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107-760: The Alexander Inn , originally known as The Guest House and now the Alexander Guest House , is a historic building in Oak Ridge, Tennessee that was built during the Manhattan Project to house official visitors and that later was used as a hotel . It is included on the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing property in a historic district . The Guest House was built in 1943. A wood-framed building, similar to many other World War II period “H-plan” buildings, it served as guest quarters to

214-712: A small modular reactor and/or a light-water reactor , two nuclear fuel plants, a nuclear research reactor , a nuclear medicine plant, and a uranium processing centrifuge . Boeing operated a manufacturing plant in the city beginning in the early 1980s which closed in 2007. IPIX , Remotec (now a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman ), ZYP Coatings, and several other technology-based companies have been founded in Oak Ridge, including Greg LeMond 's carbon fiber -manufacturing business, LeMond Composites. Several radioactive waste processing companies, including EnergySolutions , have operations in Oak Ridge. The infrastructure that

321-399: A symphony orchestra , sporting facilities, church services for 17 denominations, and a Fuller Brush Company salesman served the new city and its 75,000 residents. No airport was built, for security reasons. Prefabricated modular homes , apartments, and dormitories, many made from cemesto (bonded cement and asbestos ) panels, were quickly erected. Streets were laid out in the manner of

428-549: A " planned community ". The original streets included several main east-to-west roads, namely the Oak Ridge Turnpike, Tennessee Avenue, Pennsylvania Avenue, Hillside Road, Robertsville Road, and Outer Drive. North-to-south oriented streets connecting these main roads were designated "avenues", and streets branching off from the avenues were designated "roads", "places", "lanes", or "circles". "Roads" connected two streets, while "lanes" and "places" were dead ends . The names of

535-546: A below-ground pool that had been left abandoned, filled with water and debris, and was a hazard. Shortly after the book was published, this pool, which did exist prior to the building's conversion into an assisted living center, was drained and filled in with dirt. Oak Ridge, Tennessee Oak Ridge is a city in Anderson and Roane counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee , about 25 miles (40 km) west of downtown Knoxville . Oak Ridge's population

642-481: A city on Black Oak Ridge and the center of authority will be on a spot middle-way between Sevier Tadlock's farm and Joe Pyatt's Place. A railroad spur will branch off the main L&;N line, run down toward Robertsville and then branch off and turn toward Scarborough. Big engines will dig big ditches, and thousands of people will be running to and fro. They will be building things, and there will be great noise and confusion and

749-580: A colleague in the Denver officer as evidence of the " glass ceiling " that was in place at that time at SOM When Julia Murphy, AIA joined SOM in 2008 there were no women partners and only a handful of directors. To attempt to address this imbalance, in 2010 she relaunched the Women's Initiative at SOM which had previously been active between 2002 and 2004. The year 2020 marked a change in which three female partners, Carrie Byles, Xuan Fu, and Laura Ettelman were named to

856-717: A design leader at SOM for more than 40 years, received the profession's highest honor, the Pritzker Architecture Prize, in 1988. Notable architects who are associated with SOM include: T. J. Gottesdiener , Edward Charles Bassett , Natalie de Blois , Gordon Bunshaft , David Childs , Robert Diamant, Philip Enquist , Myron Goldsmith , Bruce Graham , Gary Haney , Craig W. Hartman , Gertrude Kerbis , Fazlur Rahman Khan . Lucien Lagrange , Walter Netsch , Larry Oltmanns , Eszter Pécsi , Brigitte Peterhans , Norma Merrick Sklarek , Adrian Smith , and Marilyn Jordan Taylor Architect Sally Harkness ,

963-641: A founding partner at The Architects Collaborative in 1947, was interviewed at the firm during World War II along with her husband Chip Harkness , but only her husband received a job offer. In an interview later in life, Sally Harkness explained that she was told the firm did not believe in hiring women. Norma Merrick Sklarek , an African-American, was hired by SOM in 1955 after having been previously rejected by 19 other firms. She stayed there for 5 years, eventually starting her own firm. Patricia Weston Swan spent her 30-year career with SOM including many leadership roles but never achieved partner status, perceived by

1070-487: A government contract. In 1959 the town was incorporated. The community adopted a city manager and City Council form of government rather than direct federal control. The S-50 liquid thermal diffusion plant was demolished soon after the war. K-25, where uranium was enriched by the gaseous diffusion process until 1985, was demolished in 2013–15. Two of the four major facilities created for the wartime bomb production remain standing: The Department of Energy (DOE) runs ORNL,

1177-532: A group concerned with protecting the city's history, them began working with ORRE to develop a new non-profit organization that would focus entirely on restoring the Inn. The Alexander was for a while on the endangered list by East Tennessee Preservation Alliance. The Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board endorsed, and the Oak Ridge City Council approved, a 90 percent, 10-year tax break for the project to convert

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1284-555: A highly confidential project: the planning of Oak Ridge, Tennessee . By 1945, the town was home to 75,000 people. The work at Oak Ridge prepared SOM to take on the large-scale architectural and planning projects that would define the postwar era. For more than 20 years, SOM was involved in the development of a master plan for the National Mall in Washington, D.C. In 1962, President John F. Kennedy appointed Nathaniel Owings as chair of

1391-532: A host of public spaces and amenities. The plan also provided for a robust transportation network including a light rail station that connects to the London Underground . The massive scale of the project led to the opening of SOM's London office in 1986. The firm's work at Canary Wharf continued into the new millennium, with the completion of Five Canada Square in 2002. In central London, the opportunity to build above rail lines near Liverpool Street Station spurred

1498-477: A lasting role in the development of cities and urban areas in America and the world, including London, Chicago, New York City, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Denver, and Portland, Oregon. SOM's City Design practice has made influential contributions to urban design approaches such as transit-oriented development , overbuild strategies and sustainable urbanism . In 1942, SOM was hired by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for

1605-582: A low during late summer. The rainiest calendar day on record is August 10, 1960, when 7.45 inches (189 mm) of rain fell; monthly precipitation has ranged from trace amounts in October 1963 to 19.27 inches (489 mm) in July 1967. As of the 2020 United States census , there were 31,402 people, 12,008 households, and 7,641 families residing in the city. As of the 2010 United States Census , there were 29,330 people, 12,772 households, and 7,921 families residing in

1712-412: A means of generating rather than simply realizing architectural ideas, with concerted effort, computers gained credence at the firm, and eventually throughout the industry, as a catalyst for architectural innovation. In 1980, an in-house team at SOM created Architecture Engineering Systems, a computer program that was used to study complex structural systems and energy demands. This program is regarded as

1819-575: A message from the principal: Senator McKellar wants me to tell you to go home and tell your parents you are going to have to find another place to live." There was no further explanation as to why. All the students were told was this: "The government is going to take your property for the war effort." By March 1943 the Corps had removed the area's earlier communities and established fences and checkpoints. Anderson County lost one-seventh of its land and $ 391,000 in annual property tax revenue. The manner by which

1926-533: A minimum". The name was formally adopted in 1949. The architectural and engineering firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill was contracted to provide the layout for the town and house designs. John O. Merrill moved to Tennessee to take charge of designing the secret buildings at Oak Ridge. He directed the creation of a town, which soon had 300 miles (480 km) of roads, 55 miles (89 km) of railroad track, ten schools, seven theaters, 17 restaurants and cafeterias, and 13 supermarkets. A library with 9,400 books,

2033-592: A nuclear and high-tech research establishment. In 1983, the DOE declassified a report showing that significant amounts of mercury had been released from the Oak Ridge Reservation into the East Fork Poplar Creek between 1950 and 1977. A federal court ordered the DOE to bring the Oak Ridge Reservation into compliance with federal and state environmental regulations. In June 2018 IBM and ORNL unveiled Summit ,

2140-508: A number of dignitaries during the top-secret Manhattan Project , including Enrico Fermi , Robert Oppenheimer and General Leslie Groves . In 1949, a 44-room addition was completed. The name was changed to the Alexander Inn in September 1950. The hotel was sold by the government to Mr. W. W. Faw for $ 34,000 in 1958. At that time, private bathrooms and a ballroom were added, and the kitchen

2247-624: A plaza surrounding the tower, a novel concept that would be adapted in many future projects. In Colorado Springs, Colorado , SOM planned a campus for the United States Air Force Academy . Built between 1958 and 1968, the campus broke from the traditions of West Point and Annapolis to become the first U.S. military academy designed in the modern style. The centerpiece of the campus is the Cadet Chapel , designed by architect Walter Netsch . The American Institute of Architects awarded

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2354-571: A precursor to the array of building information modeling (BIM) tools now used by the profession. SOM's projects have featured works of art by significant artists. In many cases, the firm's architects and engineers played a role in commissioning, engineering, and installing the artworks—such as with the Chicago Picasso , a 50-foot-tall steel sculpture in the city's civic center. Joan Miró , Alexander Calder , Isamu Noguchi , Harry Bertoia , Richard Lippold , Jean Dubuffet and Chryssa are among

2461-500: A range of scales and project types, providing services in architecture , building services/MEP engineering, digital design, graphics, interior design , structural engineering , civil engineering , sustainable design and urban design & planning. The firm's first influential project was Lever House , completed in 1952 to become the first International Style office building in New York City. Constructed of glass and steel at

2568-630: A string". In October 1942, the United States Army Corps of Engineers began acquiring more than 60,000 acres (24,000 ha) in the Oak Ridge area for the United States' Manhattan Project . Due to the urgency and secrecy of the Manhattan Project, the Corps' "declaration of taking" was swift and final. Many residents came home to find eviction notices tacked to their doors. Others found out when their children came home from school with

2675-564: A timber tower and a modified concrete slab design. SOM is structured as a partnership. The current partners and consulting partners are: Mustafa Abadan, William Baker, Thomas Behr, Keith Boswell, Carrie Byles, Larry Chien, Leo Chow, Brant Coletta, Chris Cooper, Paul Danna, Michael Duncan, Scott Duncan, Laura Ettelman, Xuan Fu, T.J. Gottesdiener, Gary Haney, Craig Hartman, Kent Jackson, Colin Koop, Kenneth Lewis, Mark Sarkisian, Adam Semel, Jonathan Stein, and Douglas Voigt. Gordon Bunshaft, who thrived as

2782-434: A time when Park Avenue was lined with masonry buildings, Lever House introduced a modernist aesthetic that embodied the spirit of the times and influenced an entire generation of high-rise construction. In 1962, architectural historian Reyner Banham wrote that, "It gave architectural expression to an age just as the age was being born ... Lever House was an uncontrollable success, imitated and sometimes understood all over

2889-429: Is Bill Baker , who is best known as the engineer of Burj Khalifa (Dubai, 2010), the world's tallest man-made structure. To support the tower's record heights and slim footprint, he developed the " buttressed core " structural system, consisting of a hexagonal core reinforced by three buttresses that form a Y shape. Davis Allen , a pioneer in corporate interior design , had a forty-year tenure at SOM. The designer of

2996-429: Is a building that acts as a bridge spanning the tracks. In 2008, Broadgate Tower, the district's tallest building, was completed. SOM also designed public space enhancements for the area. SOM designed the master plan for Chicago's Millennium Park , which opened in 2004 and has become one of the city's most visited attractions. Constructed above bus lanes, parking garages, and a rail yard, Millennium Park can be considered

3103-468: Is a component of the U.S. nuclear weapons complex. The DOE's Environmental Management office is conducting an extensive program of decontamination and decommissioning , environmental cleanup, and waste management to remove or stabilize the hazardous residues remaining from decades of government production and research activities. The DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information disseminates government research and development information and operates

3210-527: Is also located in the city. ATDD began under AEC sponsorship in 1948 as a Weather Bureau research office providing meteorological information and expertise for the AEC. Currently its main function is to perform air quality -related research directed toward issues of national and global importance. The nuclear industry continues to grow in Oak Ridge following the demolition of the K-25 site. Currently planned in Oak Ridge are

3317-423: Is gauged by how well their builders made peace with the environment." (source: Nathaniel Owings, "The American Aesthetic," Harper & Row, 1969) This ethos has shaped the firm's journey into sustainable practices. An early example is the corporate headquarters it designed for timberland company Weyerhaeuser , completed in 1971, which has been called the "original green building" not only for its integration into

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3424-491: Is often considered to be the greatest structural engineer of the 20th century. Khan invented a tubular framing system that made it possible to build higher than ever before. This system has been adapted and is still used today for some of the world's most recent tallest buildings, including the 828-meter-tall Burj Khalifa , designed by SOM and completed in 2010. In the 1960s and 1970s, SOM was an early leader in computer-aided design, developing in-house digital tools that preceded

3531-427: Is the only firm to have received this honor twice. In August 2009 SOM received four of 13 available R+D Awards from Architect Magazine. In addition, a collaboration between SOM and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute , The Center for Architecture, Science and Ecology , was honored with a fifth award. Since the firm's founding, SOM has led large-scale urban design and planning projects. Many of these projects have had

3638-443: Is −17 °F (−27 °C), set on January 21, 1985, while the all-time record high is 105 °F (41 °C), set on June 30, 2012, and July 28, 1952. However, temperatures reaching either 0 °F (−18 °C) or 100 °F (38 °C) are uncommon, having last occurred February 5, 1996 (the date of the all-time record low for February) and July 1, 2012. Precipitation averages 59.70 inches (1,516 mm) annually and reaches

3745-621: The National Park Service and the Department of Energy. A bus tour and several virtual tours are available for the public. In 2003, the city extended its borders west beyond the Clinch River boundary for the annexation of the master planned community, the Preserve at Oak Ridge, paving the way for economic growth into the 21st century. In January 2020, the city council of Oak Ridge approved

3852-532: The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians physiographic province. The main section of the city is located in the northeast, where East Fork and Pine Ridge give way to low, scattered hills. Many of the city's residences are located along the relatively steep northeastern slope of Blackoak Ridge. The completion of Melton Hill Dam (along the Clinch near Copper Ridge) in 1963 created Melton Hill Lake, which borders

3959-622: The Southern bloc of Democrats in Congress to authorize funding for the project. Due to generally holding lower-ranked jobs, their assigned dwellings were predominantly government-built "hutments" (one-room shacks) located very close to the Y-12 plant, in the one residential area designated as colored. Nichols, the MED District Engineer, was told by the main construction contractor for the K-25 plant that

4066-650: The Tennessee Senate , Oak Ridge is represented in the 5th district in Anderson County and the 12th district in Roane County, by Lieutenant Governor of Tennessee and Senator Randy McNally , and Senator Ken Yager respectively, both of whom are Republican. Oak Ridge is represented in the United States House of Representatives by Republican Chuck Fleischmann of the 3rd congressional district . Unlike

4173-501: The United States Census Bureau , the city has an area of 90.0 square miles (233.0 km ), of which 85.3 square miles (220.8 km ) is land and 4.7 square miles (12.2 km ), or 5.25%, is water. The highest point is Melton Hill ( 35°54′35″N 84°18′19″W  /  35.90962°N 84.30525°W  / 35.90962; -84.30525 ) on the DOE reservation, at elevation 1,356 feet (413 m). Like much of

4280-534: The fissile isotope uranium-235 from natural uranium , which consists almost entirely of the isotope uranium-238 . During construction of the electromagnets required for the uranium separation process at the Y-12 site, a shortage of copper forced the MED to borrow 14,700 tons of silver bullion from the United States Treasury as a copper substitute in wire for the electromagnet coils. The X-10 site, now

4387-480: The science.gov website. The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education , operated by Oak Ridge Associated Universities , conducts research and education programs for the DOE, Department of Homeland Security , and other federal agencies. The Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division (ATDD), one of several field divisions of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Air Resources Laboratory ,

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4494-468: The "Wilson Street Corridor" project plan, intended to develop and construct a downtown area in the city situated along Wilson Street. The plan consists of a mixed-use development of retail, residential usage, and restaurants with a primary focus of multi-story residential space. Immediately northeast of Oak Ridge, the southwestward-flowing Clinch River bends sharply to the southeast for roughly 6 miles (10 km) toward Solway , where it turns again to

4601-659: The "world's fastest supercomputer", claimed to be more than twice as powerful as the previous world leader, with a peak performance of 200,000 trillion calculations per second. Oak Ridge's scientific heritage is curated in the American Museum of Science and Energy . Its role in the Manhattan Project is preserved in the Manhattan Project National Historical Park (along with sites in Hanford, Washington and Los Alamos, New Mexico ), run cooperatively by

4708-524: The 1930s as part of the Norris Basin salvage excavations. Both sites were just southeast of the former Scarboro community. The Bull Bluff site, which was occupied during the Woodland and Mississippian (c. 1000–1600) periods, was uncovered in the 1960s in anticipation of the construction of Melton Hill Dam . Bull Bluff is a cliff immediately southeast of Haw Ridge, opposite Melton Hill Park. The Oak Ridge area

4815-414: The 1950s and converted to an indoor shopping mall in the 1980s, sat largely empty in the years leading to its eventual partial demolition and redevelopment. The city operates a preschool, four elementary schools enrolling kindergarten through grade 4, two middle schools enrolling grades 5 through 8, and one high school enrolling grades 9 through 12. The Oak Ridge school district was ranked number one in

4922-548: The 1960s, SOM played a pivotal role in preventing the destruction of the city's historic districts and Inner Harbor to make way for the planned construction of an elevated highway. As the chair of a team to develop an alternate plan, Nathaniel Owings convinced the Federal Highway Administration to sign off on a plan to reroute the highway. It was eventually built around the harbor and the historic Federal Hill district, saving these irreplaceable neighborhoods. In

5029-455: The 1970s and 1980s, members of the relatively small, dedicated group pushed to integrate the computer's enhanced data-storing and analytical abilities into various phases of the design process. Through these initiatives, SOM was able to identify the potential of the computer to not only expedite necessary calculations but also introduce new ways of representing and sharing information. Just as structural engineering came to be seen early on at SOM as

5136-541: The 1970s was as the lead design firm for the Boston Transportation Planning Review , a metropolitan-wide re-design of Boston's entire transit and roadway infrastructure. Beginning in the 1980s, SOM planned the design and construction of Canary Wharf in London. Intended to accommodate a flourishing financial sector and revitalize London's former Docklands, the plan included more than 20 building sites and

5243-602: The 1970s, SOM collaborated with landscape architect Lawrence Halprin to plan and design the Portland Transit Mall . The goals were to revitalize the Oregon city's downtown area, to encourage the use of mass transit, and create walkable streets. The Transit Mall helped to change the perception of downtown Portland. As one of the first projects of its kind in the United States, it helped to usher in an era of streetscape design that prioritizes people. Another important commission in

5350-636: The Americanized world, and one of the sights of New York". In the 1970s, SOM pioneered a new era of skyscraper design with its work in Chicago, including the John Hancock Center (completed 1970) and Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), which became the world's tallest structure upon its completion in 1973 and remained so for more than 20 years. Both towers are the result of collaboration between architect Bruce Graham and engineer Fazlur Rahman Khan , who

5457-617: The CAD systems used widely today. This work quickly proved valuable in the generation of structural analysis tools that were embraced by Fazlur Khan and his engineering team, aiding the design of projects such as the John Hancock Center. The activity of an experimental research group at SOM, known as the Computer Group, exemplifies a particularly productive effort within the firm to incorporate technological research into its practice. Through

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5564-665: The East Riverfront in Detroit; P.S. 62, the first net-zero-energy school in New York City; and the design of the Moon Village, a concept for the first permanent lunar settlement, developed with the European Space Agency and Massachusetts Institute of Technology . Notable for its role as a pioneer of modernist architecture in America and for its groundbreaking work in skyscraper design and construction , SOM has designed some of

5671-475: The Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association are fighting to have a monument placed on the site of his grave. In 1942, the United States federal government chose the area as a site for developing materials for the Manhattan Project . Major General Leslie Groves , military head of the Manhattan Project, liked the area for several reasons. Its relatively low population made acquisition affordable, yet

5778-449: The Oak Ridge area was acquired by the government created a tense, uneasy relationship between the Oak Ridge complex and the surrounding towns. Although the area's original residents were allowed to be buried in existing cemeteries, every coffin was reportedly opened for inspection. The Corps' Manhattan Engineer District (MED) managed the acquisition and clearing. The K-25 , S-50 , and Y-12 plants were each built in Oak Ridge to separate

5885-657: The Pennsylvania Avenue redesign council, and the resulting 1966 Washington Mall Master Plan laid the framework for a dynamic, inviting, and pedestrian-friendly place. A second master plan developed in 1973, envisioned the construction of major cultural facilities, including the National Air and Space Museum , the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden , and the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden . In Baltimore in

5992-521: The Scarboro community were the first to enter all-white classes in Oak Ridge High School and Robertsville Junior High School (now Robertsville Middle School). In 2023, on the 68th anniversary, a Scarboro 85 Monument was erected in Oak Ridge. Robertsville Junior High School, serving the west half of Oak Ridge, was desegregated at the same time as the high school. Elementary schools in other parts of

6099-606: The United States, the United Kingdom, and China. Throughout its history, SOM has been recognized with more than 2000 awards for quality and innovation. In November 1990, SOM was placed on the cover of Interior Design Magazine for The Top Ten, Winner Of IBA. In 1996 and 1962, SOM received the Architecture Firm Award from the American Institute of Architects , which recognizes the design work of an entire firm. SOM

6206-445: The area was accessible by highway and rail, and utilities such as water and electricity were readily available with the recent completion of Norris Dam . The project location was established within a 17-mile-long (27 km) valley. This feature was linear and partitioned by several ridges, providing natural protection against the spread of disasters at the four major industrial plants—so the plants would not blow up "like firecrackers on

6313-503: The artists whose work has been a part of SOM projects. More recently, SOM's architects and engineers have collaborated with artists such as James Turrell , Janet Echelman , Iñigo Manglano–Ovalle , James Carpenter , and Jaume Plensa . In 1953, the firm completed the Manufacturers Trust Company Building in New York City, the first international style bank building in the United States, Seven years later, in 1960,

6420-569: The black construction labor force had a large turnover rate, so Nichols gave permission to set up a separate black women's camp. When Groves visited the plant with K. T. Keller of Chrysler, Keller saw twelve Black women sweeping the 30-foot wide alley between the production units, and said "Nichols, don't you know there is a machine made to sweep a concrete floor like this?" Nichols replied "Sure I do, but these gals can do more than one of those machines". The men now had an opportunity to "fracas" on Saturday night, and labor turnover had reduced. During

6527-455: The building with its prestigious Twenty-five Year Award , conferred onto "a building that has set a precedent for the last 25 to 35 years and continues to set standards of excellence for its architectural design and significance" . In 1969, SOM founder Nathaniel Owings wrote, "Civilizations leave marks on the Earth by which they are known and judged. In large measure, the nature of their immortality

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6634-465: The city and Jefferson Junior High School, serving the east half of the city, were desegregated slowly as African-American families moved into housing outside of Gamble Valley. In 1967 Scarboro Elementary School was closed, and African-American students from Gamble Valley were bused to other schools around the city. The nearby high school in Clinton was desegregated in the fall of 1956. On October 5, 1958, it

6741-462: The city on the northeast and east. The lakefront on the east side of the city is a popular recreation area, with bicycling trails and picnic areas lining the shore. The lake is well known as a venue for rowing competitions. Watts Bar Lake , an impoundment of the Tennessee River which covers the lower 23 miles (37 km) of the Clinch, borders Oak Ridge to the south and southwest. According to

6848-410: The city's historic Union Station into a major regional hub. 20 acres of former rail yards have been converted into a transit-oriented urban district that orchestrates light rail, pedestrian, bicycle, and bus routes, as well as commuter and intercity rail. Completed in 2014, the project has spurred more than $ 3.5 billion worth of private investment in the surrounding district. The earliest SOM engineer

6955-462: The city. The population density was 344.0 inhabitants per square mile (132.8/km ). There were 14,494 housing units at an average density of 161.2 per square mile (62.2/km ). The racial makeup of the city was 86.8% White (81.8% non-Hispanic ), 8.1% African American , 0.4% Native American or Alaska Native , 2.5% Asian , 0.03% Pacific Islander , 2.0% from other races , and 3.0% from two or more races . Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 4.6% of

7062-404: The construction of Broadgate , a new business district. SOM devised the master plan, and over three decades designed several of the site's 14 buildings. In order to build high-rise structures atop one of the city's busiest stations and its railyard, SOM's structural engineering team devised a deck over the tracks to allow for various building configurations on top. Exchange House, completed in 1990,

7169-489: The earth will shake. I've seen it. It's coming. Hendrix, in light of his tales of prophetic visions, was considered insane by most and at one point was institutionalized. His grave lies in an area of Oak Ridge now known as the Hendrix Creek Subdivision. There are ongoing concerns over the preservation of his gravestone, as the man who owns the lot adjacent to the grave wishes to build a home there, while members of

7276-464: The eastern end of the valley. The time required for the project's completion caused the Army to opt for a relatively permanent establishment rather than an enormous camp. The name "Oak Ridge" was chosen for the settlement in 1943 from suggestions submitted by project employees. The name evoked the settlement's location along Black Oak Ridge, and officials thought the rural-sounding name "held outside curiosity to

7383-673: The executive committee of the 1250-person firm. The SOM Foundation was first established in 1979 with the mission to support and cultivate emerging design leaders by granting awards to outstanding students of architecture, design, urban design, and engineering. Many winners of SOM Foundation awards have gone on to distinguish themselves in professional and academic careers. Past winners include Marion Weiss (1982), Werner Sobek (1983), Himanshu Parikh (1985), Santiago Calatrava (1988), and Joshua Ramus (1995). The SOM Foundation continues to support emerging design leaders and interdisciplinary research with five annual awards granted to students from

7490-517: The federal sites and maintains a major office in the city. Oak Ridge National Laboratory is the largest multipurpose lab in the DOE's National Laboratory system . It is home to the Spallation Neutron Source , a $ 1.4 billion project completed in 2006, and " Titan ", one of the world's most powerful scientific supercomputers, which has peak performance of more than one quadrillion operations per second. The Y-12 National Security Complex

7597-421: The firm completed Pepsi-Cola World Headquarters . In 1961, the firm completed One Chase Manhattan Plaza , which is now 28 Liberty Street , the first International Style building to rise in New York City's Financial District . The 28 Liberty Street project helped reverse an exodus of corporate clients from Lower Manhattan to Midtown Manhattan and the suburbs. SOM's design for 28 Liberty Street also created

7704-621: The first net-zero-energy school building in New York City and one of the first worldwide. The Kathleen Grimm School for Leadership and Sustainability at Sandy Ground, Staten Island , has been awarded for its sustainability performance by organizations, including the American Institute of Architects , the Municipal Art Society , and the Urban Land Institute . SOM has been recognized for its research and experimentation with new energy-saving and carbon-reducing technologies, inckuding

7811-523: The historic property. In March 2010, the East Tennessee Preservation Alliance listed the inn at the top of its first East Tennessee's Endangered Heritage list of endangered historic buildings and places in a 16-county region of East Tennessee . The previous, no-interest mortgage of $ 353,700 expired on June 30, 2011, after that date the property was to revert to its former owner. The Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association (ORHPA),

7918-519: The hotel into Senior Living by a private developer. In November 2015 the building re-opened as a senior living center, after an $ 8 million renovation via Dover Development. The facility offers memory-care and assisted-living housing. The Alexander Inn and its grounds are central elements for the crime novel Bones of Betrayal by Jefferson Bass (the writing team of Jon Jefferson and Dr. William Bass ), published in 2009 ( ISBN   978-0-06-128474-8 , ISBN   0-06-128474-2 ). The book mentioned

8025-430: The main avenues generally progressed alphabetically from east to west (e.g., Alabama Avenue in the east, Vermont Avenue in the west), and the names of the smaller streets began with the same letter as the main avenue from which they started (e.g., streets connected to Florida Avenue began with "F"). The dramatic population increase, and the secret nature of the project, meant chronic shortages of housing and supplies during

8132-439: The median income for a family was $ 69,333. Full-time, year-round male workers had a median income of $ 54,316 versus $ 36,140 for females in the same employment situation. The per capita income for the city was $ 30,430. About 10.7% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line , including 28.1% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over. Oak Ridge uses the council-manager government system, which

8239-761: The new headquarters for The Walt Disney Company , the global headquarters for Citigroup , Moynihan Train Hall and the expanded Penn Station complex, and the restoration and renovation of the Waldorf Astoria in New York City; airport projects at O'Hare International Airport , Kansas City International Airport , and Kempegowda International Airport ; urban master plans for the Charenton-Bercy district in Paris, New Covent Garden in London, Treasure Island in San Francisco,

8346-768: The northeast, east, and southwest—in which Oak Ridge is situated. The Oak Ridge area is striated by five ridges that run roughly parallel to one another in a northeast-to-southwest direction. In order from west-to-east, the five ridges are Blackoak Ridge (which connects the Elza and K-25 bends of the Clinch and thus "walls off" the half-rectangle), East Fork Ridge, Pine Ridge, Chestnut Ridge, and Haw Ridge. The five ridges are divided by four valleys: East Fork Valley (between Blackoak Ridge and East Fork Ridge), Gamble Valley (between East Fork Ridge and Pine Ridge), Bear Creek Valley (between Pine Ridge and Chestnut Ridge), and Bethel Valley (between Chestnut and Haw). These ridges and valleys are part of

8453-450: The population. There were 12,772 households, with 25.2% having children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.2% being married couples living together, 12.9% having a female householder with no husband present, 3.9% having a male householder with no wife present, and 38.0% being non-families. 33.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size

8560-539: The project (except for the production facilities under construction) on November 3, 1943; and he appreciated the bourbon-laced punch served (although Anderson County was "dry"). House and dormitory accommodations at the Clinton Engineer Works (CEW) in Oak Ridge and Hanford Engineer Works in Washington were basic, with coal rather than oil or electric furnaces. But they were of a higher standard than Groves wanted and were better than at Los Alamos. Medical care

8667-408: The project began. Hendrix lacked any formal education and was a simple logger for much of his life. Following the death of his youngest daughter, Ethel, to diphtheria, and the subsequent departure of his wife and three remaining children, Hendrix began hearing voices in his head. These voices urged him to stay in the woods and pray for guidance for 40 days and 40 nights, which Hendrix proceeded to do. As

8774-485: The rest of Anderson County, Oak Ridge, along with nearby Norris , has voted Democratic in recent federal elections, with the majority of the city having voted for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden in 2020. The federal government projects at Oak Ridge are reduced in size and scope but are still the city's principal economic activity and one of the largest employers in the Knoxville metropolitan area . The DOE owns

8881-560: The rest of the state, Oak Ridge has a humid subtropical climate ( Cfa in the Köppen climate classification ); it is part of USDA hardiness zone 7a. The normal monthly mean temperature ranges from 37.9 °F (3.3 °C) in January to 77.5 °F (25.3 °C) in July, while on average there are 4.3 days where the temperature stays at or below freezing and 39 days with a high at or above 90 °F (32 °C) per year. The all-time record low

8988-650: The role played by Oak Ridge and other institutions in the state in its discovery. The earliest substantial occupation of the Oak Ridge area occurred during the Woodland period ( c.  1000 BC – 1000), although artifacts dating to the Paleo-Indian period have been found throughout the Clinch River valley. Two Woodland mound sites—the Crawford Farm Mounds and the Freels Farm Mounds —were uncovered in

9095-693: The site of Oak Ridge National Laboratory , was established as a pilot plant for production of plutonium using the Graphite Reactor. When the Tennessee Governor Prentice Cooper was officially handed the July 1943 presidential proclamation by a junior officer (a lieutenant)—making Oak Ridge a military district not subject to state control—he tore it up and refused to see the Manhattan Project engineer, Lieutenant Colonel James C. Marshall . The new district engineer, Lieutenant Colonel Kenneth Nichols , had to placate him. Cooper came to see

9202-591: The southeast. The European-American settlers who founded these communities arrived in the late 1790s after the American Revolutionary War and after the Cherokee signed the Treaty of Holston , ceding what is now Anderson County to the United States. A popular legend holds that John Hendrix (1865-1915), a largely unknown local man, predicted the creation of the city of Oak Ridge around 40 years before construction on

9309-423: The southwest. After flowing for approximately 17 miles (27 km), the river bends sharply to the northwest at Copper Ridge, and continues in this direction for nearly 7 miles (11 km). At the K-25 plant, the Clinch turns southwest again and flows for another 11 miles (18 km) to its mouth along the Tennessee River at Kingston . This series of bends creates a half-rectangle formation—surrounded by water on

9416-596: The spring-fed Oak Ridge Municipal Outdoor Swimming Pool, which had been completed in June 1945, became integrated. In the early 1960s, Oak Ridge briefly experienced protest picketing against racial segregation in public accommodations, notably outside a local cafeteria and a laundromat. Two years after World War II ended, Oak Ridge was shifted to civilian control, under the authority of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission . The Roane Anderson Company administered community functions, including arranging housing and operating buses, under

9523-581: The state of Tennessee, and Oak Ridge High School was ranked the number three high school in the state of Tennessee, in the Niche 2017 Best School Districts. Independent schools in the city include the Montessori School of Oak Ridge, St. Mary's School, and several preschools. The Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning offers a diverse array of educational opportunities for adults. Skidmore, Owings %26 Merrill The firm's notable current work includes

9630-433: The story is told, following these 40 days spent in rugged isolation, Hendrix began seeing visions of the future, and he sought to spread his prophetic message to any who would listen. According to published accounts, one vision that he described repeatedly was a description of the city and production facilities built 28 years after his death, during World War II. The version recalled by neighbors and relatives reported: In

9737-450: The surrounding landscape, but also for its use of efficient building systems. In 2007, the firm completed a large-scale sustainable architecture project for the U.S. Census Bureau , the first federal office building to receive LEED certification. Like Weyerhaeuser, the design of the campus works in concert with its natural surroundings and incorporates a range of design strategies to reduce its environmental impact. In 2015, SOM completed

9844-476: The war years. The town was administered by Turner Construction Company through a subsidiary named the Roane-Anderson Company. For most residents, however, their "landlord" was known as "MSI" (Management Services, Inc.). All workers wore badges. The town was surrounded by guard towers and a fence with seven gates. Oak Ridge was developed by the federal government as a segregated community, required by

9951-483: The war, plans were made for a colored neighborhood of houses equal in quality to those provided for whites, but it was not implemented because of limited resources. After the war, all hutments were dismantled, and a colored neighborhood of permanent houses was developed in the Gamble Valley area of Oak Ridge, which during wartime had been occupied by a white trailer community. Oak Ridge elementary education prior to 1954

10058-440: The woods, as I lay on the ground and looked up into the sky, there came to me a voice as loud and as sharp as thunder. The voice told me to sleep with my head on the ground for 40 nights and I would be shown visions of what the future holds for this land.... And I tell you, Bear Creek Valley someday will be filled with great buildings and factories, and they will help toward winning the greatest war that ever will be. And there will be

10165-403: The world's largest roof garden. Below the great lawn, two new levels of parking were built, bus stops were added, and rail stations were renovated and expanded, including Millennium Station . The project revitalized a formerly blighted downtown site and marked the completion of Chicago planner Daniel Burnham 's 100-year vision for the area. In Denver, SOM was commissioned to expand and transform

10272-450: The world's most significant architectural and urban projects including several of the tallest buildings in the world : John Hancock Center (1969, second tallest in the world when built), Willis Tower (1973, tallest in the world for over twenty years), One World Trade Center (2014, currently the seventh tallest in the world), and Burj Khalifa (2010, currently the world's tallest building). SOM's multidisciplinary practice works across

10379-606: Was John O. Merrill . Fazlur Khan , another engineer at SOM, is best known for his design and construction of the Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), and John Hancock Center and for his designs of structural systems that remain fundamental to all high-rise skyscrapers . Indeed, Khan is responsible for developing the algorithms that made the Hancock building and many subsequent skyscrapers possible. Another notable SOM engineer

10486-411: Was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.86. The age distribution was 22.0% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 22.8% from 25 to 44, 28.9% from 45 to 64, and 19.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $ 48,716, and

10593-765: Was 31,402 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Knoxville Metropolitan Area . Oak Ridge's nicknames include the Atomic City , the Secret City , and the City Behind a Fence . In 1942, the United States federal government forcibly purchased nearly 60,000 acres (240 km ) of farmland in the Clinch River valley for the development of a planned city supporting 75,000 residents. It was constructed with assistance from architectural and engineering firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill , from 1942 to 1943. Oak Ridge

10700-451: Was bombed and closed while being rebuilt. Oak Ridge provided space at a recently vacated elementary school building (the original Linden Elementary School) for the education of high school students from Clinton for two years while Clinton High School was being rebuilt. Following the Brown decision , public accommodations in Oak Ridge were gradually integrated, which took several years. In 1955,

10807-440: Was established in 1942 as a production site for the Manhattan Project —the massive American, British, and Canadian operation that developed the atomic bomb . Being the site of Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex , scientific and technological development still plays a crucial role in the city's economy and culture in general. In 2016, the element tennessine was named for Tennessee, in recognition of

10914-457: Was established in 1959 when the city was incorporated. It is governed by a seven-member city council composed of the mayor and six council members. Oak Ridge is represented in the Tennessee House of Representatives in the 33rd District in Anderson County, and the 32nd district in Roane County, by Representatives John Ragan and Kent Calfee respectively, both of whom are Republican . In

11021-558: Was expanded. The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991 as a contributing property in the Oak Ridge Historic District . The Alexander Inn ceased operating as a hotel in the mid-1990s. Since that time the building had fallen into serious disrepair. On December 18, 2009, the Oak Ridge Revitalization Effort, a local nonprofit organization , announced that it had purchased

11128-474: Was largely uninhabited when Euro-American explorers and settlers arrived in the late 18th century, although the Cherokee claimed the land as part of their hunting grounds . During the early 19th century, several rural farming communities developed in the Oak Ridge area, namely Edgemoor and Elza in the northeast, East Fork and Wheat in the southwest, Robertsville in the west, and Bethel and Scarboro in

11235-521: Was new in the 1940s is aging. The once-isolated city is now incorporated into the Knoxville metropolitan area. Oak Ridge is now challenged to blend into the suburban orbit of Knoxville as its heritage as a "super secret" government installation subsides. Changing economic forces have led to continuing changes in the commercial sector. For example, the Oak Ridge City Center , a shopping center built in

11342-414: Was provided by Army doctors and hospitals, with civilians paying $ 2.50 per month ($ 5 for families) to the medical insurance fund. The location and low population helped keep the town a secret, though the settlement grew from 3,000 to 3,750 in 1942 to about 75,000 by 1945. Because of the large number of workers recruited to the area for the Manhattan Project, the Army planned a town for project workers at

11449-533: Was segregated; it was legally part of the Anderson County system though built and operated primarily with federal funds. Black children could attend only the Scarboro Elementary School. Oak Ridge High School was closed to black students, who had to be bused to Knoxville for an education. Starting in 1950, Scarboro High School was established at Scarboro Elementary School to offer classes for African-American students. In 1955, 85 young Black students from

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