Oak Ridge Today

JCPenney re-opens in Oak Ridge

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JCPenney filed for bankruptcy protection on Friday, May 15, 2020, after closing during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Oak Ridge store, pictured above on May 5, has re-opened. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The JCPenney store in Oak Ridge has re-opened. The store is in Main Street Oak Ridge in the center of the city.

The store is open limited hours: from 12-7 p.m. Monday to Saturday and from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. on Sunday.

There are dedicated hours for at-risk customers: 11 a.m.-12 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday. At-risk customers include the elderly, pregnant women, and people with underlying health issues.

It hadn’t been clear if the Oak Ridge store, which had been temporarily closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, would re-open after JCPenney filed for bankruptcy protection on Friday, May 15.

But it is now open. Customers can enter through the doors on the Cinemark Tinseltown side of the store.

[Read more…]

JCPenney files for bankruptcy; Oak Ridge store remains closed

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JCPenney filed for bankruptcy on Friday, May 15, 2020, and the Oak Ridge store, pictured above on May 5, remains closed. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was last updated at 3 p.m. May 20.

Saddled with debt and already struggling, JCPenney filed for bankruptcy protection on Friday after closing its stores because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Oak Ridge store remains closed.

It’s not clear if or when the Oak Ridge store will re-open. It’s listed as temporarily closed.

Other JCPenney stores that are listed as temporarily closed in the area include locations in Turkey Creek in Farragut, West Town Mall in Knoxville, and Foothills Mall in Maryville.

JCPenney is the largest retailer to file for bankruptcy protection since the COVID-19 pandemic forced stores to temporarily close, according to CBS News.

There are only two JCPenney stores open in Tennessee. They are both near Nashville in Middle Tennessee. One is in Mt. Juliet, and the other is in Murfreesboro.

The company closed its stores and offices about two months ago, on March 18, because of COVID-19. It temporarily furloughed most hourly store employees starting April 2.

In a press release Friday, JCPenney said it will close stores in phases during its Chapter 11 bankruptcy. But details about the specific stores and their closing dates haven’t been announced.

JCPenney didn’t initially say how many stores might close, but over the weekend, there were reports that the company planned to close almost 30 percent of its 846 stores—about 192 stores by February and another 50 in 2022. That will leave the company, one of America’s most well-known chains, with just over 600 stores. Before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the United States, JCPenney had announced plans to close six of its stores in April, according to CNN.

[Read more…]

For members: New stores planned at Main Street, but construction suspended

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A crew works in the area of the second phase of construction of Main Street Oak Ridge on Thursday, March 5, 2020. The construction work has since been suspended. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was updated at 7:45 p.m.

Four new stores are planned at Main Street Oak Ridge, but construction has been suspended for now.

 

A crew works in the area of the second phase of construction of Main Street Oak Ridge on Thursday, March 5, 2020. The construction work has since been suspended. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Four new stores are planned at Main Street Oak Ridge, but construction has been suspended for now.

The four new stores are Five Below, Home Goods, Old Navy, and Ross Dress for Less. The retailers have signed leases, and their stores could be ready to open as soon as the spring of 2021, said Neil Wilson, principal of the development company, TN Oak Ridge Rutgers LLC. The new stores would be between JCPenney and PetSmart. That includes some of the area where the roundabout used to be.

But construction of the building that would contain the new stores has been suspended.

“Retailers are postponing the opening of new stores and re-thinking the size and configuration of store footprints,” Wilson told Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson in an April 20 letter. “As a result, the retail developers are delaying the construction of the building to house those new stores.”

Wilson said TN Oak Ridge Rutgers LLC is trying hard to get the project back into its development timeline in 60 days. The storage facility, which has previously been considered by city officials, is part of the effort to get the project back on track, he said.

Wilson said retailers are suffering because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He said the estimated growth in global retail for 2020 will be cut in half from the levels that were forecast before COVID-19.

The types of stores that will be hit the hardest are “short-term, fashion, furniture, and electronics retailers,” Wilson said. Customers will buy fewer of those discretionary items, choosing instead to stock up on food and household supplies.

But in the meantime, construction could proceed quickly on a three-story self-storage facility at Main Street Oak Ridge. It would be along Rutgers Avenue, behind Burkes Outlet, Electronic Express, and PetSmart. The self-storage market is doing well, Wilson said.

Some residents and city officials, including members of the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission, have opposed the proposed self-storage facility or shown little interest in it.

But in a split vote Monday, the Oak Ridge City Council voted 4-3 to approve a zoning change that could allow it. The zoning ordinance amendment, which did not specifically approve the Main Street Oak Ridge project, is expected to be considered for final approval during another City Council meeting in June.

The rest of this story, which includes background information and information about the City Council vote, is available if you are a member: an advertiser, sponsor, or subscriber to Oak Ridge Today.

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Belk, JCPenney, theater closed

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Three of the four stores pictured above at Main Street Oak Ridge were closed as of Friday evening, March 20, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic: maurices, Rack Room Shoes, and Ulta Beauty. Rue21 was open but had announced temporary store hours. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Belk, JCPenney, and several new stores at Main Street Oak Ridge are closed. So is Cinemark Tinseltown Theater. Dick’s Sporting Goods is open for curbside pickup only.

The new stores that are closed include Burkes Outlet, maurices, Rack Room Shoes, T.J.Maxx, and Ulta Beauty.

Electronic Express, PetSmart, and Rue21 were open at last check this weekend, but they have modified hours. (Note: The response to COVID-19 changes rapidly, meaning store operations could change quickly.)

JCPenney said it plans to reopen on April 2. JCPenney said it temporarily closed for the health and safety of customers and employees. The store said it continues to offer service online at jcp.com and through its mobile application.

Cinemark Tinseltown said it is closed until further notice to comply with a local government ordinance. It’s not clear what ordinance that is. You can reach Cinemark by calling (800) 246-3627.

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Council to consider revised Main Street plan

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The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday, May 13, 2019, will consider the revised plan for Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall.

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.

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RealtyLink negotiating leases with three national tenants

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RealtyLink, the company developing Main Street Oak Ridge, is negotiating leases with three national tenants, construction director Brett Rogers, left, told the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday evening, April 25, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

RealtyLink, the company developing Main Street Oak Ridge, is negotiating leases with three national tenants, an executive said Thursday.

Brett Rogers, RealtyLink construction director, was responding to a question from former Oak Ridge City Council member Anne B. Garcia during a Planning Commission meeting on Thursday. She wanted to know if RealtyLink has contracts to occupy the four new proposed stores, or if changes to the project plan were being proposed on speculation.

Responding to that question, Rogers said the three large national tenants are committed to be in Oak Ridge.

“We just have to get them across the finish line,” he said in a brief interview after the meeting.

[Read more…]

Council rejects revised plan for Main Street Oak Ridge

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Most of Main Street Oak Ridge is pictured above in this proposed plan from Nov. 29, 2018.

Most of Main Street Oak Ridge is pictured above in this proposed revised plan from Nov. 29, 2018.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 1 a.m.

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday narrowly rejected a revised plan that would have allowed four national retailers to build stores at Main Street Oak Ridge.

The Council had unanimously approved a revised plan for Main Street Oak Ridge, subject to certain conditions, in December. That was the first of two readings.

But Council rejected the plan in a 4-3 vote in the second and final reading on Monday.

The rejection hinged on concerns that included the closure of an access road to the 58-acre site, the movement of mixed-use areas to a future phase along Wilson Street, and questions about whether there are other site plan options and whether the development would or should establish a “city center.” People who rejected the revised plan or asked Council to reject it said they support the development and want continued negotiations with RealtyLink, the developer. But it wasn’t immediately clear this week if that will happen.

Those who had supported the revised plan, on the other hand, warned that rejecting it could affect funding for Oak Ridge and Anderson County governments and school systems by diminishing expected sales and property tax revenues, possibly in the range of several hundred thousand dollars. They worried about the impact on the city’s retail community, property tax values, and new housing developments. They called the project a “once in a generation” opportunity and said it could be a few decades before another similar proposal emerges.

It’s not clear what will happen next or if there is any solution that will be acceptable to both RealtyLink and the planning commissioners and City Council members who opposed the revised plan. On Tuesday, three people involved in the project, including RealtyLink, said there is no other design, no “plan B.”

“We’ve worked for six months to get to where we are,” said Neil Wilson, principal of RealtyLink in Greenville, South Carolina. “We didn’t get what we wanted, and they didn’t get what they wanted.”

He said the four national tenants were notified Tuesday that Council rejected the proposed changes to the planned unit development for Main Street Oak Ridge. The potential tenants will be notified if something changes. [Read more…]

Main Street developer asks for changes to plan recommendations

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Most of Main Street Oak Ridge is pictured above in this proposed plan from Nov. 29, 2018.

Most of Main Street Oak Ridge is pictured above in this proposed plan from Nov. 29, 2018.

 

The developer of Main Street Oak Ridge has asked for changes or the removal of some conditions recommended by city officials as they consider possible changes to the master plan for the 58-acre project.

The developer, TN Oak Ridge Rutgers LLC, said last week that it will not be able to comply with a request from the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission to include a significant central gathering space as part of Phase III. It has asked to remove language calling for a commitment to create a mixed-use center along Wilson Street. It also wants to remove language calling for significant multi-family residential units as part of the potential mixed-use center along Wilson Street.

TN Oak Ridge Rutgers, which is affiliated with RealtyLink of Greenville, South Carolina, was responding to 10 conditions recommended by the Planning Commission when it approved a revised master plan in a split 5-4 vote during a special meeting on Wednesday, December 5.

What happens next will be up to Oak Ridge City Council, which will consider the proposed revisions during a special meeting Tuesday evening.

One revision that initially caused concern appears to have been accepted, at least so far. That’s the closure of the access road from Rutgers Avenue to the roundabout at Main Street Oak Ridge. That access road would be removed to allow four new stores to be built between PetSmart, a new store, and JCPenney, an anchor store remaining from the former Oak Ridge Mall. The conditions recommended by Planning Commission did not mention the access road. It’s not clear what Council’s position will be. [Read more…]

(For members) Divided opinion, split vote for revised Main Street plan

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The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission and City Council discuss the revised plan for the second phase of Main Street Oak Ridge during a non-voting joint work session in the Municipal Building on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission and City Council discuss the revised plan for Main Street Oak Ridge during a non-voting joint work session in the Municipal Building on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission and City Council discuss the revised plan for the second phase of Main Street Oak Ridge during a non-voting joint work session in the Municipal Building on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission and City Council discuss the revised plan for the second phase of Main Street Oak Ridge during a non-voting joint work session in the Municipal Building on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge officials have discussed the revised plan for the next phase of Main Street Oak Ridge in a half-dozen meetings since October, and in that time, the Municipal Planning Commission has had a split vote and City Council members have expressed divided opinions about the plan.

The Planning Commission, which has generally had concerns about the revisions and had postponed a vote, approved a version of the revised plan, subject to 10 conditions, in a 5-4 vote during a special meeting on Wednesday.

It’s not clear what will happen when the City Council considers the Planning Commission’s recommendation on Monday, December 10. Several Council members have had concerns, while others seemed ready to allow RealtyLink, the developer, to proceed with the 58-acre redevelopment.

The revisions have been proposed as RealtyLink prepares to welcome a second wave of tenants to the former mall site. The changes, which planning commissioners have called significant, would eliminate multifamily units and add retail uses, according to the city staff. The proposed revisions have included removing the access road from the roundabout to Rutgers Avenue, building four stores in that area (between PetSmart and JCPenney), eliminating the planned multi-family residential units near JCPenney, adding sidewalks and open space, and including mixed-use development in a later phase along Wilson Street.

Those who have had concerns have been disappointed about the proposal to close the access road and a shift from what they thought was going to be a mixed-use center with residential units, retailers, restaurants, and a central gathering space, to what could be primarily a shopping center. They have argued that a mixed-use area could improve the long-term viability of the project.

“The overwhelming response I’ve heard is: We want a town center,” said Stephen Whitson, Planning Commission chair. “I’ve heard it over and over.”

Those who would like to proceed are worried that RealtyLink could move on to other developments in other communities if its revised project here is not approved, and they have cited the potential sales tax revenues from the new retailers as an important consideration. The new retailers could include apparel stores and a home store.

Complicating the project are various lease and deed restrictions that control what can be built where. Lease restrictions include, for example, limits on the size of buildings on Wilson Street and restrictions on parking lot use near Cinemark Tinseltown, with no residential within 300 feet of the closest boundary corner.

The question now is whether the city wants to “hold out for something better” or act on a plan that is ready to go, Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson said during a November 8 work session featuring Planning Commission and City Council.

RealtyLink has said the proposed changes to the plan are tenant-driven, and the company has limited control over the site plans. Five national tenants are “at the table,” Neil Wilson, RealtyLink principal, told planning commissioners in October. RealtyLink has taken a plan first proposed by Crosland Southeast, the original developer, and adopted and revised it.

New stores would not be expected to be open by Christmas 2019, but they could be open sometime around the spring of 2020, according to the discussion at a November 8 work session.

Here is a timeline of the discussion in five meetings since October. It includes the opinions of planning commissioners and City Council members, and the results of the Wednesday vote.

The rest of this story, which you will find only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or recent contributor to Oak Ridge Today. 

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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.

Oak Ridge officials will meet to discuss second phase of Main Street

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The access road from this roundabout to Rutgers Avenue, pictured above on Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018, could be closed and a retail store built here as part of phase two under a revised master plan for Main Street Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The access road from this roundabout to Rutgers Avenue, pictured above on Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018, could be closed and a retail store built here as part of phase two under a revised master plan for Main Street Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Hoping to make progress and help produce a good plan, Oak Ridge officials will meet in November to discuss the second phase of Main Street Oak Ridge.

Oak Ridge officials have had concerns about proposed revisions to the master plan for Main Street as the developer, RealtyLink, prepares to welcome a second wave of tenants. The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission postponed a vote on the revised master plan during a meeting on Thursday, October 18.

The November 8 joint work session will include the Planning Commission and the Oak Ridge City Council. The special meeting was requested last Thursday when the Planning Commission postponed its decision on the revised master plan.

Some officials have raised concerns about the proposed revisions to the master plan, including the possible closure of the road connecting Rutgers Avenue to the roundabout at Main Street, and they have emphasized their interest in having a mixed-use city center with pedestrian connections, green space or a central gathering spot in its interior, and restaurants and residential units. [Read more…]

Revised plan, postponed vote inject uncertainty into second phase of Main Street

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The access road from this roundabout to Rutgers Avenue, pictured above on Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018, could be closed and a retail store built here as part of phase two under a revised master plan for Main Street Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The access road from this roundabout to Rutgers Avenue, pictured above on Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018, could be closed and a retail store built in its place as part of phase two under a revised master plan for Main Street Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The access road from this roundabout to Rutgers Avenue, pictured above on Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018, could be closed and a retail store built here as part of phase two under a revised master plan for Main Street Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A revised master plan and postponed vote have injected uncertainty into the second phase of Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall.

The rest of this story, which you will find only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or recent contributor to Oak Ridge Today. 

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Oak Ridge Today
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Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers open, more businesses planned

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Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers was open, as pictured above on Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018, at South Illinois and South Tulane avenues as part of Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers was open, as pictured above on Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018, at South Illinois and South Tulane avenues as part of Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers is open at South Illinois and South Tulane avenues, and more businesses are planned at Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall.

So far, Main Street Oak Ridge features a dozen new businesses—including retail stores, a restaurant, and a hotel—and the relocated American Museum of Science and Energy near JCPenney, an anchor store at the northeast side of the mall.

Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, which opened Tuesday in a building that will include another business, was busy Tuesday afternoon, with a parking lot that was mostly full, a drive-through line that wrapped around two sides of the building, and a customer line that stretched from the counter inside to the door. The restaurant has been getting good reviews online.

Plans for the new restaurant were announced in May 2017, and construction was under way at the 1.4-acre site, which is next to the rebuilt Taco Bell restaurant on South Illinois Avenue, in January. [Read more…]