount of time and money.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Business, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Sponsored Posts, Top Stories, Website Tagged With: Oak Ridge Today, subscribe, subscription

MartinFed acquires Xcel Engineering

Posted at 1:53 pm January 6, 2023
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

MartinFed, based in Alabama, has acquired Xcel Engineering Incorporated, located in Commerce Park in Oak Ridge.

MartinFed, based in Alabama, has acquired Xcel Engineering Incorporated of Oak Ridge.

“The acquisition of Xcel Engineering is a strategic move for MartinFed as it continues to expand its presence in the federal marketplace,” a press release said.

MartinFed is based in Huntsville, Alabama. The company offers services to federal agencies and contractors in cybersecurity, information technology, training, contract vehicles, and engineering and technical solutions, according to its website.

Xcel Engineering, which is located in Commerce Park, provides information technology and engineering services. The services include IT staffing and solutions, environmental engineering, and project management and consulting, the press release said.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Business, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Top Stories Tagged With: acquisition, engineering services, information technology, MartinFed, Xcel Engineering

Thornton named director of ORNL Climate Change Science Institute

Posted at 4:12 pm January 5, 2023
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Peter Thornton has been named director of the Climate Change Science Institute at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo credit: Genevieve Martin/ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy)

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory appointed Peter Thornton as director of its Climate Change Science Institute, or CCSI, effective November 1.

“CCSI was launched at ORNL in 2009, bringing together the lab’s multidisciplinary expertise and big science capabilities to predict the future of the planet’s climate and to evaluate potential mitigation solutions at the intersection of climate, clean energy, national security, and environmental justice,” a press release said. “ORNL’s modeling work informs solutions to meet the nation’s climate goals of a 40% reduction in global greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and net-zero GHG emissions by 2050.”

“I am very pleased that Peter will help develop and guide new local, regional, and national activities within CCSI,” said Stan Wullschleger, associate laboratory director for Biological and Environmental Systems Science. “Peter’s extensive expertise will ensure that our Earth system models provide the best projections of our changing planet and potential resilience strategies for our citizens, industry and society.”

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: CCSI, Climate Change Science Institute, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, Peter Thornton, Stan Wullschleger, U.S. Department of Energy

NWS: Temps above normal in 2022, but record cold Christmas Eve

Posted at 2:07 pm January 3, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Image courtesy National Weather Service Morristown

The average temperatures in 2022 were above the normal temperatures in East Tennessee, but there were record cold temperatures reported on Christmas Eve, the National Weather Service said.

The number of cold hours around Christmas in late December might have seemed long, but it was not a record-breaker, the NWS said.

“The arctic front that ushered in this outbreak of cold weather moved through during the early morning hours on December 23,” the NWS said. Between then and the end of the cold streak, several locations recorded more than 100 consecutive hours at or below freezing (32 degrees Fahrenheit). Wise, a city in southwest Virginia north of Tennessee’s Tri-Cities, reported 107 hours below freezing, the NWS said. That’s equivalent to about 4.5 days. Oak Ridge was below freezing for 106 hours and Knoxville for 104 hours, both also close to 4.5 days.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Top Stories, Weather Tagged With: average temperature, below freezing, cold streak, cold temperature, cold weather, high temperature, National Weather Service, NWS, snow, temperature, wind chill

After guilty plea in fatal hit-and-run, man faces separate traffic charges

Posted at 11:49 am December 31, 2022
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Dannon Cole pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident involving a death or injury in Anderson County Criminal Court on Monday, Dec. 12, 2022.

After pleading guilty to a fatal hit-and-run crash, a 51-year-old man is facing separate criminal charges after he was allegedly found passed out behind the wheel with an open bottle of whiskey and a bag of a white powdery substance believed to be cocaine.

This alleged case of driving under the influence (third offense) occurred in downtown Clinton on Halloween day 2021, just three weeks before the fatal hit-and-run crash in south Clinton.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

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

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Front Page News, Premium Content, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Criminal Court, Anderson County General Sessions Court, Clinton Police Department, driving under the influence, DUI, Ethan Thompson, fatal hit-and-run, hit-and-run, Jordan Pitts, manufacturing selling or delivering cocaine

« Previous Page
Next Page »

Search Oak Ridge Today

Recent Posts

  • Kris Emery named director of ORAU Financial Operations
  • James Buckner named director of Environment, Safety & Health for ORAU and ORISE
  • National Supplemental Screening Program celebrates 20 years of service; eligible individuals encouraged to participate
  • ORAU Annual Giving Campaign raises $91,479 in 2025
  • Alan Forbes named director of Safeguards & Security for ORAU and ORISE
  • ORAU and American Museum of Science and Energy Foundation formalize partnership to advance Manhattan Project 2.0
  • Author and Law Professor Derek W. Black to Speak on Public Education and Democracy
  • Anderson County Chamber Headquarters Dedication Set for October 17
  • ORISE announces winners of 2025 Future of Science Awards
  • SL Tennessee Supports New Anderson County Chamber Headquarters

Copyright © 2026 Oak Ridge Today