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ANDERSON COUNTY
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ooking for a safe and vibrant community with top-rated STEM schools, year-round farmers markets, an extensive park and greenway system, and even a national park?
Oak Ridge, located at the center of the Oak Ridge Corridor, has all you could want to live, work, and play. With its rich history and continuing significance to our country, there’s always more to learn and explore in Oak Ridge. Visit us online at www.oakridgetn.gov. You’ll find no shortage of shopping and dining options on your visit to Oak Ridge. The latest mixed-use development is the city center, called Main Street Oak Ridge, which replaces the mall concept with individual store fronts and is anchored by retailers including JCPenney, Belk, Burkes, Dick’s Sporting Goods, PetSmart, TJMaxx, HomeGoods, Old Navy, Ross, Five Below, Electronic Express, Ulta, Rack Room Shoes, Maurices, American Shaman, World Finance, Spa Lounge and Nail Salon, and Rue 21. Dozens of casual dining options are nearby with more coming as Main Street Oak Ridge continues to grow. Another popular destination, Jackson Square, is the original townsite of Oak Ridge. Today, it features quaint and unique shopping, local restaurants, monthly Arts & Antiques in the Square, festivals, and first-class live theater and entertainment. Grove Center, located off Randolph Road, features several local eateries and shops – truly something for everyone. The City of Oak Ridge is proud to host both summer and winter farmers markets, giving residents, visitors, and neighbors an opportunity to shop local year-round. The Winter Farmers Market, operated by Grow Oak Ridge, is open most Saturdays from December to February inside the gym at St. Mary’s School on Vermont Avenue. The Summer Farmers Market, operated by the East Tennessee Farmers Association for Retail Marketing, is held across from Historic Jackson Square on Saturday mornings during the spring, summer and fall months. Oak Ridge was built under a cloak of secrecy by the United States government during World War II as a major site of the Manhattan Project, the massive wartime effort that produced the world’s first atomic weapons. In 1942, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers bought an estimated 60,000 acres of rural farmland to construct a “temporary” city and three facilities to develop technology that ended the war. Afterwards, Oak Ridge transitioned from a “temporary” military town into
CITY OFFICIALS Mayor..................... Warren Gooch Mayor Pro Tem........ Rick Chinn, Jr. Council Members: Kelly Callison, Jim Dodson, Chuck Hope, Ellen Smith, Derrick Hammond City Manager Mark Watson.................425-3550 City Attorney Tammy Dunn................ 425-3555 City Clerk Beth Hickman...............425-3411 CITY PHONE NUMBERS City Administration .......425-3550 Animal Shelter .............425-3423 Fire Department (business) ...................425-3520 Police Department (dispatcher) .................425-4399 Oak Ridge Library..........425-3455
Recreation and Parks Department ........425-3450 Information Services Department..................425-3546 UTILITIES Gas – Oak Ridge Utility District................425-1377 Solid Waste – Waste Connections........482-3656 Billing – (electric, water, sewer, tax)....................425-3400 DEMOGRAPHICS Population........................31,402 Median Age...........................41.3 Median Household Income...........................$55,230 Total Households...............12,008 Total Housing Units...........14,678 Avg. Household Size...................3 Source: 2020 Census www.oakridgetn.gov
a progressive city and became self-governing in 1959. Oak Ridge is in the eastern part of the state approximately 22 miles northwest of Knoxville. The city occupies a southern portion of Anderson County and an eastern portion of Roane County. It borders the Clinch River’s navigable waterway for 42 miles along the shores of Watts Bar and Melton Hill Lakes. The city is home to a wide variety of recreational activities, including golf, swimming, soccer, biking, hiking, basketball, summer camps, rowing, tennis, pickleball, disc golf, billiards, softball, and baseball. Seventeen beautiful parks and fourteen greenways are strategically located throughout the city to be within one-half mile of each residential area and are open yearround from dawn until dusk. More information can be found by visiting the Recreation and Parks department at (865) 425-3450 or the Explore Oak Ridge website at exploreoakridge.com.
