Oak Ridge Today

Photos: Work on eighth rowing lane

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Eighth Rowing Lane Jan 18 2017

The view from the water of the new wall installed for the eighth lane of the Oak Ridge rowing course. Calhoun’s restaurant is in the background at center right. (Photo by Laurel Patrick)

 

Laurel Patrick of First Place Finish Inc. in Oak Ridge has been posting pictures on Twitter showing the progress on work on the eighth lane of the Oak Ridge rowing course.

Here are pictures by Patrick starting November 16, used here with her permission. We have posted them below in chronological order.

First Place Finish Inc. received a $548,350 contract to add the eighth lane during a special Oak Ridge City Council meeting in September. The work includes 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. [Read more…]

Anderson County Republicans to have congratulatory dinner for McNally

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Randy McNally

Randy McNally (Submitted photo)

 

Fleischmann, Haslam plan to attend

The Anderson County Republican Party will honor Randy McNally, Tennessee’s new lieutenant governor, at this year’s Reagan Day dinner. The dinner will be held at the Double Tree Hotel in Oak Ridge on Friday, February 10. It will start at 6:30 p.m.

On January 10, McNally was selected as the 87th speaker of the Tennessee Senate, a position that also makes him the state’s lieutenant governor.

“It’s a great honor for East Tennessee to furnish the next lieutenant governor,” said William Jones, chair of the Anderson County Republican Party. “Randy is certainly the perfect choice. He is a thoughtful, dedicated leader who has given many years of public service to the Volunteer State.” [Read more…]

Alexander to chair subcommittee that oversees funding for ORNL, Y-12, DOE cleanup work

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Lamar Alexander

Lamar Alexander

The Senate Appropriations Committee announced Wednesday that U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee Republican, will serve as chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development for the 115th Congress.

That subcommittee oversees funding for national priorities such as energy research, nuclear weapons modernization, and waterways infrastructure that are funded through the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a press release said. It also oversees funding for Tennessee priorities, including the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Y-12 National Security Complex, cleanup in Oak Ridge, and Chickamauga Lock. [Read more…]

ORHS pantry provides food, clothing, toiletries, cleaning products to students in need

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Oak-Ridge-High-School-RISE-Pantry-8-Jan-4-2017-Web

A pantry started about a year ago at Oak Ridge High School provides food, clothing, toiletries, and cleaning products to students in need. The Oak Ridge Board of Education toured the pantry with ORHS administrators and teachers on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2017. From left to right are Laura McLean, Angi Agle, Allen Etheridge, Beth Estep, Leslie Shelton, Bruce Lay, Bob Eby, Bruce Borchers, and Keys Fillauer. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 1:25 p.m. Jan. 26.

A pantry started about a year ago at Oak Ridge High School provides food, clothing, toiletries, and cleaning products to students in need.

It’s known as the RISE Pantry. RISE stands for Raising Individual Students to Excellence.

The pantry started with a cabinet. It’s now housed in a former classroom on the third floor of the high school.

Items stored there include, among other essentials, backpacks and notebooks, pants and shirts, shoes and boots, and soup and beans.

“You can’t learn if your basic needs aren’t met,” said English teacher and coach Allen Etheridge, one of those who started the pantry. “(If) a kid asks, we will bring them down here.” [Read more…]

Roane State associate professor honored by NASA for work on Pluto flyby

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ted_stryk_nasa_award

For years, Roane State Community College associate professor Ted Stryk has peered into powerful telescopes to explore the mysteries of outer space. It’s his hobby and his passion. On Jan. 19, 2017, the associate professor of philosophy and English was honored for his role in a NASA investigation of the dwarf planet Pluto and its moons. (Photo courtesy Roane State)

 

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

For years, Roane State Community College associate professor Ted Stryk has peered into powerful telescopes to explore the mysteries of outer space.

It’s his hobby and his passion.

On January 19, the associate professor of philosophy and English was honored for his role in a NASA investigation of the dwarf planet Pluto and its moons.

Stryk and about 200 other researchers received certificates of achievement for helping learn more about the solar system’s most distant planet, some 3 billion miles away. The ceremony was held at the applied physics lab at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. [Read more…]

Photos, videos: Oak Ridge, Halls basketball game

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Oak Ridge Higgins Dunk Halls Jan 23 2017 Web

Oak Ridge senior Tee Higgins (5) had two powerful dunks, including this one in the second half, during a 108-56 win over Halls at Wildcat Arena on Monday, Nov. 23, 2017. (Photo by Luther Simmons)

 

Oak Ridge topped 100 points and senior Tajion Jones scored 32 as the Wildcats beat Halls 108-56 at home on Monday. Here are photos by Luther Simmons and videos by Myles Hebrard. [Read more…]

ACSD investigating cause of Saturday fire

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department’s Criminal Investigation Division is looking into the cause of a fire that seriously damaged a mobile home on Norris Freeway on Saturday morning.

After firefighters from the Andersonville Volunteer Fire Department doused the blaze, investigators spoke with the resident of the single-wide trailer, who told them he was in the process of moving out and had not stayed there in a couple of nights. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Symphony Orchestra to perform in Free Family Concert on Sunday

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Family Concert Instrument Petting Zoo

Family Concert Instrument Petting Zoo (Photo courtesy ORCMA)

 

In what has become a fun-filled, family tradition, the Oak Ridge Civic Music Association will present the Oak Ridge Symphony Orchestra’s Annual Free Family Concert for families and music lovers on Sunday, January 29, at the Oak Ridge High School Performing Arts Center.

The concert is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. Sunday. It is appropriate for all ages and includes informative pieces and instrument demonstrations so that first timers can learn about the symphony orchestra, a press release said.

Music Director Dan Allcott recently instituted another tradition, whereby a special prize is awarded to the winner of the Ralph Einstein Youth Aliyah Concert competition. Allcott offers an opportunity for the winner to perform with the Oak Ridge Symphony Orchestra on the Family Concert.

“I think it is very inspiring for young people to see young performers,” Allcott said. “We want them to know that someday they could be on stage with us. The soloist for this year’s concert will be 17-year-old violinist, Mitchell Cloutier.” [Read more…]

New wine festival to focus on quality, wine trails, Nine Lakes region

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Nine Lakes Wine Festival Logo

The first-ever Nine Lakes Wine Festival will be held May 19-20 in Oak Ridge.

The festival will focus on the wine trails of the eastern half of Tennessee and their award-winning wines, a press release said. The festival is just 30 minutes from downtown Knoxville, and it bears the name “Nine Lakes” from the nine lakes made by the Tennessee Valley Authority in the Knoxville area.

“The beauty of our waterfront Melton Lake Park is perfect for a wine festival,” said Marc DeRose, president of Explore Oak Ridge, the city’s convention and visitor’s bureau, which is one of the sponsoring partners for the event.

Nine Lakes Wine Festival will feature 20 wineries that participate in five different wine trails. They will be grouped by trail, for a seamless tasting experience, the press release said. [Read more…]

Roane State to celebrate Nesbit’s 25 years of coaching

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Head Coach Randy Nesbit and Roane State’s 1992-93 Men’s Basketball Team. (Photo courtesy Roane State Community College)

Head Coach Randy Nesbit and Roane State’s 1992-93 men’s basketball team. (Photo courtesy Roane State Community College)

 

Roane State Community College is celebrating 25 years with Men’s Basketball Head Coach Randy Nesbit on Saturday, January 28, when the Roane State Raiders take on Dyersburg. The game is at 4 p.m., with a reception to follow.

A 1980 graduate of the Citadel, Nesbit began his Roane State coaching career in the fall of 1992 after serving as assistant to Citadel’s Head Coach Les Robinson. A three-year starting point guard on Robinson-coached basketball teams, Nesbit was a key member of The Citadel’s 1979 team that won 20 games, a first for the college. Captain of the 1980 team, Nesbit was selected to the 1979 and 1980 All-Southern Conference second team and paced the 1978 team with a 54.0 field goal percentage and a 92.5 free throw percentage in 1980, which was the second-best in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, or NCAA. He tied a school mark with 13 assists in a 1979 game against Marshall, and established the school’s season record of 120 dishes that season, holding the school’s record for most career assists (324). Nesbit played only three years after having transferred from Gulf Coast Community College. [Read more…]

Clinton Council to get update on project to replace Lewallen Bridge

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Hon. William Everette Lewallen Memorial Bridge

The Clinton City Council is scheduled to receive an update Monday evening, Jan. 23, 2017, from City Manager Roger Houck on the status of the state project to replace the Hon. William Everette Lewallen Memorial Bridge on Clinch Avenue. The bridge over the Clinch River connects downtown Clinton and South Clinton on Highway 25W. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Information from WYSH Radio

The Clinton City Council is scheduled to receive an update tonight from City Manager Roger Houck on the status of the state project to replace the Lewallen Bridge connecting South Clinton and downtown Clinton on Highway 25W.

According to the city manager’s report included in the agenda for this evening’s meeting, Houck recently met with Tennessee Department of Transportation officials, who informed him that the project is still on schedule and that the design phase is nearing completion. Houck reported that TDOT has incorporated the various requests made by the city to be included in the design, such as lighting and bike lanes.

A plans review meeting is also set for next month, at which time city leaders could learn more about the expected timetable for the bridge project. [Read more…]

A MORE2 success story, providing free energy-efficiency upgrades

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Before and after photos of Lacey’s attic insulation.

Before and after photos of Lacey’s attic insulation (see other photo below).

 

As winter sets in, Make Oak Ridge Energy Efficient, or MORE2, is helping Oak Ridgers lower their home energy use and their electric bills.

Mary Kate Lacey, a retired licensed practical nurse, rents an Oak Ridge home that she hopes to someday own. After taking part in MORE2, she said her home is more comfortable now than in the last five years and that her electric bill is reflecting energy savings.

“My heat pump just doesn’t run all the time now like it used to,” she explained. “And my utility bill is already a little lower than in earlier years.” [Read more…]