Rick Chinn Archives - Oak Ridge Today

Gooch, Chinn will seek re-election as mayor, mayor pro tem

Posted at 9:44 pm November 13, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Warren Gooch

Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch will seek re-election as mayor later this month, and Mayor Pro Tem Rick Chinn wants to serve again as mayor pro tem.

The Oak Ridge City Council will elect two of their seven members as mayor and mayor pro tem at a meeting on Tuesday, November 27. The mayor and mayor pro tem, who serves in the mayor’s absence, serve two-year terms. Under the City Charter, they are chosen by Council after each municipal election every two years.

While Gooch is currently mayor, Council member Rick Chinn is now the mayor pro tem. In Oak Ridge, the daily responsibilities of running the city are delegated to a city manager, who is selected by Council. The mayor and mayor pro tem cast votes during City Council decisions, and the mayor—or mayor pro tem when the mayor is not available—leads City Council meetings, signs ordinances and resolutions, and serves as the ceremonial head of the city, among other duties.

If he is re-elected later this month, it would be Gooch’s third two-year term as mayor. It would be Chinn’s second term as mayor pro tem. [Read more…]

Four incumbents re-elected to Oak Ridge City Council

Posted at 10:34 pm November 6, 2018
By John Huotari 2 Comments

Warren Gooch

Note: This story was last updated at 12 a.m.

The four incumbents—Mayor Warren Gooch, Council members Kelly Callison and Ellen Smith, and Mayor Pro Tem Rick Chinn—were re-elected to four-year terms on Oak Ridge City Council on Tuesday, according to unofficial election results in Anderson and Roane counties.

The final results mirrored the results of early and absentee ballots in Anderson County.

There were four City Council seats up for regular election and five candidates for those seats.

Gooch had the most votes Tuesday, a total of 7,916 in the two counties (6,774 in Anderson County and 1,142 in Roane County). Gooch also had the highest number of votes in the transitional 2014 election, his first City Council election. [Read more…]

Election 2018: Progress PAC endorsements for City Council, School Board

Posted at 8:38 am November 6, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Note This story was updated at 10 a.m.

Four candidates for Oak Ridge City Council and all three candidates running for Oak Ridge Board of Education running in the election today (Tuesday, November 6) have earned endorsements by Progress PAC.

Three City Council incumbents—Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch, Ellen Smith, and Kelly Callison—received the PAC endorsements as did Tim Stallings, who previously served on the City Council in the 1990s.

School Board candidates Laura McLean, Ben Stephens, and Erin Webb—who are all serving on the BOE now and are running unopposed—also received the political action committee’s nod, a press release said.

Progress PAC, which was created by the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce but which operates independently, endorses City Council and School Board candidates who ask for the committee’s support and who are supportive of the Chamber’s mission, vision, and key legislative priorities, the press release said. [Read more…]

NNSA grants 45-day discussion for Pine Ridge logging, Y-12 power lines

Posted at 5:12 pm December 18, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Dale Christenson, Uranium Processing Facility federal project director, standing at right, talks to Oak Ridge City Council during a non-voting work session in the Jefferson Middle School Library on Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2017. In the background are city staff members and members of the public. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The National Nuclear Security Administration has granted a 45-day discussion period for a project to build a new electrical substation at the Y-12 National Security Complex that could include logging work on top of Pine Ridge.

Oak Ridge officials had requested a 30-day delay of the logging work. City officials have raised concerns about that part of the project because they said they didn’t know about it until a week or two before logging operations were scheduled to start, there has been no public input, and cutting down trees and replacing them with transmission towers on top of the ridge would affect the view in that part of the city, including from two residential neighborhoods, Scarboro and Groves Park Commons. Pine Ridge is between Y-12 and the center of the city.

Oak Ridge officials have also said they don’t know what other options were considered, besides installing the high-voltage power lines on top of Pine Ridge.

The 161-kilovolt power lines will provide electricity to a new electrical substation that will service all of Y-12, but it is being built as a subproject of the Uranium Processing Facility. It would be near UPF on the west side of Y-12. UPF is the largest federal construction project in Tennessee since World War II, and it is expected to be completed by 2025 at a cost of no more than $6.5 billion.

Oak Ridge officials have emphasized that they support the project, but they don’t think the city has been treated as an equal partner on the electrical substation and power line portion of the project.

In a press release Tuesday, the City of Oak Ridge said the electrical substation project would involve clear-cutting 2.1 miles of mature trees along the top of Pine Ridge. The NNSA has delayed that project for 45 days, although some logging activity will still occur during that time. [Read more…]

Accepting state grant for Blankenship Field means it must be open to public

Posted at 12:38 pm November 24, 2017
By John Huotari 1 Comment

An overall view of the proposed renovation of Blankenship Field and Jack Armstrong Stadium. (File image from April 2015)

Accepting a state grant of $480,000 for Blankenship Field, primarily for synthetic turf, means that the facilities must be open to the public.

But there could be exceptions for previously scheduled events that are coordinated through the Oak Ridge school system.

Keeping the facilities open is part of an operational agreement with Oak Ridge Schools that was amended in a 7-0 vote by Oak Ridge City Council on Monday, November 13.

“The important thing is that it’s just not locked up,” Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson told City Council during that meeting. Residents have to be able to use the property.

Watson said there will be a bathroom available, and the facilities will be open sunrise to sunset. There could be field rentals, Watson said. [Read more…]

Third Annual First Responders Appreciation Day is Saturday

Posted at 2:52 pm October 2, 2017
By Becky Hodge Leave a Comment

Flags are pictured above at the First Responders Appreciation Day in 2016. (Submitted photo)

The First Responders Appreciation Committee of Oak Ridge will present the Third Annual First Responders Appreciation Day on Saturday, October 7, in the parking lot of Swifty’s Atomic Bar and Grill in Oak Ridge. The event begins at 2 p.m., a press release said.

“This year’s event will be much larger than last year!” the press release said. “We will have a waterslide for the kids, free food provided by Sysco Foods, and music. We’ll also have booths featuring DotDotSmile; Handmade Wreaths; Honey Pots; The Mystic Orb jewelry; National Martial Arts; Outta the Attic; Paparazzi Jewelry; Plum Crazy Boutique; and SET Guns and Range.

“Most importantly, we will be honoring all local area first responders to include law enforcement officers, fire fighters, and emergency medical services personnel. We will read a roll call of the fallen police, firefighters, and EMS in 2017 and have a candlelight vigil to honor their memory.” [Read more…]

Oak Ridge faith leaders condemn racism, hatred, ask City Council to do the same

Posted at 11:48 am August 16, 2017
By John Huotari 15 Comments

Reacting to the deadly violence at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, this past weekend, Oak Ridge faith leaders on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, condemned white supremacy, racism, anti-semitism, and other forms of hatred, and they asked the Oak Ridge City Council to adopt a resolution expressing similar sentiments. The statement of condemnation was read by Derrick Hammond, pastor of Oak Valley Baptist Church. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Reacting to the deadly violence at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, this past weekend, Oak Ridge faith leaders on Monday condemned white supremacy, racism, anti-semitism, and other forms of hatred, and they asked the Oak Ridge City Council to adopt a resolution expressing similar sentiments.

The statement of condemnation of hatred and racism was read by Derrick Hammond, pastor of Oak Valley Baptist Church, during a Monday evening meeting of the Oak Ridge City Council as 14 other clergy members stood by him in support.

It came two days after a 32-year-old Virginia woman was killed and 19 other people were injured after a car plowed into counter-protesters on the day of the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville. About two hours after the car crash, two Virginia state troopers who both have East Tennessee ties were killed when their police helicopter crashed and burned; the helicopter had been involved in providing surveillance and information during the day, the Charlottesville Daily Progress reported.

“This past weekend, a 32-year-old young lady by the name of Heather Heyer lost her life, and many others were seriously injured at a Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia,” the Oak Ridge faith leaders said in their statement delivered to City Council on Monday. “The white nationalists, neo-Nazis, Ku Klux Klan members, and other ‘alt-right’ hate groups were gathered in order to ‘take America back.’

“While the kind of hate, bigotry, and white supremacist ideology that we witnessed in Charlottesville is not new to America, this racist minority movement has been emboldened by what they perceive as support for their un-American world view. Their rhetoric and actions threaten the historic progress our ancestors, from many faiths and ethnic backgrounds, have made toward equality for all. It is now our responsibility and privilege to celebrate the rich diversity of our nation and continue their work. [Read more…]

Council approves budget with no tax rate increase

Posted at 1:54 am June 8, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge City Council is pictured above in December 2016. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge City Council approved a budget with no property tax rate increase on Monday.

If the budget is adopted in a second and final vote next week, it will be the 10th year in a row without a tax rate increase in Oak Ridge.

The Council had been asked to consider a four-cent increase in the property tax rate in order to fund a 2.5 percent pay raise for Oak Ridge Schools teachers and staff. That increase would have pushed the city’s property tax rate to $2.56 per $100 of assessed value. But that request was denied.

Instead, Council voted 4-2 to keep the tax rate at $2.52.

But Council did agree, in another 4-2 vote, to give the schools about $538,000 in additional funding that the city agreed to provide on a recurring basis. That means the city will have to continue to provide that extra money in the funding that it transfers to Oak Ridge Schools each year as part of what is known as maintenance of effort. The city had also given the schools an additional $538,000 last year, but it was on a one-time basis for a digital device initiative that includes convertible laptops for students, among other expenses.

This year, members of the Oak Ridge Board of Education sought to make that $538,000 a recurring part of the school system’s funding, and they wanted to add another $318,000—or about $856,000 total—for the 2.5 percent pay raise for teachers and staff. Council members approved the first part of that request (the recurring $538,000), but not the second (the extra $318,000). [Read more…]

Housing report recommends more new homes, rental units

Posted at 10:07 am April 20, 2017
By John Huotari 7 Comments

The Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce and its Housing Task Force, which was chaired by Melinda Hillman, right, presented a housing report to the Oak Ridge City Council during a non-voting work session on Tuesday, April 18, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce and its Housing Task Force, which was chaired by Melinda Hillman, right, present a housing report to the Oak Ridge City Council during a non-voting work session on Tuesday, April 18, 2017. At left is Parker Hardy, Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce president. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The competition to provide housing for workers is fierce, and Oak Ridge needs more new homes in the $180,000-$280,000 price range and more rental units in the $900-$1,200 price range, according to a housing report presented to Oak Ridge City Council by the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday.

Also proposed in the housing report: the development of attractive, convenient mixed use gathering spaces; improving the appearance of existing neighborhoods through aggressive codes enforcement; beautification projects in public spaces to make Oak Ridge more appealing; developing and implementing a consistent “brand” for Oak Ridge that encompasses livability, economic development, and tourism; incentivizing home improvements in the Manhattan District Overlay; and developing public/private partnerships to work on housing.

The report, which was presented to City Council in a non-voting work session on Tuesday, studied where Oak Ridge employees live, based upon the zip codes of 7,372 employees from eight major Oak Ridge employers. It found that 22 percent of Oak Ridge workers live in Oak Ridge. That’s compared to 44 percent who live in Knox County, primarily in Farragut, Hardin Valley, Northshore, Karns, and Cedar Bluff.

Ten percent of the Oak Ridge workers live in Roane County, 6 percent live in Clinton, and less than five percent each live in Loudon, Blount, Morgan, and other counties, the report said.

The housing report only reviewed Oak Ridge as it compares to the five most popular communities where people who work in Oak Ridge choose to live (Farragut, Hardin Valley, Northshore, Karns, and Cedar Bluff).

“Competition for residents is fierce, and Oak Ridge competes with some of the most desirable communities in the region,” the report said. [Read more…]

Scarboro skeptical, wants more discussion, but Council picks park for preschool

Posted at 2:56 pm March 29, 2017
By John Huotari 6 Comments

About 100 people turned out for a community meeting on selecting Scarboro Park for the new Oak Ridge Preschool on Thursday, March 23, 2017. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

Residents and former residents of the Scarboro neighborhood are divided over whether to build the Oak Ridge Preschool at Scarboro Park. While some support the project, others are skeptical of the city’s motives and have signed a petition opposing the site. One resident asked for more time for discussion, at least a few more meetings, during a special meeting on Monday.

But the City Council voted 5-1 to select Scarboro Park as the site for the new Oak Ridge Preschool. That vote had been postponed during a regular City Council meeting two weeks ago in order to allow city and school officials to meet with Scarboro residents this past Thursday.

Council members and other officials have portrayed the preschool project as an opportunity, a $10 million investment in the community. City officials have said the site is centrally located, the land is flat and city-owned, and its crime statistics are a bit better than those at the first preferred site, Elm Grove Park.

They have pointed out that Scarboro Park is only a half-mile from the nearest fire station, and most of the park—about 85 percent of it—would still be a park. They said the park is large enough that the 40,000-square-foot preschool could be expanded and could include 20 classrooms. The park could still include the recreational amenities—basketball courts, tennis courts, and a youth-size baseball field—although they might be moved within the park, officials said. [Read more…]

Council postpones vote on preschool site until after Scarboro meeting

Posted at 3:42 pm March 14, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The new preschool could be located at Elm Grove Park in east Oak Ridge or Scarboro Park in central Oak Ridge, pictured above on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017, and the city's school board expects to recommend one of the two sites on Monday, Feb. 27, a school official said Friday. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The new preschool could be located at Scarboro Park in central Oak Ridge, pictured above on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge City Council has postponed a vote on selecting a site for the new Oak Ridge Preschool until after a meeting in Scarboro next week.

The Oak Ridge Board of Education unanimously selected Scarboro Park, off Carver Avenue in central Oak Ridge, as the site for the new preschool in February.

The Council was expected to vote on that site on Monday.

But after hearing from a few people who had questions about the proposed site, Council agreed in a 4-3 vote to defer its site selection until after a March 23 meeting in Scarboro. Council could now vote during a special meeting on March 27.

Besides Scarboro Park, officials had previously looked at two other options. One, Elm Grove Park in east Oak Ridge, had been identified as the preferred site after a preschool report was published in October 2015. But there has been opposition, including a petition drive, to building the new preschool there. [Read more…]

Letter: Oak Ridge Country Club responds to comments made at Council meeting

Posted at 12:57 am February 10, 2017
By Oak Ridge Today Letters Leave a Comment

Editor’s note: This is a letter sent to Oak Ridge City Council by the Oak Ridge Country Club in response to comments made during a City Council meeting in January, when Council considered whether to provide $120,000 for the city-owned Tennessee Centennial Golf Course.

Dear Council Members:

On behalf of the membership and Board of Directors of Oak Ridge Country Club (ORCC), I would like to take this opportunity to express our displeasure in councilman Rick Chinn stemming from a statement made during a recent City Council meeting, which subsequently made it to public media outlets. During that meeting Mr. Chinn, in defense of his vote against allocating funds to Centennial Golf Course, stated that, “there is another private golf course in Oak Ridge that is also struggling.” Due to the fact that ORCC is the only private golf course in Oak Ridge, one can conclude that he was referring to our club. I would like to take a moment to address that completely unfounded and inappropriate comment.

Oak Ridge Country Club was founded in 1947 and will celebrate its 70th year in existence this year. ORCC is not funded by the City of Oak Ridge. We currently have 275 golf members and over 440 members total that maintain the financial stability of our club, without city or state assistance. Our club is not remotely a fair comparison to Centennial when it comes to taxpayer dollars spent in the city of Oak Ridge.

Of that membership of 275 golf members, a good percentage are individuals and families that come from outside the city of Oak Ridge (Powell, West Knoxville, Hardin Valley, and Kingston, to name a few), thus bringing dollars into our city’s economy. Our club annually hosts events for Tennessee Golf Association, Tennessee PGA and Knoxville Chapter PGA. All of these events bring players from all over the state of Tennessee into our community, to our hotels, restaurants, gas stations, etc. [Read more…]