A plumbers and steamfitters union wants to use a former hardware store on Oak Ridge Turnpike for a trade school. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
A plumbers and steamfitters union wants to use a former hardware store for a trade school.
A rezoning for the project was recommended in a voice vote by the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday. There was no opposition.
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The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 21, 2022, will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company. (Image by City of Oak Ridge)
The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 21, 2022, will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company.
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The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 21, 2022, will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company. (Image by City of Oak Ridge)
The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company.
The property (Lot 6a) has been purchased from the Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board by TRISO-X LLC, a nuclear fuel company that announced expansion plans in Oak Ridge in April 2022, the city staff said. The company said it hopes to bring hundreds of highly skilled, high-paying jobs to the Oak Ridge area and further “Oak Ridge’s well-earned reputation as the center of U.S. nuclear innovation and excellence.”
The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 21, 2022, will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company. (Image by City of Oak Ridge)
The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission on Thursday, July 21, 2022, will consider rezoning 110 acres at Horizon Center for a nuclear fuel fabrication company.
The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here.Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:Basic
If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to: Oak Ridge TodayP.O. Box 6064Oak Ridge, TN 37831 We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here. We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription. Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!
Residential lots have been proposed for the upper part of Oak Ridge Summit, pictured above on Friday, May 7, 2021. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Residential lots have been proposed for the upper part of Oak Ridge Summit, the former Pine Ridge above South Illinois Avenue.
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Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!
Residential lots have been proposed for the upper part of Oak Ridge Summit, pictured above on Friday, May 7, 2021. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Residential lots have been proposed for the upper part of Oak Ridge Summit, the former Pine Ridge above South Illinois Avenue.
The 45-acre site could have 57 single-family lots, as well as open space, on a new street and cul-de-sac with access off Summit Drive on the former ridge, according to the agenda for an Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission meeting on Thursday.
Residential lots have been proposed for the upper part of Oak Ridge Summit, pictured above on Friday, May 7, 2021. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Residential lots have been proposed for the upper part of Oak Ridge Summit, the former Pine Ridge above South Illinois Avenue.
The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.
Commercial horse stables and horse-based therapy programs have been proposed near Big Turtle Park in west Oak Ridge on about 31 acres at the end of Hermitage Boulevard. (Aerial property image from Oak Ridge Board of Zoning Appeals agenda)
Commercial horse stables and horse-based therapy programs have been proposed near Big Turtle Park in west Oak Ridge.
The Oak Ridge Board of Zoning Appeals will consider a special exception to allow the commercial facility in a residential/open space district on Tuesday, May 11.
The request has been sought by Sean and Sara Pennington, who could buy roughly 31 acres at the end of Hermitage Boulevard for the project. The property is currently owned by the owner of an adjacent single-family lot, Joseph and Tanya Tuminello.
“The stables are intended to board horses and provide people with horse-based therapy programs,” according to a staff report for the zoning appeals board.
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.
Part of the site where a test track and research facility or motorsports park could be built on the back side of Horizon Center in west Oak Ridge is pictured above on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
The Oak Ridge City Council will discuss a special recreation district, which could allow a motorsports park, among other potential uses, during a meeting this evening.
The special recreation district is being considered as a zoning ordinance amendment. The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission has recommended it, but the City Council has not approved it.
A motorsports park has been proposed at the Horizon Center in west Oak Ridge. The proposal has both supporters and detractors.
The zoning ordinance amendment would not endorse that specific proposal. Instead, it would create a new zoning district, the special recreation district, which could be used for large-scale recreation and entertainment developments.
Part of the site where a test track and research facility or motorsports park could be built on the back side of Horizon Center in west Oak Ridge is pictured above on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission is scheduled to discuss a special recreation district that would allow a motorsports park, among other potential uses.
The special recreation district is being considered as a zoning ordinance amendment. The Planning Commission will meet online, and the meeting is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. today (Thursday, February 18).
A motorsports park has been proposed at the Horizon Center in west Oak Ridge. The proposal has both supporters and detractors.
The zoning ordinance amendment would not endorse that specific proposal. Instead, it would create a new zoning district, the special recreation district, which could be used for large-scale recreation and entertainment developments.
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.
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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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The Oak Ridge City Council on Friday, May 24, 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 will consider the revised plan for Main Street Oak Ridge on second and final reading at noon today (Friday, May 24).
The meeting will be in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Courtroom at 200 South Tulane Avenue.
Council approved the revised plan in a 6-1 vote on Monday, May 13. That approval occurred four months after Council rejected an earlier version of the plan in a 3-4 vote in January. Since then, a new revised plan has been submitted to the city, and there have been additional discussions between city officials and RealtyLink, the South Carolina developer. 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.
Main Street Oak Ridge is the 58-acre project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall.
The developer of Main Street Oak Ridge on Thursday, April 25, 2019, said it has an “immediate opportunity” for a climate-controlled self storage facility at the 58-acre site. Examples of what these types of facilities look like were presented to the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission by Brett Rogers, construction director for RealtyLink, the developer.
The Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission will study a potential zoning text amendment for self storage facilities this evening (Thursday, May 23).
The text amendment is being considered after a developer, RealtyLink, proposed a climate-controlled self storage facility at Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall.
The self storage facility, which is not currently allowed under the type of zoning in place at the site, could be along Rutgers Avenue. It could be three stories, with a maximum height of 35 feet. It could have about the same “footprint” as Dick’s Sporting Goods.
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.
Note: This story was updated at 11:20 a.m. May 14.
After rejecting an earlier version, the Oak Ridge City Council voted 6-1 on Monday to approve the latest version of the revised plan for Main Street Oak Ridge, the 58-acre project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall.
The vote during a regular meeting in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Courtroom on Monday was the first of two readings, or votes. The second vote could take place during a special meeting on Tuesday, May 21.
The approval on Monday occurred four months after Council rejected an earlier version of the plan in a 3-4 vote in January. Since then, a new revised plan has been submitted to the city, and there have been additional discussions between city officials and RealtyLink, the South Carolina developer. 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 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.
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.
