Oak Ridge Today

Photos: Jackson Square fountain operating, benches installed

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Jackson Square Bench and Fountain Sept. 28, 2015

The $1 million renovation of the Jackson Square parking lot includes an interactive fountain, brick-like stone pavers, and new benches, landscaping, and lights. The fountain was operating on Monday, Sept. 28, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The new interactive fountain at Jackson Square was operating on Monday. It’s part of a $1 million renovation of the Jackson Square parking lot. The work was mostly funded with a Tennessee Department of Transportation grant.

Construction started in January and, according to the most recent publicly announced schedule, was expected to be substantially complete by September 15.

The renovation includes a reconfigured parking lot, landscaped pedestrian plaza with parking, the interactive fountain, stone pavers, curbing, asphalt paving, utilities, new lights, benches, sidewalks, and upgrades under the American with Disabilities Act.

It’s the first major renovation at Jackson Square, the city’s original town center, in 70 years. The $741,609 TDOT Enhancement Grant was awarded to the city in June 2012.

There had been some concerns this summer among business owners, city officials, and residents about delays in the project. But the frustrations seemed to ease, at least publicly, after the fountain arrived in August.

The work appeared to be mostly done on Monday, September 28. Here are photos from Jackson Square on Monday.

Jackson Square Fountain Sept. 28, 2015

The $1 million renovation of the Jackson Square parking lot includes an interactive fountain, brick-like stone pavers, and new benches, landscaping, and lights. The fountain was operating on Monday, Sept. 28, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

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Schedule: Installation of Jackson Square fountain could start July 27, last four weeks

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Angel Rich Johnson and Roger Flynn

Angel Rich Johnson, left, president of Rich Construction Inc. of Lenoir City, and Roger Flynn, Oak Ridge Public Works engineer, are pictured above at Jackson Square on Monday, January 5, 2015. The Jackson Square renovations started in January.

 

Note: This story was updated at 2:15 p.m. July 7.

Installation of the interactive fountain at the center of Jackson Square could start July 27 and last four weeks, according to an estimated construction timeline.

The sidewalks and the majority of the parking lot have been finished, and Roger Flynn, acting Oak Ridge city engineer, said he has discussed project completion with Rich Construction, the contractor for the $1 million rebuild of the Jackson Square parking lot.

Construction started in January, and enough paving work was completed that merchants and vendors were able to have the annual Lavender Festival at Jackson Square on June 20. Renovations are expected to be complete by the end of August.

Flynn told merchants in a June 24 email that the remaining work is expected to take place in this order: [Read more…]

Council approves $1 million contract for Jackson Square parking lot project

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Jackson Square Plaza Improvements Map

Note: This story was updated at 11:35 a.m. Oct. 29.

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday awarded a $1 million contract for a project funded with help from a state grant to rebuild the Jackson Square parking lot area.

The contract was awarded to Rich Construction Inc. of Lenoir City. Oak Ridge officials will have a pre-construction conference in 10 days, and they are hopeful that work will start in late November, City Manager Mark Watson said.

He said the project could take 180 days, or about six months. That means it would be done before the Lavender Festival in 2015.

The work will include a landscaped pedestrian plaza with parking, an interactive fountain, stone pavers, curbing, asphalt paving, utilities, benches, sidewalks, and upgrades under the American with Disabilities Act. There will a slight increase in the number of parking spaces. [Read more…]

Report: Woman who fell into fountain and died had been ‘huffing,’ witness says

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Oak Ridge Civic Center Fountain

The Oak Ridge woman who fell into this fountain at the Civic Center on June 3 and died in a hospital 13 days later had been spotted “huffing” a can of keyboard cleaner next to a tree in the park, possibly just minutes before she was found floating face down in the water, authorities said.

The 26-year-old woman who fell into a fountain at the Oak Ridge Civic Center on June 3 and died in a hospital 13 days later had been spotted “huffing” a can of keyboard cleaner next to a tree in the park, possibly just minutes before she was found floating face down in the water, authorities said.

After she was pulled from the fountain, rescuers tried CPR on Sarah Christine McAdams, but she was unresponsive and given only a 10 percent chance of surviving the first night at Methodist Medical Center, hospital staff told Oak Ridge Police Department Detective Kevin Craig.

On June 6, ORPD Detective David Stephens reported that McAdams, who had lived on Manhattan Avenue in Woodland, had been placed in an induced coma and had not been able to communicate. She died at the hospital on June 16, according to a copy of the death certificate provided by her mother, Lori Holt, of Murrell’s Inlet, S.C. [Read more…]

Family identifies woman who died after falling into Civic Center fountain

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Oak Ridge Civic Center Fountain

Family members have identified an Oak Ridge woman who fell into the fountain at the Civic Center in June and died in the hospital 13 days later.

Family members have identified an Oak Ridge woman who fell into the fountain at the Civic Center in June and died in the hospital 13 days later.

Sarah Christine McAdams, 26, was found floating face down in the murky brown water, which is about 14” inches deep, on June 3. Two people reported the incident to the Civic Center staff, while a third tried to pull McAdams out of the water, city officials said.

Rescuers tried to resuscitate her immediately, and McAdams, who lived on Manhattan Avenue in the Woodland neighborhood, was rushed to Methodist Medical Center, city officials said at the time, without identifying the woman.

She died June 16, according to records provided by her mother, Lori Holt, of Murrell’s Inlet, S.C., which is south of Myrtle Beach. [Read more…]

Woman found floating face down at Civic Center, taken to hospital

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

A female believed to be in her 30s was taken to Methodist Medical Center on Monday afternoon after she was found floating face down in the fountain at the Oak Ridge Civic Center, city officials said.

The woman, who was not identified in a Tuesday statement, is currently receiving treatment at the hospital. She is believed to be in her mid-to-late 30s.

She was found in the 14-inch deep fountain at about 2:45 p.m. Monday by residents visiting the Civic Center, the statement said. Two people reported the incident to the staff at the Civic Center front counter, while a third tried to pull the woman out of the water, said Oak Ridge Electric Director Jack Suggs, who is acting city manager while Mark Watson attends an out-of-town meeting. [Read more…]