April 1st Update

Happy first day of April and while you may find yourself in the middle of practical jokes this April Fool's Day, its no joke that there are a lot of fun and exciting things happening around Knoxville this week and weekend!

East Tennessee Quality Growth Conference (ETQG) Update

I had the opportunity to attend a number of the sessions at the ETQG "Plain talk on quality growth: tools for action" Conference March 30 and 31. It was exciting to see a number of elected officials (including City Mayor Brown and County Mayor Burchett), municipal staff, special interest groups, general citizens and national experts come together to discuss growth in our 16 county region. One of the main conference highlights was the launch of a new website that will provide a Toolbox of approaches and ideas that can be used to create, foster and maintain quality growth in our region.

I was also able to attend a number of sessions that dealt with land use and transportation issues. Several of the topics discussed, support the goals and ideas of the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Plan including the benefits of density in urban areas and the idea that some traffic congestion can be compared to 'good cholesterol' because it can mean that people want to be at that unique location. Its great to keep these ideas in mind as work progresses on detailed plans for the Cumberland Avenue Streetscape Project.

If you're interested in ETQG, the Conference, or toolbox, please visit their site, here.

For an additional perspective on the Conference, Knoxville News Sentinel Reporter, Josh Flory did a series of posts to his Property Scope blog, here and here.

CAMA Update

The next meeting for the Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association will be next Wednesday, April 6 at 3:00 pm at the new location of the Old College Inn at 1820 Cumberland Ave (just east of 1st Tennessee Bank) and parking will be available just behind OCI's at Graphic Creations, 1809 Lake Avenue . For more information about OCI's move and merchant related information please visit the CAMA Blog, here. CAMA intern, Ana Richters, is doing a great job posting information about CAMA, the merchants and other items of interest!

Weekend Events

Tonight, First FridayDowntown Knoxville, for more information visit: http://knoxvillefirstfriday.com/wp/

Friday, April 1 - 30 Dogwood Arts Festival
City wide Showcasing the region's best performing and visual artists in a "blue jean to black tie" festival that has something for everyone! An exciting mix of fine art, dance, theater, crafts, historic tours, and Americana music at its best. http://www.dogwoodarts.com/

Friday, April 1 - 3 Rhythm 'N Blooms
Various locations throughout Knoxville including Market Square, visit the website for more info. Experience East Tennessee's historical & present role in Americana music with performances by local, regional, and nationally renown musicians. http://www.rhythmnbloomsfest.com/

Saturday, April 2 Covenant Kids Run
World's Fair Park 6:00pm

Sunday, April 3 7th Annual Knoxville Covenant Marathon, Half-Marathon & Marathon Relay
Clinch Ave. Viaduct 7:30am

As always, thanks for your interest in everything connecting to Cumberland Avenue. I hope you have a safe and fun-filled weekend!