Oak Ridge Today

Street resurfacing project under way

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The Oak Ridge Public Works Department has a street resurfacing project that is under way and expected to continue for several weeks, a press release said.

It said Public Works Department crews have completed preparation work along Paine Lane and South Purdue Avenue. Crews are now preparing North Purdue Avenue for resurfacing. Rogers Group Inc., working under contract for the City of Oak Ridge, will finish the resurfacing, the press release said.

“Drivers should be advised that some locations may have a rough or bumpy surface until Rogers Group crews are able to complete the final surface on the streets,” the release said.

Streets that will be resurfaced as part of the project, in addition to the streets listed above, are listed below:

[Read more…]

Rogers Group patching parts of Illinois, Turnpike today through Thursday

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Rogers Group Inc., a contractor for the City of Oak Ridge, is expected to start patching parts of two state highways today. The two state roads are Illinois Avenue and Oak Ridge Turnpike.

The work is expected to last most of the week and be complete by Thursday, June 30, unless interrupted by weather or unforeseen problems, a press release said.

“Motorists should be aware of short-term temporary lane closures while this work is being completed,” the press release said. “Please take extra caution near Methodist Medical Center at the intersection of Oak Ridge Turnpike and Tennyson Road. Thank you for your cooperation and patience while this work is being completed.”

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Merchants frustrated with progress at Jackson Square; protest sign posted

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Jackson Square Parking Lot Renovations Sign

There has been some frustration among merchants at Jackson Square about not being able to use the partially paved parking lot while they wait for renovations to be completed. This protest sign saying “Free Our Parking Lot!!” was posted on Wednesday.

 

Merchants have grown frustrated with the pace of renovations at Jackson Square, and on Wednesday a protest sign was posted. “Free Our Parking Lot!” said the sign, which has since been removed.

For now, the parking lot inside Jackson Square remains closed off behind construction fencing as work continues on a $1 million renovation mostly funded by a state grant awarded in 2012.

But merchants wonder why they can’t use the parking lot since it was used for the Lavender Festival on June 20.

Compounding their frustration is the closure of the lower parking lot at Blankenship Field. It’s one of two lots on the north side of Broadway Avenue and Jackson Square. Employees at nearby businesses who used to park in the Blankenship Field lot are now using the second lot, the one used by the Farmers Market, reducing the parking spaces available there, one merchant said.

The Blankenship Field work, which was approved by the Oak Ridge City Council in June, is also causing concern for the Farmers Market. The Farmer Market’s vendors set up in the second parking lot on Wednesday afternoons and Saturday mornings, and they now don’t have parking available at either the Blankenship Field lot or inside the Jackson Square lot. [Read more…]

Crunch time: Crews start paving Jackson Square parking lot

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Jackson Square Paving June 15, 2015

Work crews started paving the new parking lot at Jackson Square on Monday, June 15, preparing it for this weekend’s Lavender Festival.

 

Work crews started paving the new parking lot at Jackson Square on Monday, preparing to put down enough pavement to have the Lavender Festival there this weekend.

Workers won’t stripe the pavement before the annual festival, and they may have to finish paving the parking lot after the festival, said Roger Flynn, Oak Ridge’s acting city engineer.

He said he is optimistic that enough work will be done that organizers can have the festival, and vendors know that the project won’t be complete.

Crews will temporarily remove exterior fencing around the square for the festival. And workers will fill in ditches and other areas to prevent tripping, Flynn said. [Read more…]

Resurfacing work to start on Emory Valley Road on Monday

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Resurfacing work on Emory Valley Road is expected to start on Monday, November 3, officials said.

The work will be done by Rogers Group Inc., working under contract for the Tennessee Department of Transportation.

The portion of Emory Valley Road to be resurfaced will begin west of Davidson Lane and proceeds west about 1.3 miles to Lafayette Drive, a city press release said. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge street resurfacing begins September 23

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The Oak Ridge Public Works Department plans to resurface the following city streets beginning Tuesday, September 23: [Read more…]

Railroad tracks removed from South Illinois, Emory Valley

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South Illinois Avenue Railroad Track Removal

A work crew from Rogers Group removes unused railroad tracks from South Illinois Avenue just south of Lafayette Drive and Scarboro Road on Saturday night. After the tracks were removed, the railroad crossing was repaved, and the road reopened on Sunday.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 6:30 p.m.

Unused railroad tracks that crossed Briarcliff Avenue, Emory Valley Road, and South Illinois Avenue were removed on Thursday and Saturday night.

Railroad company CSX split the traffic control costs with the city and paid to remove the tracks, Oak Ridge Public Works Director Gary Cinder said. In exchange, the city agreed to repave the roadways as part of street maintenance. The crossing lights were removed as well so that commercial vehicles, including school buses, no longer have to stop at the abandoned crossings and, in the case of school buses and other vehicles that carry children, open and close their doors before proceeding.

The project has been in the works for two years.

“We’re thrilled to finally get to this stage,” Cinder said last week. “It’s been a long time coming.” [Read more…]

State high court declines to hear appeal in Rogers, Clinton suit

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Information from WYSH Radio

Last week, the Tennessee Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of the dismissal of a lawsuit filed against the city of Clinton and a road-paving company, effectively ending a nearly 20-year-old legal battle.

A grassroots organization called Citizens for Safety and Clean Air made up of Norris residents formed to fight plans by the Rogers Group to reopen a rock quarry and build an asphalt plant on land in the Bethel community annexed several years ago by the city of Clinton. The group filed a lawsuit in Anderson County Chancery Court to stop those plans from going forward, alleging that the city’s rezoning of the property for heavy industrial use constituted illegal spot zoning and that the project would cause increases in heavy truck traffic and air and noise pollution.

Chancellor William Lantrip dismissed the suit, saying that zoning is essentially a legislative matter and not the domain of the courts. An appeals court agreed last fall, and last week, the state’s high court declined to hear the case, essentially clearing the way for the project to move forward.

Appeals Court rules against rock quarry foes

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Tennessee Court of Appeals late last week ruled against a group of citizens who had sued the city of Clinton and the Rogers Group over the city’s rezoning of land near the Bethel community to allow for the road-paving company to reopen its controversial rock quarry.

Citizens for Safety and Clean Air had filed the suit, alleging that the city’s rezoning of the land to M-2—or heavy industrial use—had been capricious and arbitrary and that it had constituted illegal spot zoning.

Anderson County Chancellor William Lantrip ruled against the plaintiffs earlier this year, and the case was appealed. [Read more…]

Streets being resurfaced in north Clinton

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Clinton Public Works Department has announced a street resurfacing project that is beginning in the residential areas of north Clinton.

The work will continue through mid-September and will require temporary street closures and detours. The city’s contractor, Rogers Group, has one crew performing street preparation ahead of a second crew that is applying asphalt. [Read more…]

Auditorium to be built at UT Arboretum in Oak Ridge

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University of Tennessee Arboretum Auditorium

University of Tennessee AgResearch on Tuesday announced that a new auditorium will be built at the UT Arboretum in Oak Ridge through a public-private partnership. A building design concept is pictured above. (Image courtesy of UT AgResearch)

A new auditorium that could be used for education will be built at the University of Tennessee Arboretum in Oak Ridge through a public-private partnership, officials announced Tuesday.

The partnership includes UT AgResearch, a unit of the UT Institute of Agriculture; the UT Institute for Public Service; and the Rogers Group.

The auditorium was announced during a Tuesday morning breakfast at the Arboretum that was sponsored by the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce. [Read more…]