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Ward, an attorney running for Charter Commission, supports term limits

Posted at 4:33 pm October 1, 2016
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Hugh Ward Jr.

Hugh Ward Jr.

Hugh B. Ward Jr., an attorney running for Anderson County Charter Commission, supports term limits for county mayor and county commissioners, a press release said.

Ward is running for the District 6 seat on the eight-member Charter Commission, which will be elected November 8. District 6 includes the Oak Ridge City Hall, Robertsville, and West Hills precincts.

“Charter government has worked well for the City of Oak Ridge since November 7, 1962; the City of Clinton since 1954; Knoxville; Knox County; and other East Tennessee cities,” the press release said. “I think it’s time we modernize and allow Oak Ridge citizens to have the same level of citizen input in county government as our own fine city government. I favor a charter government, including term limits for county commissioners and the office of county mayor. For stability, I believe we need to establish staggered terms of office for commissioners as occurs in our city and surrounding municipalities.”

If elected, Ward said, his priorities will include transparency and open government, citizen participation on county committees, and ensuring charter proposals are consistent with the state constitution and general laws. [Read more…]

Filed Under: 2016 Election, Anderson County, Front Page News, Government, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Charter Commission, City of Oak Ridge, District 6, Frances Cross, Hugh B. Ward Jr., Hugh Ward, Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation, term limits, Young Williams Law Firm

Oak Ridge, AC added to state blight elimination program; loans of up to $25K per home

Posted at 11:22 pm July 11, 2016
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

TDHA Perrey Oak Ridge Gooch Blight Elimination Program July 11 2016

Oak Ridge and Anderson County have been added to a state blight elimination program that could allow the city to accelerate its efforts to remove blighted and abandoned homes and replace them with new affordable housing, or possibly green space. Ralph Perrey, left, executive director of the Tennessee Housing Development Agency, makes the announcement in Oak Ridge on Monday, July 11, 2016. Also pictured is Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge and Anderson County have been added to a state blight elimination program that could allow the city to accelerate its efforts to remove blighted and abandoned homes and replace them with new affordable housing, or possibly green space. Loans of up to $25,000 per home are available.

The Blight Elimination Program allows qualified nonprofits and land banks, like the one in Oak Ridge, to apply for loans of up to $25,000 to acquire blighted, abandoned homes, demolish them, turn the property into green space, and maintain the vacant lots. The “greened” lots can then be turned into new affordable housing or converted into other uses meant to stabilize neighborhoods, with the uses approved by the Tennessee Housing Development Agency.

The $25,000 per demolition will be fronted by the THDA. The work could start with the Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation, THDA Executive Director Ralph M. Perrey said during a Monday afternoon press conference in Oak Ridge. The press conference also included Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson, Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch, and Katie Moore, East Tennessee THDA representative.

The Blight Elimination Program has $10 million in funding available in Tennessee on a first-come, first-served basis. Much of it is likely to be used in Memphis in Shelby County, one of six other counties previously approved for the Blight Elimination Program, Perrey said.

But Memphis isn’t the only place that needs help, he said.

“I think a fair amount of that can be put to work here,” Perrey said in Oak Ridge on Monday. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge, State, Top Stories Tagged With: affordable housing, Anderson County, BEP, blight elimination, Blight Elimination Program, blighted home, Community Development Block Grant, demolition, Hardest Hit Fund, HHF, Kathryn Baldwin, Katie Moore, Manhattan District Overlay, Manhattan Project, Mark Watson, MDO, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation, Ralph Perrey, Tennessee Housing Development Agency, THDA, U.S. Treasury, Warren Gooch, World War II

Tennessee housing agency to announce blight elimination partnership with Oak Ridge

Posted at 3:27 pm July 8, 2016
By John Huotari 6 Comments

THDA Perrey and Gooch June 8 2016

The Tennessee Housing Development Agency awarded the City of Oak Ridge a $500,000 grant on Wednesday, June 9, 2016, that will be used to renovate more than 60 single-family homes. Pictured above are THDA Executive Director Ralph M. Perrey, left, and Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch. THDA and Perrey will be back on Monday, July 11, to announce a partnership with the City of Oak Ridge to support the implementation of THDA’s Hardest Hit Fund Blight Elimination Program, or BEP. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Tennessee Housing Development Agency will announce a partnership with the City of Oak Ridge to support the implementation of THDA’s Hardest Hit Fund Blight Elimination Program, or BEP, on Monday.

The announcement will be made by THDA Executive Director Ralph Perrey at 1:30 p.m. Monday, July 11. The announcement will be made in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Courtroom, which is located at 200 South Tulane Avenue in Oak Ridge.

The Hardest Hit Fund Blight Elimination Program assists with the removal of blighted properties in targeted areas within Tennessee, a media advisory said. THDA works in partnership with approved program partners to strategically target residential single-family properties for demolition, site improvement, and acceptable reuse, the advisory said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge, State, Top Stories Tagged With: BEP, blighted houses, blighted properties, City of Oak Ridge, Hardest Hit Fund Blight Elimination Program, housing, Katie Moore, legacy homes, Mark Watson, Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation, Oak Ridge Municipal Building Courtroom, Ralph M. Perrey, Tennessee Housing Development Agency, THDA, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Warren Gooch

Land Bank ‘ahead of curve’ in repairing, redeveloping blighted homes

Posted at 2:01 pm December 1, 2015
By John Huotari 3 Comments

Matt Widner and Charlie Jernigan Nov. 6, 2015

Matt Widner, Oak Ridge Community Development housing specialist, left, and Charlie Jernigan, board chair for the Oak Ridge Land Bank Corp., are pictured above during a housing work session on Friday, Nov. 6, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A two-year-old effort to repair or redevelop blighted and abandoned homes in Oak Ridge is making above-average progress, an official said in November.

The Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation, the first of its kind in Tennessee, has sold two homes and donated two and has more listed, board chair Charlie Jernigan said.

Other land banks around the country haven’t had any sales until their third year.

“We’re ahead of that curve,” Jernigan said after a November 6 work session on housing at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, the second this year. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Business, Community, Front Page News, Government, Government, Nonprofits, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge, Slider Tagged With: blighted homes, Charlie Jernigan, First Place Finish, housing, Kathryn Baldwin, land bank, Matt Widner, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, Oak Ridge Community Development, Oak Ridge Land Bank, Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation

Oak Ridge Land Bank hosting neighborhood strategy work session

Posted at 4:10 pm October 27, 2015
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Partnership Strategy Agenda Flyer Nov. 6, 2015

The Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation is hosting a strategy work session November 6 to focus on partnerships and “collaborative efforts to improve and promote our Oak Ridge neighborhoods,” a press release said. The work session is from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Friday, November 6, at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce.

Agenda items include demonstrated successes, a small group exercise, and a group discussion.

For reservations, contact Alicia Bailey at the City of Oak Ridge at (865) 425-3531 or by email at [email protected] by Wednesday, November 4.

Filed Under: Business, Front Page News, Government, Meetings and Events, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Tagged With: City of Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, Oak Ridge Land Bank, Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation, Oak Ridge neighborhoods, strategy work session, work session

Land Bank has first housing strategy meeting on Thursday

Posted at 1:53 pm May 8, 2015
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Land Bank Housing Strategy

The Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation will host its first housing strategy meeting on Thursday. The goal is to address the city’s housing situation while building partnerships in a collaborative effort to promote the city “as the place to live and work by improving our community’s neighborhoods,” a press release said.

The work session is scheduled from 1 to 5 p.m. Thursday, May 14, at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce.

Agenda items including the state of housing, a mobile tour, and partner presentations by ADFAC (Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties), Habitat for Humanity of Anderson County, Oak Ridge Housing Authority, and Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Government, Meetings and Events, Oak Ridge, Top Stories Tagged With: ADFAC, Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties, Habitat for Humanity of Anderson County, housing strategy, land bank, mobile tour, Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, Oak Ridge Housing Authority, Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation, strategy meeting

Oak Ridge Land Bank meets

Posted at 9:42 pm February 16, 2015
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation will meet at 8 a.m. Wednesday, February 18, in the Municipal Building Training Room.

The agenda includes an update on 175 Outer Drive, a task list, property disposition, an ADFAC amended proposal, a Habitat for Humanity proposal, and a Realty Center proposal.

Filed Under: Front Page News, Government, Meetings and Events, Oak Ridge Tagged With: ADFAC, Habitat for Humanity, Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation, Realty Center

Oak Ridge Land Bank meets Feb. 3

Posted at 5:59 pm February 2, 2015
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation will meet in a work session at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, February 3, in the Municipal Building Training Room.

Agenda items include an update on 175 Outer Drive and a continued discussion of the disposition strategy for a Habitat for Humanity proposal.

Filed Under: Meetings and Events Tagged With: Habitat for Humanity, Municipal Building, Oak Ridge Land Bank Corporation

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Classifieds

Public Notice: NNSA announces no significant impact of Y-12 Development Organization operations at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

ADFAC seeks contractors for five homes

Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties (ADFAC) is a non-profit community based agency, … [Read More...]

Public notice: Draft environmental assessment for Y-12 Development Organization at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

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