Oak Ridge Today

Council to consider water intake bypass; discuss housing, SROs, conference center, airport

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The Oak Ridge City Council in a special meeting Tuesday evening, April 18, will discuss a water intake bypass during construction of the new water plant at the Clinch River.

During the meeting, the seven-member Council will consider awarding a contract worth up to $367,4000 to Morgan Construction for materials and installation of the bypass water line at the water intake site.

The special meeting is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Courtroom. You can see the agenda here.

After the special meeting, the seven-member Council will hear a presentation of a housing study by the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce. There will also be a follow-up discussion of the school resource officer program, an update about the conference center plaza project, and a review of the airport project. You can see the agenda here.

City breaks ground on new water plant

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The City of Oak Ridge broke ground Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2022, on its new water treatment plant on Pumphouse Road. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

The City of Oak Ridge broke ground Wednesday on its new water treatment plant, which could cost $78.3 million.

The new plant will use a technology known as ultrafiltration membranes, a type of purification that uses very fine membranes. It will be along the Clinch River at the city’s water intake off Pumphouse Road south of Bethel Valley Road.

“This plant provides every drop of water to our 31,000 residents from Elza Gate on the east, to the Preserve on the west, and to all (U.S. Department of Energy) facilities, most notably Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex, which will soon include the new Uranium Processing Facility,” said Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch. “Our new plant will produce high-quality drinking water and deliver it through new pipelines more reliably and efficiently than current operations.”

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City receives grant for water plant landslide

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Pictured above is the landslide next to the access road to the Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant on Pine Ridge, above the Y-12 National Security Complex, on Saturday night, February 23, 2019. (File photo courtesy CNS Y-12)

The City of Oak Ridge has received a $17,389 grant to cover some costs associated with a landslide at the access road to the water treatment plant above the Y-12 National Security Complex in 2019.

The estimated costs of the repairs are $384,444, Oak Ridge Public Works Director Patrick Berge said in a memo to City Manager Mark Watson.

The city began talking to the Federal Emergency Management Agency immediately after the landslide, and the discussions included potential future reimbursements, Berge said. The $17,389 partial reimbursement is through the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency.

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Construction of new water plant could start in May, be complete next year

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An image showing the interior of the proposed new 16-million-gallon-per-day water treatment plant at the City of Oak Ridge water intake on the Clinch River south of Bethel Valley Road. (Image courtesy of Jacobs Engineering Group and the City of Oak Ridge)

Construction of the new water plant at the city’s water intake on the Clinch River could start in May and be complete in December 2022, according to a proposed schedule presented to Oak Ridge City Council.

The Council on Monday will consider a construction administration contract for the new water plant, which would be south of Bethel Valley Road. It would be able to treat 16 million gallons of water per day.

If approved Monday, the professional engineering services agreement would be with Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. of Knoxville. The contract would be valued at up to about $1.88 million. It would be for construction administration and observation of the construction of the new water treatment plant and a main transmission line.

Approval of the agreement with Jacobs Engineering on Monday could be contingent upon the city’s ability to use Drinking Water State Revolving Funding, which is pending approval, according to the resolution to be considered by Council.

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Construction could start on water plant in spring

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Construction on a roughly $40 million replacement water plant for the City of Oak Ridge could start in the spring, and the facility could begin operating at the water intake on Melton Hill Lake in about two years.

Construction on a roughly $40 million replacement water plant for the City of Oak Ridge could start in the spring, and the facility could begin operating at the water intake on Melton Hill Lake in about two years.

Oak Ridge Public Works Director Shira McWaters provided an update about the water plant to the City Council during a non-voting work session on Tuesday evening.

Plans could go the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation this week, and then the project could go out to bid, McWaters said.

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Oak Ridge closes on $20 million loan for new water plant

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An aerial view of the Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant on Pine Ridge above the Y-12 National Security Complex. (Photo courtesy Y-12 National Security Complex)

The City of Oak Ridge closed on a $20.7 million federal loan on Thursday for a new water treatment plant in south Oak Ridge.

It’s a Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, or WIFIA, loan. The funds provided by the federal loan program will be used to design and build the new water plant, which will replace an aging facility on Pine Ridge that has served the community since the 1940s.

The total cost for replacement of the water treatment plant is estimated to be $42.2 million, the city said in a press release on Friday. WIFIA will provide about 49 percent of that cost, with the city using the Tennessee State Revolving Fund Loan Program to cover the balance, the press release said.

“After three years of application and planning, the City of Oak Ridge has reached a significant milestone in the funding needed for a new replacement water plant,” Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson said in the press release. “WIFIA has helped Oak Ridge with a low-interest federal loan, allowing us to avoid potential failures in a system originally designed for a different Oak Ridge. The financial terms will allow Oak Ridge to afford these much-needed improvements to serve not only our residents, but the national security and U.S. Department of Energy facilities located here.”

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Photos: Landslide near water plant

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Pictured above is the landslide next to the access road to the Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant on Pine Ridge, above the Y-12 National Security Complex, on Saturday night, February 23, 2019. (Photo courtesy CNS Y-12)

Photos released by the City of Oak Ridge and CNS Y-12 on Monday show the landslide that occurred next to the access road to the Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant on Pine Ridge in February.

Last week, Oak Ridge Public Works Director Shira McWaters said it could cost an estimated $407,000 to repair the landslide, and the work should be complete by the end of July.

The water plant is on a ridge top above the main entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex on Bear Creek Road. The landslide occurred next to the access road to the water plant on Saturday night, February 23. It’s the only access road to the water plant. It allows operations and maintenance workers to get to the water plant and deliver materials, equipment, and chemicals.

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Landslide repair could cost $400,000

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It could cost an estimated $407,000 to repair the landslide near the Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant on Pine Ridge, city officials said Friday.

The water plant is on a ridge top above the main entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex on Bear Creek Road. The landslide occurred next to the access road to the water plant on Saturday night, February 23. It’s the only access road to the water plant. It allows operations and maintenance workers to get to the water plant and deliver materials, equipment, and chemicals.

Oak Ridge Public Works Director Shira McWaters said the city has been able to maintain access to the water plant using the inside lane of the access road and closing the outside lane, the one closest to the slide.

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Updated: Council approves $45 million debt resolution for new water plant

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Note: This story was updated at 8:30 p.m.

The Oak Ridge City Council voted 5-0 Monday evening to approve an initial debt resolution worth up to $45 million for the construction of a new water treatment plant and related infrastructure.

The five members voting in favor of the resolution were Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch, Mayor Pro Tem Rick Chinn, and Council members Jim Dodson, Chuck Hope, and Ellen Smith. Council members Kelly Callison and Derrick Hammond were absent.

The water plant would be built near the city’s water intake on the Clinch River in south Oak Ridge. The cost of the new plant, which could produce about 16 million gallons of water per day, is currently estimated at about $42.9 million.

City officials have been discussing the new water plant for several years and have had an engineering firm study the project.

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City repairing large landslide near access road to water plant

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Oak-Ridge-Water-Treatment-Plant-2009-1
The Oak Ridge Water Treatment Plant is pictured on Pine Ridge above the Y-12 National Security Complex. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

The city is repairing a large landslide that occurred next to the access road to the Oak Ridge water treatment plant on Pine Ridge above the Y-12 National Security Complex during the rainy month of February.

The landslide occurred on the night of February 23, Oak Ridge Public Works Director Shira McWaters told City Manager Mark Watson in a June 24 memo. The access road is the only access road to the city’s water plant, and it’s critical to being able to operate the water plant, McWaters said. The road allows operations and maintenance workers to get to the water plant and deliver materials, equipment, and chemicals.

Repairs were started immediately after the landslide to minimize the risk of more damage to the area and the potential to lose the only access road to the plant, McWaters said. She said work started in March and should be complete by the end of July.

The water plant provides water to both the City of Oak Ridge and to U.S. Department of Energy sites, including Y-12 and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The plant is on a ridge at the southern entrance to central Oak Ridge above the main entrance to Y-12 at Bear Creek Road and Scarboro Road.

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City manager cites top six project list

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Mark Watson

Mark Watson

Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson cited a top six project list during his “State of the City” presentation to the League of Women Voters on Tuesday.

The items on the list were installing the synthetic turf on Blankenship Field, to be completed in May, in time for graduation; improving a few intersections, including at Tulane Avenue; making progress on Rails to Trails; finishing the new Friendship Bell pavilion at Alvin K. Bissell Park; adding exhaust systems at Oak Ridge fire stations for the diesel-burning fire trucks; and replacing the Oak Ridge Water Plant.

The new water plant could cost $44 million and be built at the city’s water intake on Melton Hill Lake in south Oak Ridge. It’s probably the largest public works project for the city, Watson said. About half of the city’s water is used by the City of Oak Ridge and the other half is used by U.S. Department of Energy facilities, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex. [Read more…]

Council to review Preschool, Senior Center, Water Plant projects Tuesday

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The Oak Ridge City Council will review the Oak Ridge Preschool and Senior Center projects, and receive a briefing on the Water Plant project, during a work session on Tuesday.

The work session is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. Tuesday, March 20, in the Multi-Purpose Room in the Central Services Complex on Woodbury Lane, behind the Hobby Lobby shopping center.

The reviews of the Preschool and Senior Center projects are scheduled to be presented by Jacene Phillips of Studio Four Design. [Read more…]