Oak Ridge Today

Update on downtown Oak Ridge Tuesday

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Wayne Blasius

A city official will give an update on the proposed development of downtown Oak Ridge during a lunchtime meeting Tuesday.

The presentation will be led by Wayne Blasius, director of the Oak Ridge Planning and Development Department. The online Lunch with the League meeting has been organized by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge, and it is scheduled from 12 to 1 p.m. Tuesday, March 15.

“Because of its unique development as a community to support the Manhattan Project (during World War II), the City of Oak Ridge lacked a central downtown,” a press release said. “In the fall of 2019, the city prepared a vision for a new city center, which included zoning changes, property acquisition, and soliciting development. With zoning changes and property acquisition in place, on August 6, 2021, the Oak Ridge Land Bank held its ‘Toast the Town’ event to hear the formal announcement of the call for development. Two excellent proposals were received in response to the (request for proposals) and will be considered for approval by the Land Bank Board at their business meeting, March 15, 5:30 pm (location to be announced). Interested community members are encouraged to attend.”

[Read more…]

Five Below opens in second phase of Main Street Oak Ridge

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The new Five Below store had a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Main Street Oak Ridge on Friday, July 16, 2021. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The first store has opened in the second phase of Main Street Oak Ridge.

The new store, Five Below, had a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday morning.

Five Below has many products priced between $1-$5, and some over $5. Products sold in the store include art and creative products, clothing and sporting items, candy, and technological equipment.

[Read more…]

Planning Commission to discuss site plans for storage facility, apartments

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission will discuss a site plan for the planned storage facility at Main Street Oak Ridge and apartments on Emory Valley Road on Thursday.

The storage facility would be built along Rutgers Avenue in the area between JCPenney and Walmart. The apartments would be at 689 Emory Valley Road.

Also on the agenda are a master plan and subarea plan amendment for The Preserve at Clinch River, Subarea G.

[Read more…]

Photos: Old AMSE building being demolished

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The former American Museum of Science and Energy building on South Tulane Avenue is being demolished, and apartments are planned on the site. (Photo courtesy Mike Mahathy)

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…]

JCPenney re-opens in Oak Ridge

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

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…]

Oak Ridge plans a downtown; chalk art on Saturday will promote it

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

A view looking south onto West Main Street into a proposed area of restaurants and shops surrounding a landscaped courtyard off Wilson Street. (Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

A chalk art event on Saturday will promote a proposal to build a downtown area that could include apartments and condominiums, restaurants and stores, and green space and an outdoor performance space at Wilson Street on the north side of Main Street Oak Ridge.

The chalk art event is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 23. It will feature 15 professional artists, the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release.

It’s called “Paint the Town with Chalk,” and it will help people visualize what the downtown area could be like, the press release said.

Oak Ridge was built to help make the world’s first atomic bombs as part of the top-secret Manhattan Project during World War II, and officials say the city was built without a distinct downtown for national security reasons. Now, they are trying to change that.

The goal is to transform the Wilson Street area into the city’s new downtown, according to a presentation last fall by Oak Ridge Community Development Director Wayne Blasius.

The downtown area could include:

[Read more…]

JCPenney files for bankruptcy; Oak Ridge store remains closed

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

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

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

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.

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!