Here is a summary of events happening in Oak Ridge starting Thursday, Sept. 12, and continuing through Sept. 18.
This weekly listing of events is compiled by the Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau: [Read more…]
Y-12 Federal Credit Union names new CEO
Mark Ziegler
The Y-12 Federal Credit Union board of directors has named a new president and chief executive officer.
Mark Ziegler, the new CEO, will replace Tom Hilton, who will retire later this year, a press release said.
“Tom Hilton joined Y-12 Federal Credit Union more than 20 years ago as president/CEO and has led Y-12 FCU to achieve goals that we never imagined when he came on board,” board chairman Don Norris said. “We sincerely appreciate his leadership and dedication over the past 20-plus years and wish him the best in his retirement. [Read more…]
City board will consider tax incentive, development area for Oak Ridge Mall
The Oak Ridge Mall economic development area is pictured above. The map shows a contiguous area that could be affected economically by the proposed development, which only includes the former 60-acre mall property, according to a city consultant. (Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge)
A city board this month will consider a financing arrangement that could be worth up to $10 million and allow a North Carolina company to use new property tax revenues generated at a redeveloped Oak Ridge Mall to be used for site development, possibly including for roads, stoplights, and demolition work.
Many of the details aren’t available yet, including the precise amount of the proposed tax increment financing, or TIF, agreement and the length of time it could be in effect. The details will be discussed at a Sept. 26 meeting of the Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board, when members will consider an economic impact plan, city consultant Ray Evans said.
The economic development area could include about 90 acres. It would include the 60-acre mall and could include an apartment complex and museum, movie theater and pizza shop, real estate firm and hotel, and several busy stores on Oak Ridge Turnpike—properties that could benefit from the TIF, Evans said.
School officials say millions in state funding at risk, could close schools Oct. 1
Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers, left, and City Manager Mark Watson have had a series of meetings concerning the school system’s failure to pass a state maintenance of effort test, and a possible resolution of a $250,000 shortfall to avoid a potential loss in state funding of up to $1.87 million per month.
Schools want city to cover $250,000 shortfall, could require 2.5-cent tax increase
It’s a high-stakes battle between the city and the schools, with a potential loss of up to $1.87 million per month in state funding—and a possible shutdown of the school system on Oct. 1.
School officials said the Oak Ridge system has failed a state maintenance of effort test that requires local funding to remain at least the same from year to year. After some budget adjustments, there is a $250,000 shortfall, school officials said, and they want the city to cover it. It’s the equivalent of a 2.5-cent property tax rate increase.
“Unfortunately, we’re just in the position to ask the city to help us,” Oak Ridge Superintendent Bruce Borchers said Thursday. “They’re going to have to find that $250,000.” [Read more…]
Alexander, Fleischmann oppose use of military force, strike in Syria
Lamar Alexander
Bob Corker
U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander and Rep. Chuck Fleischmann this week said they oppose the use of military force or a limited strike in Syria in retaliation for the government’s suspected use of chemical weapons in the country’s civil war.
Meanwhile, Sen. Bob Corker said he was skeptical about an offer to have Syria turn over its chemical weapons in order to avoid an attack.
President Barack Obama has asked Congress to authorize a limited military strike. [Read more…]
New airport in west Oak Ridge could feature small business jets, 5,000-foot runway
An airport with a 5,000-foot runway could serve small business jets and pressurized turbine aircraft at Heritage Center, the former K-25 site, in west Oak Ridge. An image of the proposed runway is in yellow at right. (Photo courtesy Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority)
The airport proposed at Heritage Center in west Oak Ridge could feature a 5,000-foot runway, accommodate all but the largest business jets, and cost between $35 million and $45 million, an official said Monday.
Construction at the site is possible around 2017 to 2018, said Bill Marrison, president of the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority.
The airport would be built at the front of Heritage Center, the former K-25 site, and the runway would parallel Highway 58. [Read more…]
ORHS a finalist for prize recognizing improvements in student achievement
Oak Ridge High School is one of twelve finalists, and three high schools, competing for a prize that recognizes schools and schools districts in Tennessee that have most dramatically improved student achievement.
Oak Ridge High School is one of twelve finalists for a prize that recognizes schools in Tennessee that have most dramatically improved student achievement.
Two other high schools, Maryville and Covington, also made the list, which was announced Tuesday by State Collaborative on Reforming Education, or SCORE, a nonprofit organization founded by former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist.
The finalists include elementary, middle, and high schools, and school districts in Tennessee. They are competing for the third annual SCORE Prize. School winners will be announced in October and receive $10,000, and the district winner will collect $25,000. [Read more…]
ORAU awards $39,000 in education grants to East Tennessee schools
Oak Ridge Associated Universities awards 27 teachers from 17 East Tennessee schools more than $39,000 during a recent grants ceremony. (Submitted photo)
Oak Ridge Associated Universities awarded more than $39,000 to more than two dozen teachers in 17 schools in Oak Ridge, Clinton, Norris, and Anderson County in a recent grants ceremony.
It was the 12th annual ORAU Education Grants ceremony, and 27 teachers received awards, a press release said.
The grant money can be used to buy educational materials and equipment such as microscopes, iPads, robotics kits, and computers that will help teachers “continue to meet rigorous, state-wide curriculum standards and enhance the learning experience of their students,” the release said. [Read more…]
Council approves water, sewer rate increases
The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday approved water and sewer rate increases that will take effect January 2014 and January 2015. (File photo)
There was much opposition online, and in phone calls to city hall, but few public objections to back-to-back utility rate increases at a Monday night Oak Ridge City Council meeting.
The Council voted in two separate 6-1 votes to raise water and sewer rates in January 2014 and again in January 2015. The increases range from 8 percent to 15 percent.
The new rate hikes, which will be considered on second and final reading in October, would result in water bills that could go up by a minimum of $1.35 per month in January 2014 and then another $1.19 per month in 2015. Sewer bills would increase a minimum of $2.78 per month next year and then rise another $2.13 per month the following year. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge Public Library offers help with Affordable Care Act
The Oak Ridge Public Library is joining libraries across the country as the starting point for people who will be participating in the Affordable Care Act.
The Marketplace opens Oct. 1, and it can be accessed through the website www.healthcare.gov. President Obama has called upon libraries with public Internet access to help fill the need of the estimated one in five Americans who do not have Internet access. [Read more…]
Anderson committee to consider single courthouse entrance
The Anderson County Courthouse on Main Street in Clinton is pictured above.
Information from WYSH Radio
This story was updated Sept. 14, 2013.
An Anderson County committee is scheduled to consider a recommendation on Wednesday to close all but one entrance to the county courthouse in Clinton.
That move has been recommended by the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department deputy in charge of courthouse security. ACSD Cpl. John McCulley wrote in a memo to the committee that limiting access to the courthouse to only one entrance and one exit will “better protect the courts and the citizens of Anderson County.” [Read more…]
October Sky Festival coming to Oliver Springs
The Oliver Springs Historical Society will kick off this year’s October Sky Festival and Heritage at the Depot with a “Miss October Sky Pageant.” The Pageant will take place on Thursday, Oct. 17, at 7 p.m., and it will be held at the Kellytown Baptist Church Activity Building in Oliver Springs.
The age/grade categories are newborn to high school. [Read more…]
