After a long closure during the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Museum of Science and Energy has re-opened.
AMSE re-opened at 9 a.m. Friday, May 21.
AMSE will be open to a limited number of visitors at a time, 50. Museum visitors will be asked to maintain an appropriate physical distance from others (the general guidance has been to maintain a distance of six feet or more, when possible, from people who live outside your home).
[Read more…]
The former American Museum of Science and Energy building is being demolished, and apartments are planned on the site.
The apartment project is expected to include seven three-story buildings with 226 apartment units on 10 acres.
Now called Main Street Lofts, the $32 million apartment project has included an agreement to reduce property taxes and the transfer of what had been federal property from the U.S. Department of Energy to the city and then to TN Oak Ridge Illinois, a company affiliated with RealtyLink, the developer of Main Street Oak Ridge.
The apartments are being built as RealtyLink, a South Carolina company, plans to build more new stores across South Tulane Avenue at Main Street Oak Ridge, the redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall.
[Read more…]
Museums and the national park welcome center in Oak Ridge are closed because of COVID-19, the respiratory illness that has infected more than 200,000 people in at least 144 countries around the world and killed more than 8,000 people.
The museums closed in Oak Ridge are the American Museum of Science and Energy, Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge, K-25 History Center, Oak Ridge History Museum at Midtown Community Center (Wildcat Den), and Y-12 History Museum at New Hope Center.
Also closed is the Manhattan Project National Historical Park Welcome Center at the Children’s Museum.
The AMSE bus tours are also not operating now.
[Read more…]
The former American Museum of Science and Energy is pictured above on South Tulane Avenue on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Oak Ridge Mayor Pro Tem Rick Chinn and his brother Ryan are minority partners in the project to build apartments at the former American Museum of Science and Energy site.
Rick Chinn, a developer, said this month that the project will bring much-needed apartments to the city, allowing more people who work in Oak Ridge to live here. The apartments are being built as RealtyLink, a South Carolina developer, plans to build more new stores across South Tulane Avenue at Main Street Oak Ridge, the redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall.
Now called Main Street Lofts, the apartment project has included an agreement to reduce property taxes and the transfer of what had been federal property from the U.S. Department of Energy to the city and then to a developer. It will include the demolition of the former AMSE building. It is expected to include seven three-story buildings with 226 apartment units on 10 acres.
Rick Chinn and his father, Richard Chinn, a member of the Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board, have been abstaining from votes related to the apartment project for at least a year.
They have not been required to explain their abstentions, but Oak Ridge Today has asked Rick and Richard Chinn why they have been abstaining.
The rest of this story, which you will find only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: an advertiser, sponsor, or subscriber to Oak Ridge Today.
Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here.
Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:
Basic
Pro
Temporary
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
Learn about our advanced subscription options here.
Note: Most news stories on Oak Ridge Today are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our advertisers, sponsors, and subscribers. Some are considered premium content. This story is premium content. Premium content can include in-depth, investigative, and exclusive stories. These stories generally take more than four hours to report, write, and publish.
Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today!
Members of the 2019 Leadership Oak Ridge Class recently graduated and dedicated their class project: a gathering space near the American Museum of Science and Energy. (Submitted photo)
Information from Kathy Gillenwaters and Amanda Meixel Kinghorn
Members of the Leadership Oak Ridge program recently finished a project that provides enhancements to the American Museum of Science and Energy. The multi-offering project was made possible through numerous volunteer hours from participants and generous donations from local businesses, a press release said.
Additions include a new outdoor seating area, landscaping, and beautification installations, the press release said.
“The new gathering area was a project of particular importance and filled a need that existed since AMSE’s location change last year,” the release said.
AMSE now has outdoor classroom space, transition space for rotating large groups through the educational facility, and seating for the bus tour that departs from the building nine months of the year. The project also included new landscaping and beautification pieces that enhance the visual appeal of Oak Ridge’s expanding Main Street area, the press release said. [Read more…]
The City of Oak Ridge has received an award for the intergovernmental partnership that led to the American Museum of Science and Energy opening in a new centrally located space in Main Street Oak Ridge.
The 2019 Community Partnership Award was presented to the city by the International City/County Management Association, or ICMA.
“The award recognizes innovative programs or processes between and/or among a local government and other governmental entities, private sector businesses, individuals, or nonprofit agencies to improve the quality of life for residents or provide more efficient and effective services,” a press release said.
The City of Oak Ridge was formally honored during a Celebration of Service to the Profession as part of ICMA’s Annual Conference on Wednesday, October 23. Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson, Government Affairs and Information Services Director Amy Fitzgerald, and Administrative Services Director Bruce Applegate accepted the award in Nashville.
[Read more…]The Oak Ridge City Council will consider a contract with a veterinarian at the Oak Ridge Animal Shelter and potential changes to the property transfer agreement with TN Oak Ridge Illinois LLC during a special meeting this evening (Tuesday, August 20).
The veterinary services contract would be with Matt Jinks of Maryville.
TN Oak Ridge Illinois LLC is the company helping to lead the redevelopment of the former American Museum of Science and Energy site, and it is affiliated with the company developing Main Street Oak Ridge at the former Oak Ridge Mall. The changes to the property transfer agreement could include extending the first tax revenue condition by one year and requiring a letter of credit for the community-oriented amenities, according to Council’s meeting agenda.
[Read more…]
Two new bus tours offered in Oak Ridge in August will allow you to learn more about the unique heritage of the Manhattan Project, a press release said. The bus tours are the “Secret City” and “Oak Ridge Museums” tours.
The “Secret City” tour will be led by a National Park Service ranger, last three hours, and include that day’s admission to the American Museum of Science and Energy.
“During the Manhattan Project, a community was created almost overnight to accomplish the monumental task of producing enriched uranium on a large scale,” the press release said. “During the tour, visitors can develop an understanding of what life was like during World War II in a city behind a fence that no one was supposed to discuss. The tour will also include a visit to the X-10 Graphite Reactor, a National Historic Landmark, and the world’s first nuclear reactor designed and built for continuous operation.”
[Read more…]
The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday will consider the revised plan for Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall.
An earlier version of the revised plan was rejected by Council in a 3-4 vote in January. But since then, a new revised plan has been submitted to the city. In April, the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission recommended 7-1 that the new plan, which is similar to the earlier plan, be approved with some conditions.
The revised plan is being considered as RealtyLink, the South Carolina developer, prepares to welcome a second wave of tenants to the site, which is in central Oak Ridge. It would be the second phase of the project, and it could include 90,000 square feet of new retail buildings, an open space near the Belk store, and new sidewalks and crosswalks. It could also include a bus drop-off area near the relocated American Museum of Science and Energy.
[Read more…]
The Secret City Radio Show on Friday will feature local singer/songwriter Robinella with special guests songwriter/fiddle player Sarah Pirkle and Giffin Vann.
The Secret City Radio Show will be broadcast live from the new American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge by East Tennessee’s WDVX 89.9 FM. The show is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. Friday, May 10. You can also listen on 102.9 FM in Knoxville, at 93.9 FM in Seymour and Kodak, and online at WDVX.com.
Amber McBride of Oak Ridge National Laboratory will present some innovative bioscience technology that is preserving forests around the world, and UCOR will present the Clinch River Trail Alliance, a press release said.
[Read more…]
Mark Uhran, former director of NASA’s International Space Station Division, will speak in Oak Ridge on Thursday. The title of his presentation is “An Achievable Vision for Space Exploration: Establishing a Gateway Proving Ground for Space Exploration Technology.”
The event is sponsored by Friends of ORNL. It is free to attend, and it will be held at the new American Museum of Science and Energy at 115 East Main Street in Oak Ridge.
Image courtesy American Museum of Science and Energy
The American Museum of Science and Energy is celebrating 70 years. As part of the celebration, there are three events scheduled next week, on March 19 and March 23, at AMSE and Oak Ridge History Museum.
It’s being called a platinum anniversary celebration of science, ingenuity, and the catalyst of the Atomic Age.
“As an anchor of the community, AMSE is proud to celebrate a city that once only existed a vision,” a press release said. “The footprint of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, will forever be etched into history as one of the foundations of the Manhattan Project. Seventy years ago, steps were taken to preserve that vision and recognize how the world was changed by the ‘Secret City.’ The museum tells the story about how and why people learned to split the atom. On March 19, 1949, the city’s gates and the nation’s first atomic energy museum, named the American Museum of Atomic Energy, were opened to the public for the first time. [Read more…]
