Oak Ridge Today

First Community School seminar focuses on early Oak Ridge history

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D. Ray Smith

D. Ray Smith

The first of the three Community School evening seminars focusing on management of legacy wastes from Oak Ridge will feature local historian D. Ray Smith. The seminar will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday, September 15, at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

In his presentation, “Stories from the Secret City,” Smith will give an overview of early Oak Ridge history including how the East Tennessee location was selected and the predictions the “Prophet of Oak Ridge.” In material provided about the presentation, Smith said that many Ed Westcott historical images will form the backdrop for the stories of the history of Oak Ridge during the Manhattan Project. A primary focus will be the Y-12 National Security Complex, which produced the uranium for the first atomic bomb, with some Oak Ridge National Laboratory history included as well.

He said he will touch on the Cold War Era and today’s Oak Ridge missions, and time permitting, give an update on the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. A concluding activity of the first seminar will be an Oak Ridge mapping exercise, led by Community School staff. [Read more…]

DOE-Oak Ridge Office names diversity, employee concerns manager

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Moses Madera

Moses Madera

Moses Madera, a United States Air Force veteran, was recently named manager of diversity programs and employee concerns for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office.

In this job, Madera will serve as the principal staff adviser to the Office of Science in Oak Ridge and site managers on equal employment opportunity (EEO), diversity, affirmative employment, alternative dispute resolution (ADR), environmental justice, and reasonable accommodation programs, a press release said. Madera will also manage the employee concerns program.

“We are really fortunate to have someone of Moses’ caliber join our office,” said Larry Kelly, manager of DOE-ORO. “He brings a wealth of knowledge in EEO and diversity to the table, and we’re looking forward to his guidance and expertise in his new role on our leadership team.”

Madera comes to ORO most recently from the U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Division Keyport, Washington, one of Naval Sea Systems Command’s field activities, where he had been the deputy equal employment opportunity officer since 2012. While there, he was responsible for continuous improvement of the EEO, diversity, and special emphasis programs, along with ADR and reasonable accommodation programs. [Read more…]

Asbestos removal in final stage at Federal Building

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Joe L Evins Federal Fuilding

A four-month project to remove asbestos-containing insulation from the Joe L. Evins Federal Building in Oak Ridge is wrapping up, and federal employees and contractors could move back in next month.

Work crews are wrapping up a four-month project to clean up and remove asbestos-containing insulation from the Joe L. Evins Federal Building in Oak Ridge, and displaced federal workers and contractors could move back into the building next month, a spokeswoman said Friday.

“We have reached the final stage of the project and expect to have the building available to tenants in May,” said Saudia Muwwakkil, regional public affairs officer for the U.S. General Services Administration, which owns the building.

There have been about 350 workers in the five-story building, which is home to the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office as well as a district office for U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann. The workers include roughly 200 federal employees and close to 150 contractors. [Read more…]

Unitarian Universalists consider new site in east Oak Ridge

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Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church Site

Members of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church voted 131-2 to try to buy this 4.6-acre site in front of the Joe L. Evins Federal Building for a new church. (Photo courtesy of Jake B. Morrill)

They’ve agreed to sell their current church to make way for a new shopping center, and on Sunday, members of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church voted overwhelmingly to try to move to the east end of town.

The congregation voted 131-2 to buy a 4.6-acre site in front of the Joe L. Evins Federal Building, home of the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office. The plot is beside Summit Medical on Laboratory Road.

But they haven’t closed on the deal yet, the church’s minister, Rev. Jake B. Morrill, said Monday morning. In a press release Monday afternoon, members of the Church’s Relocation Steering Committee said the due diligence process is not complete, and a closing date hasn’t been set.

Assuming the deal is completed, the next step would be to design a building. The church said it is working with an architect “to begin a congregation-wide process to design a new church using a sustainable, green design for the new facility and preservation of as much of the existing park-like setting of the parcel as possible.”

Church members expect to be in their new home by Thanksgiving 2014.

[Read more…]

DOE acting assistant manager retires after 34 years of federal service

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Teresa C. Perry

Teresa C. Perry

An acting assistant manager in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office has retired after 34 years of federal service.

Teresa C. Perry was acting assistant manager for safety and technical services in the Oak Ridge Office, and she retired Aug. 1, a DOE press release said.

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Federal employees not exposed to asbestos, air samples say

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Oak Ridge Federal Building

The Federal Building in Oak Ridge has been shut down after insulation with asbestos fell into heating and cooling ducts.

Air samples from the Federal Building in Oak Ridge suggest that no employees were exposed to asbestos from loose insulation that has fallen into heating and cooling ducts, a federal official said Thursday.

“We are pleased with the results,” said Johnathan Sitzlar, supervisory property manager for the U.S. General Services Administration, which owns the building.

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Officials scramble to find space after Federal Building closes

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About 80 federal employees could go back to work today in a new place as officials scramble to find space for staff members after the Federal Building closed last week.

Workstations have been set up for those employees in the Building 2714-G Conference Center on Laboratory Road, said Mike Koentop, spokesman at the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office.

Federal officials are looking for more work space at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Office of Scientific and Technical Information.

[Read more…]

Federal Building in Oak Ridge closed due to asbestos problem

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The Federal Building in Oak Ridge has been closed after an inspection found asbestos-containing insulation that had “dislodged into parts of the heating and cooling units,” according to a notice posted on Facebook by the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office.

“As a precautionary measure, the Federal Building is closed until we have additional information,” the notice said. “We are working closely with GSA, which owns the building, to determine the appropriate path forward.”

[Read more…]