Town of Oneida to pursue overlay zoning as landfill battle continues
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!
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Oneida pushes for overlay zoning
ONEIDA | The Town of Oneida Board of Mayor & Aldermen will consider the first reading of an ordinance that would establish overlay zoning restrictions within the town’s municipal limits when it meets on June 26. The meeting is ordinarily held on the third Thursday of the month, but was postponed this month due to the Juneteenth holiday.
The overlay zoning measure was added to the agenda for the town’s June 26 meeting on Wednesday. Oneida Mayor Lori Phillips-Jones said that meeting agendas are works in progress ahead of a meeting, with revisions being made.
Mayor Phillips-Jones said that the ordinance the town’s governing body will consider next week is still being drafted. However, she said it will look similar to an ordinance the Town of Winfield Board of Mayor & Aldermen passed on first reading earlier this month.
Winfield’s ordinance restricts landfills and transfer stations within one-half mile of a residence and within one mile of a school. The Poplar Lane transfer station proposed by Trans-Rail Waste Services LLC is one-third mile from Winfield Elementary School.
The Town of Oneida’s overlay zoning restrictions would not apply to that Poplar Lane site, since it is not located in the town’s municipal limits.
The move by the Town of Oneida will come as local governments continue to formulate a plan of response to a proposal by investors based in Chattanooga and Atlanta to build a landfill and transfer station on approximately 700 acres of property adjacent to the existing Volunteer Regional Landfill. Scott County Commission earlier this month adopted a resolution that implements the Jackson Law, giving local governments more say-so in the approval process for privately-owned landfills. Winfield also adopted the Jackson Law at its meeting last week. The Town of Huntsville is also expected to get involved in efforts to stop the landfill, as is McCreary County, which draws its water from the Big South Fork River downstream from Bear Creek, which drains the landfill area.
Trans-Rail Waste Services filed an application for a transfer station permit with the TN Dept. of Environment & Conservation on May 30. TDEC has since said that application is incomplete and supplemental information is needed before it can be approved.
The Town of Winfield’s overlay zoning ordinance will likely be finalized on July 9, when the town holds a public hearing and the second reading of the ordinance. The Town of Oneida’s overlay zoning ordinance could be finalized by July 17, the date of the town’s July meeting.
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County Commission raises ambulance rates to match Morgan County
HUNTSVILLE | The Scott County Ambulance Service’s rates will increase match those of neighboring Morgan County to the south, following action taken by Scott County Commission at its monthly meeting on Monday.
By an all-aye vote with 13 of 14 commissioners present, the Commission voted to adopt an EMS rate increase to bring the local ambulance service rates in line with those that are in place in Morgan County.
The increase will be fairly substantial; a rate survey presented to County Commission at Monday’s meeting indicated that rates in Scott County were significantly lower than in other counties. The increase adopted by the Commission will allow Scott County’s rates to match those in Morgan County. The local rates will still be lower than the EMS rates in Anderson County, and higher than the rates in Roane County.
Under the new rate schedule:
The mileage fee will increase from $13.33 to $26 for both basic life support (BLS) and advanced life support (ALS).
A BLS non-emergency call will increase from $488.26 to $825.
A BLS emergency call will increase from $484.96 to $1,250.
An ALS non-emergency call will increase from $655.48 to $950.
An ALS emergent call will increase from $737.72 to $1,500.
An ALS level II call will increase from $890.06 to $2,150.
A specialty care call will increase from $987.97 to $2,550.
The response fee will increase from $125 to $250.
Scott County’s new rates will remain lower than Anderson County’s according to the rate survey. Anderson County’s mileage fee is $28.13, while BLS calls are $843.92 for non-emergency and $1,289.47 for emergency, ALS calls are $966.47 for non-emergency, $1,531.24 for emergent and $2,216.31 for level II, and specialty care calls are $2,672.71.
Despite the rate increase, the Scott County Ambulance Service isn’t expected to generate significant new revenue. The rates will apply only to commercial insurers, meaning patients who have commercial plans. Medicare and Medicaid, or Tenncare, set their own rates that ambulance services must accept.
Jamie Byrd, Scott County EMS director, said that nearly 90% of the calls his EMTs and paramedics answer involve Medicare or Medicaid patients.
The ambulance service rate change was the only major agenda item during the otherwise routine and short meeting. It was a far cry from County Commission’s May meeting, when concerned citizens crowded the conference room and spilled into the hallway of the Scott County Office Building to speak their minds on a new privately-owned landfill that has been proposed at Bear Creek in Oneida. At a special called meeting two weeks later, commissioners voted unanimously to adopt the Jackson Law that gives local governments more control over privately-owned landfills.
In other business at this week’s meeting, the commissioners approved a road block for Pine Hill Volunteer Fire Department on June 28 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.; approved contract amendments for inmates at the Scott County Jail and at the Scott County Juvenile Detention Center, and heard from Scott County Director of Schools Bill Hall and Scott County Road Superintendent Kelvin King.
King told commissioners that he hopes to hear “something good” from Norfolk-Southern on the design of a new bridge on Niggs Creek Road at High Point by June 30. Because the bridge is a railroad overpass, the railroad’s approval is required. The Road Department recently submitted the final design to the railroad and can apply for state funding from the TN Dept. of Transportation once the railroad signs off on those plans. The design of a new bridge over Pine Creek on O&W Road has already been approved, and will go to bid on July 14. King said he’s hopeful that construction will begin in September.
Commissioners will meet in a special session on June 23 for the purpose of adopting the budget and property tax rate for fiscal year 2024-2025. The Budget Committee has recommended a budget that includes no tax increase.
Summer is coming in hot this weekend
Most Americans consider Memorial Day weekend the unofficial start of summer. The National Weather Service considers June 1 the start of summer — or what is called “meteorological summer.” But on the calendar, summer doesn’t begin until the summer solstice on June 20. That means the official start of summer is Friday, and despite a year that hasn’t featured much abnormally hot weather so far, summer is going to come in hot.
The hottest weather of the season — at least so far — is expected this weekend, as temperatures will threaten to push past 90° for the first time this season. Officially, the NWS forecast for Oneida calls for a high of 84° on Friday, 89° on Saturday, 90° on Sunday and Monday, and 91° on Tuesday. It’ll be muggy, too, with nighttime temperatures hovering near 70°.
In a forecast discussion published Tuesday afternoon, NWS forecasters at the Morristown weather forecast office said that it’ll be important to practice heat safety since this is the first heat wave of the year.
“Stay hydrated, take frequent breaks in the shade or air conditioning, avoid strenuous activities during the hottest hours of the afternoon, and never leave people or pets in unattended hot cars. Look before you lock,” the NWS said.
The NWS weather forecast office in Nashville was calling for a “major” heat risk across Middle Tennessee, and a “moderate” heat risk on the northern Cumberland Plateau. In NWS terminology, a major heat risk means the heat will affect anyone without effective cooling or adequate hydration, and a moderate heat risk means the heat will affect most individuals who are sensitive to heat, especially those without effective cooling or adequate hydration.
Weather forecast models are projecting heat index values to rise well into the 90s this weekend even on the Cumberland Plateau, nearing 100° in the lower elevations of the valleys on either side of the plateau.
So far, the hottest temperature of the year in Oneida has been 86°, which occurred on June 5. In Knoxville, this marks the latest in the year there hasn’t been a temperature of 90° or warmer since 2009.
For those looking to cool off this weekend, pools at Bandy Creek in the Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area and in Huntsville will be open. Bandy Creek pool will be open Thursday through Sunday from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. Huntsville pool is open daily from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m., except 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays. The cost is $3, except Bandy Creek is $2 for children. The Oneida City Park splash pad is also open daily. Admission is free.
The summer solstice, which occurs Friday, marks the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. In Oneida, there will be 14 hours, 42 minutes and 16 seconds of daylight on Friday. Saturday will feature one second less daylight than Saturday, and Sunday will feature three seconds less than Sunday — the start of shortening days that will continue until winter.
However, sunsets will continue to get ever-so-slightly later in Oneida until June 28, when the sun will set at 9:01 and 50 seconds — the latest sunset of the year.
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The Weekend
☀️ Weather: We’re finally going to get a break from the persistent rain chances. It’s going to be a perfect weekend for lounging by the pool or heading to your favorite swimming hole! We’ll see sunny skies all weekend, with high temperatures building from the mid 80s on Friday to the low 90s on Sunday. 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
• 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 Bandy Creek Pool will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. today ($3, or $2 for ages 6-12). Huntsville Pool will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. today ($3). The Oneida Splash Pad is also open.
• Saturday: Appalachian Society of the Arts and Plateau Players will present “Inherit the Wind” by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee at the Black Box Theatre at Scott Christian Care Center in Oneida at 7 p.m. Tickets are available at Asota.art or at the door.
• Sunday: The Bandy Creek Pool will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. today ($3, or $2 for ages 6-12). Huntsville Pool will be open from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. today ($3). The Oneida Splash Pad is also open.
• Sunday: Appalachian Society of the Arts and Plateau Players will present “Inherit the Wind” by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee at the Black Box Theatre at Scott Christian Care Center in Oneida at 2 p.m. Tickets are available at Asota.art or at the door.
• 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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◼️ 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)