Oneida drafts ordinance to regulate sober living homes
Plus: Grand opening held at new Oneida tax and bookkeeping office, Unclaimed Property to be at Heritage Festival on Saturday
Good Thursday evening! This is The Weekender, a final look at this week’s news from the Independent Herald. The Daybreaker (Monday) and The Weekender (Thursday evening) are our two news-first newsletters. We publish several other newsletters throughout the week, as well as our regular E-Edition on Thursday and our Varsity E-Edition on Sunday (during sports season). If you’d like to adjust your subscription to include (or exclude) any of these newsletters, do so here. If you haven’t subscribed, please consider doing so!
Today’s newsletter is sponsored by Buckeye Home Medical Equipment. Serving Scott County and several other communities in the Upper Cumberland region, Buckeye is a full-line DME providing home health equipment to its patients.
Oneida prepares to adopt ordinance banning sober living homes near schools
ONEIDA | The board of mayor and aldermen here is set to finalize next month an ordinance that regulates sober living homes, including banning them within 1,000 feet of a public school or licensed daycare.
The board last week approved the first reading of an ordinance to regulate sober living homes — one day before a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Recovery Ridge, which is located on Vine Avenue approximately three-tenths of a mile from the rear entrance of Oneida Middle School and Oneida High School.
However, it isn’t clear what impact the town’s ordinance — which will be finalized after a public hearing and a second vote when the board meets in October — will have on Recovery Ridge. The ordinance will not apply to sober living homes that are already in operation when it takes effect. The ordinance defines “in operation” as being homes that have obtained required “permits and approvals” from the town and relevant state agencies, established on-site management, and have at least three residents in house.
In addition to the 1,000-ft. restriction from educational facilities, the ordinance stipulates that sober living homes ensure that residents have received a referral or recommendation from a licensed health care provider or court.
Recovery Ridge, opened by Amy Montgomery, held a ribbon-cutting to celebrate its grand-opening on Friday. As a residential facility, it does not offer rehabilitation treatment or services.
The home, located at 360 Vine Avenue, is located approximately 200 ft. — property line to property line — from the nearest piece of property owned by the Oneida Special School District, which is a parking lot at the school district-owned JayCee Park. However, it is nearly 1,400 ft. from the school itself. Although not regulated by the town’s proposed ordinance, Myrtle Recovery Centers — which offers inpatient drug rehabilitation services — is located approximately 1,050 ft. from the school.
Grand openings!
Recovery Ridge Sober Living wasn’t the only new business that held a ribbon-cutting ceremony this past week. On Wednesday, Cox Bookkeeping & Tax Consulting held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its new office, located at 563 Hartco Drive in Oneida. Pictured above are Scott County Mayor Jerried Jeffers and representatives of the Scott County Chamber of Commerce with Cox Bookkeeping & Tax Consulting owner Adam Cox and members of his family. Pictured below, community members and representatives of the Scott County Chamber of Commerce are pictured at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Recovery Ridge Sober Living in Oneida on Friday.
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Tennessee Unclaimed Property to be at Heritage Festival on Saturday
HUNTSVILLE | The TN Dept. of Treasury’s Unclaimed Property Division will be at the Scott County Heritage Festival this Saturday to help reunite East Tennesseans with missing money.
Tennesseans have located hundreds, and even thousands of dollars in missing money at past events. There’s more than $9.5 million waiting to be claimed in Scott County and the surrounding eight-county area.
These are the amounts available to claim in each county:
Scott County: $622,930
Fentress County: $442,190
Morgan County: $683,792
Macon County: $811,322
Campbell County: $1,850,543
Clay County: $190,985
Pickett County: $164,534
Overton County: $806,796
Roane County: $3,974,915
“Events like this are a win-win for our communities,” said state Sen. Ken Yager, R-Kingston, whose district includes Scott County. “I encourage everyone to take a few minutes to visit the Unclaimed Property booth at the Heritage Festival. You might be surprised to find money owed to you or your family. It’s fast, free, and could make a real difference.”
“I’m proud to support the Treasury Department’s efforts to return unclaimed property to Tennesseans, and I am excited to help bring the Department to Big South Fork Country!” said state Rep. Kelly Keisling, R-Byrdstown, who represents Scott County. “With $9.5 million waiting to be claimed in our region, this is a great opportunity for folks to stop by the Scott County Heritage Festival and see if any of it belongs to them. It’s your money — let’s get it back where it belongs.”
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The weekend
☀️ Weather: Hot and dry will be the theme of this weekend, with daily temperatures in the mid 80s and lots of sunshine. Check out our daily Eye to the Sky updates on our Facebook page — published each morning at 7 a.m. on the dot.
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📅 Community Calendar
• Friday: Oneida football will host Coalfield and Scott High football will host Cumberland Gap. Both games will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will be broadcast live on the IH Sports Network, with the Rogers Group Pregame beginning at 6:30 p.m.
• Saturday: The Scott County Farmers & Crafters Market will be open from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. — rain or shine. The market is located at 600 Scott High Drive, Huntsville.
• Saturday: The annual Scott County Heritage Festival will be held Saturday at the Museum of Scott County, on the campus of Scott High School (400 Scott High Drive, Huntsville) from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The festival will feature food vendors, arts and crafts, bluegrass music, demonstrations, and more.
• Saturday: Fourth Saturday night worship services will be held at Straight Fork Baptist Church (7 p.m.), and Antioch Baptist Church (6:30 p.m.). For more information, see our Church Directory at indherald.com.
• Sunday: Celebrate Recovery, a 12-step program designed to help with addiction, co-dependency and domestic abuse, will be hosted by Fire & Purpose Ministries from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at 27192 Scott Highway in Winfield. There will be food, fellowship, praise and worship. Childcare is provided.
The Community Calendar is presented by Citizens Gas Utility District. Citizens Gas operates natural gas distribution pipelines in portions of Scott and Morgan counties. Visit citizensgastn.com.
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📢 Programming Note: Watch for our weekly E-Edition later this evening! You can always find our E-Editions here. The E-Edition is published on Thursdays (and on Sundays during the high school sports season) and includes all digital content from the week in an easy-to-read, flip book format.
Scenic Sale!
This week’s sale items at Scenic Foods in Huntsville! The sale continues through Tuesday. Sponsored content.
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◼️ Monday morning: The Daybreaker (news & the week ahead)
◼️ Tuesday: Echoes from the Past (stories of our history)
◼️ Wednesday: Threads of Life (obituaries)
◼️ Thursday evening: The Weekender (news & the weekend)
◼️ Friday: Friday Features (beyond the news)
◼️ Sunday: Varsity (a weekly sports recap)