Friday, August 29, 2014

August 29th Update

KCDC Public Hearing on Cumberland Avenue Redevelopment Plan

What: A public hearing on a Cumberland Avenue redevelopment area plan

When: 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 4

Where: UT Federal Credit Union, 2100 White Ave.

Who: Knoxville’s Community Development Corp. (KCDC), acting on behalf of the City of Knoxville and City Council, is seeking public input on a proposal to establish a redevelopment area around Cumberland Avenue as a step toward financing public infrastructure.

City officials are exploring with KCDC the option of creating a redevelopment area – generally bounded by White Avenue, 17th Street, Lake Avenue and West Volunteer Boulevard – that would benefit from the new tax increment generated by projects in the area.

In this plan, revenue would not go toward private project financing; rather, as the area redevelops and property taxes rise, the increase in revenue would go toward infrastructure improvements in the area.

One need that’s been identified by both planners and City officials: public parking.

Currently, about 25 percent of the redevelopment area is used for parking. But, according to a draft of a proposal for the redevelopment area, parking around Cumberland Avenue “will need to evolve beyond single-purpose reserved parking that is uncoordinated and fragmented.” City officials have said a public garage is needed to support commercial and residential growth along the Cumberland Avenue Corridor.


Anyone needing a disability accommodation in order to attend the meeting should contact City ADA Coordinator Stephanie Brewer Cook in advance of the meeting at 865-215-2034, or email her at scook@cityofknoxville.org.
Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) Meeting

Date: Wednesday, September 3


Time: 3:00 - 4:00 pm

Location: Goal Post Tavern, 1824 Cumberland Avenue

What: The merchants and other interested stakeholders meet to discuss items of interest or concern and get updates on the City's Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project.

Parking: Available parking is located at Graphic Creations, 1809 Lake Avenue.

Community Events

August 30, 2014
Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square, Union Ave & Market Street
9:00am – 2:00pm
11th season of the downtown Farmers Market with locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts.  
www.marketsquarefarmersmarket.org


Boomsday
Neyland Drive
4pm-10pm
Annual fireworks festival with food vendors and activities. Fireworks are at 9:00pm


August 31, 2014
University of Tennessee vs. Utah State
7:00 pm at Neyland Stadium

As always, thanks for your interest in everything to do with Cumberland Avenue. Have a safe, fun-filled weekend and Go Vols!

Monday, August 11, 2014

August 11th Update

KUB Update

Attached below is a traffic advisory that was issued by KUB Community Relations Monday afternoon in association with upcoming utility work. Contact KUB at 524-2911 if you have questions about this or any other KUB construction activities.

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closures [August 12-14] – KUB will close a short section of the curbside, eastbound lane of Cumberland Avenue between the Alcoa Highway off ramp and University Commons Way, and the far right turn lane of the Alcoa Highway northbound off ramp, daily from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. starting Tuesday, August 12, until Thursday, August 14, as work is completed on the electric distribution system in the area. Brief, unscheduled full traffic stops will occur in this area during this work. Crews will also be present in Tyson Park, but park access will not be restricted.

Some listed closures may extend beyond the scheduled times depending on the conditions encountered during excavation and construction. Appropriate traffic control measures will be in place at each location to assist motorists traveling in these areas. Due to the ongoing presence of workers and equipment, motorists are advised to use extreme caution and expect temporary delays in these areas. More information on this and other KUB construction projects can be found at www.kub.org.  

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

August 5th Update

CAMA Update

At Wednesday’s meeting, representatives from Knoxville's Community Development Corporation (KCDC) will discuss the process, including proposed meeting dates, of creating a Redevelopment Plan authorizing tax increment financing for the Cumberland Avenue area. City Council authorized KCDC to study Cumberland for a redevelopment area in 2013. The intent of this redevelopment area would be to support future public parking and public infrastructure in the district. More information will be forthcoming about public meetings.

Friday, August 1, 2014

KUB Update - Additional Work this coming Week

KUB Update
 
Attached below is a traffic advisory that was issued by KUB Community Relations Friday afternoon in association with upcoming utility work. Contact KUB at 524-2911 if you have questions about this or any other KUB construction activities.
Re:        Traffic Advisory – Lane Closure for Utility Work [All closures and work are weather permitting]

South Seventeenth Street Lane Closure [August 3] – KUB will close the northbound, curbside lane on a short section of South Seventeenth Street between Cumberland Avenue and White Avenue on Sunday, August 3, from 6 a.m. – 4 p.m. as work is completed on the water distribution system in this area. One northbound lane and both southbound lanes will remain open.  

Fort Sanders Area Lane Closures [August 4-8] – KUB and its contractor will implement intermittent lane closures daily from 7 a.m.-5 p.m. on the following streets in the Fort Sanders area next week:

·        Forest Avenue – Full closure for construction between Thirteenth Street and World’s Fair Park Drive  with access to local traffic maintained.
·        Clinch Avenue – Intermittent lane closures on August 4-5 for paving work between Fourteenth Street and Eleventh Street.
·        Bridge Avenue – Intermittent lane closures on August 6-7 for paving work between Fourteenth Street and Eleventh Street.

All work is weather permitting. Temporary lane closures may be implemented to accommodate short-term construction needs. The Fort Sanders neighborhood work will be isolated to individual streets/areas, and construction will not take place over the entire neighborhood at the same time. Street parking may be temporarily restricted in the immediate construction area to facilitate safe access for equipment and workers. Construction methods will include sections of open-cut trench replacement, as well as trenchless rehabilitation, which includes lining of the existing pipes and pipe-bursting methods. The condition and depth of the existing pipe, as well as accessibility, will determine the construction method used. Selected manholes will also be replaced or rehabilitated as part of this project. As work areas shift, follow up advisories will be issued.

August 1st Update

KUB Update

Contact KUB at 594-7531 if you have questions about this or any other KUB construction activities.

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closures [July 30-August 6] – KUB and its contractor will implement lane closures along a section of Cumberland Avenue between James Agee Street and Thirteenth Street daily from 7 a.m.-5 p.m. beginning on Wednesday, July 30, and lasting through Wednesday, August 6, as construction continues on a summer-long PACE 10 wastewater collection system improvement project that is scheduled to last through August 2014 in the eastern section of the Fort Sanders neighborhood.

Some listed closures may extend beyond the scheduled times depending on the conditions encountered during excavation and construction. Appropriate traffic control measures, including flagmen, will be in place at this location to assist motorists traveling in the area. Due to the ongoing presence of workers and equipment, motorists are advised to use extreme caution and expect temporary delays in this area. More information on this and other KUB construction projects can be found at www.kub.org.


Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) Meeting

Date: Wednesday, August 6


Time: 3:00 - 4:00 pm

Location: Goal Post Tavern, 1824 Cumberland Avenue

What: The merchants and other interested stakeholders meet to discuss items of interest or concern and get updates on the City's Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project.

Parking: Available parking is located at Graphic Creations, 1809 Lake Avenue.


University Commons Update

According to University Commons website, available here, Walmart is scheduled to open next Wednesday, August 6th! The Publix grocery store and other retailers will open in the weeks to come.

University of Tennessee Update

Fall Semester starts Wednesday, August 20th! The first home football game will be held Sunday, August 31st.

UT's Cumberland Avenue Work Extended
July 31, 2014 - A major University of Tennessee utility upgrade will close two lanes of Cumberland Avenue between James Agee Street and 11th Street in August.

A UT contractor had been granted a traffic-control permit to reroute Cumberland Avenue commuters from July 23 through Aug. 8. But for now, just one westbound lane of Cumberland Avenue is closed, and the second lane won't close until Aug. 8 or later, according to Southern Constructors Inc.

The traffic-control permit allowing two lanes to be closed has been extended until Aug. 25.

Crews are installing stormwater drains on each side of Cumberland Avenue, and UT steam lines will be installed.

As work continues, the lane closures will alternate. Depending on where the crews are working, eastbound commuters will either remain in place or shift to the two westbound lanes of Cumberland Avenue. Once the second lane is closed, westbound commuters will be detoured to 11th Street, then to Clinch Avenue and then to 16th Street.

The precise dates for the alternating lane closures will be determined by the pace of the infrastructure work.

The City's Civil Engineering Division recommends that detoured westbound motorists take a different route, since the detour route will squeeze traffic from a normal two lanes to a single lane.

UT's fall semester starts Aug. 20.

Additional work on the steam line project, with less impact on traffic flow, is expected to continue into early January.

UT's steam line, which crosses Cumberland Avenue, is being upgraded. The project is tied to UT eliminating coal use completely by transitioning to natural gas, which will lead to decreased emissions of pollutants. UT's steam plant provides heating and hot water for more than 150 buildings using about 11 miles of underground steam pipes.
For information about construction in and around campus, be sure to visit the Cone Zone Blog

Community Events
 
August 1, 2014
Shakespeare on the Square- Titus Andronicus
Market Square
7pm
One of Shakespeare's earliest tragedies, and far and away his darkest, most bloody play, Titus Andronicus, is like an Elizabethan horror movie. Interestingly, it was also Shakespeare's most popular play during his lifetime. The story rests on a struggle for control of the Roman Empire but the play is awash in blood – beheadings, mutilations and horrible crimes against humanity.
"Hold onto your hats, it's going to be a bumpy ride."


August 2, 2014

Robotics Revolution
Jacob Building at Chilhowee Park
10:00am – 4:00pm
The event will provide educational & fun ways to explore the wonders of robotics, engineering & technology. 
www.themuseknoxville.org


Lonsdale Homecoming
Texas Ave
10:00am


Shakespeare on the Square – Much Ado About Nothing
Market Square
7pm
This most perfect of romantic comedies centers on Shakespeare's wittiest lovers, Beatrice and Benedick, two people determined to avoid the foolishness of love at all costs! The verbal fireworks between these two make up some of Shakespeare's best writing. Along the way we meet more lovers, distraught fathers, villains and the 16th century's answer to the Three Stooges – Dogberry and the Watch. Of course, like all good comedies, everyone ends up married – more or less.
"I will live in they heart, die In thy lap, and be buried in thy eyes."


Market Square Farmers Market

Market Square, Union Ave & Market Street
9:00am – 2:00pm
11th season of the downtown Farmers Market with locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts.  
www.marketsquarefarmersmarket.org


August 3, 2014
Shakespeare on the Square- Titus Andronicus
Market Square
7pm
See description above.

 
As always, thank you for your interest in Cumberland Avenue! Have a great and safe weekend.