Oak Ridge municipal offices will open late on Wednesday because of the weather.
The offices will open at 1 p.m. Wednesday, the city said in a statement.
“Per the city’s inclement weather policy, ‘essential/critical employees’ should report according to their departmental directives,” the statement said.
Bill Haslam
Group to study Basic Education Program formula
NASHVILLE—Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam on Tuesday announced the creation of a task force to study the Basic Education Program, or BEP, which is the state’s funding formula for K-12 schools.
The most recent revision to the BEP, known as BEP 2.0, was adopted in 2007. The formula takes factors such as local property and sales tax revenue into account when calculating how much money Tennessee school districts will receive from the state each year. A number of districts, both large and small, have raised questions and concerns about the formula and whether it distributes funds in a fair and equitable manner.
“The last significant revision of the BEP was seven years ago, and education in Tennessee has changed a lot since then,” Haslam said. “It is the appropriate time to take a fresh look at the formula, identify strengths and weaknesses and determine whether or not changes should be made.” [Read more…]
Submitted
The Oak Ridge Electric Department is warning its customers to expect higher utility bills for the next two months. According to Jack Suggs, Oak Ridge electric director, bills for power used in December are now in the mail, and bills for January will be coming out in a few weeks. He expects these bills will be difficult for many customers.
The National Weather Service calculates an index called “degree days of heating,” which is used as an indication of how cold the weather is over the course of a month. The higher the value of the number, the greater difference between the outside temperature and a properly heated home.
“Higher degree days of heating means that the heating system in a customer’s home has to work harder to keep the home warm,” Suggs said. December 2013 had nearly twice the degree days of heating as November, and January is looking to be significantly higher than that. [Read more…]
A few people enjoy the snow near Blankenship Field on Tuesday evening.
Many schools, including in Oak Ridge, dismissed students early on Tuesday because of the snow, and Anderson County Schools will be closed on Wednesday.
(Update: Oak Ridge Schools will also be closed Wednesday.)
The snow that started late Tuesday morning is expected to continue through the evening in the valleys, tapering off around midnight in the mountains, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown.
Snow and ice caused traffic problems on slippery roads across the region. Some cars and trucks had trouble driving up hilly roads in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]
Snow delayed the Tuesday afternoon sentencing for the three anti-nuclear weapons activists who cut through fences and vandalized a uranium storage building at the Y-12 National Security Complex in July 2012. Above, supporters, attorneys, and reporters leave U.S. District Court in Knoxville.
KNOXVILLE—Snow delayed the Tuesday afternoon sentencing for the three anti-nuclear weapons activists who cut through fences and vandalized a uranium storage building at the Y-12 National Security Complex in July 2012.
The hearing could be moved to 9 a.m. Feb. 18. But there is also a possibility that U.S. District Judge Amul Thapar, who normally hears cases in the Eastern District of Kentucky, could resume the hearing on Wednesday.
The sentencing hearing for the three protesters—Greg Boertje-Obed, Megan Rice, and Michael Walli—was at the Howard H. Baker Jr. Courthouse in Knoxville, which closed early at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday because of the snow and driving conditions. [Read more…]
Pictured above are the three anti-nuclear weapons protesters who broke into the Y-12 National Security Complex on July 28, 2012. From left, they are Michael Walli, Megan Rice, and Greg Boertje-Obed.
The three protesters convicted on federal charges after sneaking into the Y-12 National Security Complex and splashing human blood and spray-painting slogans on a uranium storage building in July 2012 will be sentenced in U.S. District Court in Knoxville on Tuesday morning.
The sentencing hearing for the three anti-nuclear weapons activists—Greg Boertje-Obed, Megan Rice, and Michael R. Walli—is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday. The defendants will be sentenced individually after a joint hearing to hear witness testimony and objections to a pre-sentence report.
The government plans to call retired Brig. Gen. Rodney L. Johnson as a witness. He testified at the two-day trial in May, and he is the senior vice president and deputy general manager of security operations and emergency services at Y-12.
A Catholic nun, house painter, and laborer, Boertje-Obed, Rice, and Walli were convicted in May 2013 of destroying U.S. property and attempting to injure national defense premises. They acknowledged sneaking into Y-12 before dawn on July 28, 2012, and cutting through three fences in a high-security Protected Area before vandalizing the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility, where most of the nation’s bomb-grade uranium is stored. But they said their unprecedented intrusion was peaceful, religiously motivated, and nonviolent, a symbolic disarming of Y-12. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson is pictured at center above. Also pictured are Mayor Tom Beehan, left, and City Attorney Ken Krushenski.
Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson will not be moving to Texas for a job in Pearland, near Houston.
In December, Pearland officials said Watson was one of four finalists who could replace the city’s former manager, Bill Eisen, who retired at the end of December after 12 years.
But Watson—who was in Pearland for interviews, tours, and staff briefings this past weekend—told Oak Ridge City Council members at the beginning of a Monday night work session that he is staying in the Secret City.
He said the Pearland City Council could select a new city manager during a Monday night meeting, and members could pick Clay Pearson of Novi, Mich. Watson said the competition was tough. [Read more…]
Information from WYSH Radio
Oliver Springs police said they found two horses—one dead, the other alive but in poor condition—last week.
Few details have been released, but investigators said they are waiting on test results to see if any charges will be filed.
In the meantime, the owner has surrendered the surviving horse to Horse Haven of Tennessee.
KNOXVILLE—Alcohol use is more likely than marijuana use to lead to violence between partners, according to studies done at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.
Research among college students found that men under the influence of alcohol are more likely to perpetrate physical, psychological, or sexual aggression against their partners than men under the influence of marijuana. Women, on the other hand, were more likely to be physically and psychologically aggressive under the influence of alcohol, but, unlike men, they were also more likely to be psychologically aggressive under the influence of marijuana.
The research has implications for domestic violence intervention and prevention programs. [Read more…]
Jan Follansbee
The Collierville woman who was reported missing after last being seen in Oak Ridge on Wednesday has been located, authorities said.
Jan Follansbee, 58, was found safe at a relative’s house on Sunday, Jan. 26, said Sgt. Detective Jason Smith of the Loudon County Sheriff’s Office.
Follansbee had been reported missing after leaving her mother’s home on Dasher Lane in Oak Ridge on Wednesday. She had left on an errand.
Follansbee lives in Collierville in Shelby County in west Tennessee, and she has two daughters who also live there. A sister in Knoxville had reported her missing.
Paul White
Sheriff Paul White is seeking re-election as Anderson County sheriff. White was first elected in 2006 and re-elected in 2010.
White is a veteran law officer with 38 years of experience, a press release said. His first five years were with the Oliver Springs Police Department, where he served as a police officer and patrol sergeant. The remaining 33 years have been with the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, where he advanced through the ranks from patrol deputy to commanding the Patrol Division and Court Services.
During his career, White had the opportunity to hold almost every position within the Sheriff’s Department and at one time was appointed “acting sheriff,” the release said.
“Having served under the last five administrations, Paul White had the unique opportunity to observe and utilize many ideas and practices as to how the Sheriff’s Department could best serve the needs of Anderson County,” the release said. [Read more…]
Light snow fell in Oak Ridge on Saturday morning, and the forecast calls for a sight chance of snow through Monday.
A light snow fell in Oak Ridge on Saturday morning, and there is a 20-30 percent chance of more snow on Sunday night and Monday.
Temperatures near Oak Ridge will continue to be cold, with a forecast low of 5 degrees Fahrenheit on Monday night, 4 on Tuesday night, and 11 on Wednesday night, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown.
The Weather Service said a cold front will quickly move through the southern Appalachian region tonight, producing light snow over southwest Virginia and northeast Tennessee. Windy conditions are expected across the mountains through the early morning hours.
