The Cumberland Connection

January 27th Update

2012-01-27T14:39:00.007-05:00

Greetings and Happy 2012!

Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) Meeting Reminder

Date: February 1, 2011
Time: 3:00 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. For more information please visit http://www.cumberlandknoxville.com/.

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

New Information for February: Elizabeth Davis from the TN Alumnus magazine will be in attendance at the meeting to explain how Merchants can advertise to the alumni and contributors. Also Kevin Pack from Metro Pulse will be attending this meeting to talk about their restaurant guide. This is shaping up to be a great opportunity to learn more about marketing businesses on Cumberland Avenue! Come out and bring a friend or co-worker!

Cumberland Avenue Streetscapes Update

The city is continuing to work on the right of way (ROW) process in the TDOT contract for the streetcape project. On Tuesday, January 24, after a competitive bid process, City Council voted to approve a resolution authorizing the Mayor to enter into an agreement with Tennessee Valley Title Insurance Company for title examination, review, evaluation and closing services. This is the foundational work that needs to be done in order to send notifications to the appropriate owners and lease holders regarding the proposed project and the need for temporary construction easements and in some cases utility easements. For more information about this contract, see the article in the Knoxville News Sentinel, by Gerald Witt, here.

Additional steps in the ROW process will be forthcoming this spring. We will keep you posted through the blog, the merchants meetings, and other venues. As always, thanks for your interest in all things related to Cumberland Avenue and if you have any questions feel free to drop me a line at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

December 9th Update

2011-12-09T14:43:00.004-05:00

KUB Update

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory – Alternating lane closures for utility construction (weather permitting)

Dale Avenue Alternating Lane Closures [December 12, 2011 - April, 2012] - Beginning Monday, December 12, and lasting intermittently through April 2012, KUB and its contractors will close alternating lanes on a section of Dale Avenue between address 621 Dale Avenue and the N. Seventeenth Street intersection daily from 6 a.m. - 7 p.m. as part of construction activities at the new KUB electric substation located at 410 Dale Avenue.

Access to N. Seventeenth Street will not be affected as the contractor will keep one of the three affected lanes on Dale Avenue open at all times during this period. All lanes on this section of Dale Avenue will be reopened to traffic overnight during this period. The new substation at this location will serve as a source of electricity for the growing University of Tennessee campus and improve service and reliability to hospitals, businesses, and residences in the Fort Sanders area. The overall project is scheduled for completion in the spring of 2012, weather permitting.

Neyland Drive Lane Shifts [December 14, 2011 – August 2012] – Beginning on Wednesday, December 14, and lasting through August 2012, KUB and its contractor will close the eastbound curbside lane of traffic on a section of Neyland Drive between Leinard Lane and Lake Loudoun Boulevard as part of ongoing wastewater system upgrades in this area.

Two eastbound lanes will be maintained on this section of Neyland Drive during this period, as the inside lane will remain open and the second eastbound lane will be shifted to the center turn lane through the work zone. Additionally, traffic travelling eastbound on Neyland Drive will not be able to make a lefthand turn into the KUB Kuwahee Wasetwater Treatment Plant on Neyland Drive. The eastbound lane shifts will be in effect continuously until work is completed. Both westbound lanes of Neyland Drive will remain open at all times during this period. Pavement markings, barricades, and signs will be in place to alert and direct traffic through this zone.

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.

CAMA Update

The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association held their monthly meeting on Wednesday, December 7th in the Goal Post Tavern at 3:00pm. There were representatives from KPD, UTPD, Regions Bank, Graphic Creations, Copper Cellar Restaurant, the News Sentinel and City of Knoxville.

The meeting started with an update from KPD and noted that crimes of opportunity, especially related to vehicles, were up last month. Please remember to lock car doors and keep all valuables out of sight (especially GPS units and laptops). The merchants noted that cadets have been actively patrolling the area for on street parking violations and increasing turn over. UTPD gave an update that included their out reach to students in the Fort Sanders neighborhood, encouraging students to prepare for safe holidays (i.e. don't leave valuables in sight, lock doors, leave a light on while away, etc.). Additionally, a good tip for everyone was provided by the representative from Regions bank, don't leave "tell-tale" boxes at the curb for trash pick ups; this alerts would be thieves to items that may be in the home (especially true for t.v. or computer boxes).

The city provided an update on the streetscape project, which noted that consultants had been selected for right of way services and contracts were being negotiated. Additionally, internal work on the form base code was continuing. Conversations were on-going with the hospital in regards to parking. Fort Sanders neighborhood has not requested any stakeholder meetings at this time. UTPD asked city staff to check on the potential signal timing grant and weather or not it included the light at 17th/Melrose and Cumberland Avenue.

Weekend Events

A number of holiday events are occurring this weekend, for a list of fun, family oriented events, please visit http://www.cityofknoxville.org/events/events.pdf.

Once again congratulations to all the UT graduates and students for completing this semester! Have a safe and fun weekend. Thanks for your interest in Cumberland Avenue.

December 6th Update

2011-12-06T11:49:00.005-05:00

KUB Update

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)
Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane Reduction for Utility Work [All closures and work are weather permitting]

Weather Postpones Neyland Drive Lane Closure – KUB’s scheduled closure of the eastbound curbside lane on a section of Neyland Drive between Lake Loudoun Boulevard and Leinard Lane for water system work has been postponed until Thursday, December 8, from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., due to weather. One eastbound lane and both westbound lanes of Neyland Drive will remain open while this work is completed.

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.

Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) Meeting Reminder

Date: December 7, 2011
Time: 3:00 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. For more information please visit www.cumberlandknoxville.com.
Parking: Available parking is located at Graphic Creations, 1809 Lake Avenue.

UT Updates
Final exams are on-going through December 8th and the Fall 2011 Commencement ceremonies are scheduled for Friday, December 9th. Congratulations to all graduates and best of luck in your future pursuits!

Upcoming Events

December 6 - 10, 2011
The 24th Annual Nutcracker on Ice
Ice Chalet
7:00 p.m. Nightly & 2:00 p.m. Saturday
$12.00 - $15.00
The popular holiday tale of a little girl and her magical "Nutcracker" doll is brought to life on the ice by skaters of all ages. The opening number, a "Currier & Ives" - type pond scene, sets the mood for the evenings festivities. A party, a fight, and a trip to the Land of the Sweets serve as a showcase for the talents of the 150 plus cast members. In its 24th year, "Nutcracker on Ice" is a delightful treat for the holidays - the music, the costumes, the lighting, the skating, and a great story combine for a fun night of family entertainment!
www.chaleticerinks.com/nutcrackeronice.htm
(865) 588-1858

December 9, 2011
"Alive After Five" Holiday Dance Party
Knoxville Museum of Art
5:30 p.m.
$10.00/person
Live music by the Atomic Horns, cash bar, food & free popcorn!
www.knoxart.org
(865) 525-6101

December 9, 2011
Comcast Christmas at Chilhowee
Chilhowee Park
6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Visit a winter wonderland at Chilhowee Park. Listen to Christmas carols, have a pictures taken with Santa Claus, decorate cookies, roast marshmallows & take a horse-drawn carriage ride to tour the park's Christmas light display.
www.cityofknoxville.org

For many more events this season, please visit: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/events/events.pdf

As always, thanks for your interest in all things related to Cumberland Avenue and have a great week!

November 1st Update

2011-11-01T10:09:00.003-04:00

Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) Meeting Reminder

Date: November 2, 2011

Time: 3:00 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.

Upcoming Events

Wednesday, November 2
Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts

Thursday, November 3
Last Day of Early Voting
Various Locations
Poles close at 7:00 pm. Get out and vote. Election day is November 8th.

Friday, November 4
UT Homecoming Parade
Lanes of Volunteer, Andy Holt, Phillip Fulmer
4:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
UT annual homecoming parade; begins at the "ROCK" eastbound on Volunteer Blvd.

Saturday, November 5th
UT Homecoming
UT will take on Middle Tennessee State with a kickoff time of 7:00 p.m. Go Vols!
For more information visit: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/events/utsports.asp

As always, thanks for your interest in the Cumberland Avenue Corridor. Have a safe and fun week!

October 7th Update

2011-10-07T14:48:00.004-04:00

CAMA Update

The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association held their monthly meeting on Wednesday, October 5th in the Goal Post Tavern at 3:00pm. There were representatives from the Goal Post, KPD, UTPD, Regions Bank, UT Federal Credit Union, University Liquors, Walgreens, Copper Cellar Restaurant and City of Knoxville.

The meeting started with an update from KPD and the officer noted the increase in focus on the area and Fort Sanders neighborhood especially nights and weekends. Additionally, based on the merchants' request, cadets have been actively patroling the area for on street parking violations and increasing turn over. Some traffic concerns were noted with the new restaurant at 22nd Street and it was noted that City Engineering would be looking at the situation.

Also, some merchants noted concern with panhandling at their business. The city is working to update an informational brochure that can be given to patrons regarding the city's panhandling policy. It was noted that Redeeming Hope Ministries on 17th Street is a great resource for individuals seeking assistance. City staff provided an update on the Cumberland Avenue Corridor project which noted that staff is still reviewing the form base code draft and that an request for qualifications had been published for assistance with the Right of Way process for the Streetscape Project.

Weekend Events

Friday, October 7
First Friday
Downtown Knoxville
6:00-10:00pm
For more information visit http://knoxvillefirstfriday.com/.

Movies on the Square
Market Square
6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
The furry fun will begin at 6:30 p.m. and the movies begin at dusk. This week’s movie is Clue.

Saturday, October 8
Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts.

Volunteer Football
Neyland Staduim
Kick Off 7:00pm
Tennessee Volunteers take on the Georgia Bulldogs.

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

September 23rd Update

2011-09-23T14:10:00.005-04:00

Renovations on the Corridor
McDonald's on Cumberland Avenue has just issued a press release with the following information.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Joe Burger, 865-851-2633
Cissy Smith, The Tombras Group
865-470-2934

McDONALD’S® FIRST RESTAURANT TO REMODEL AS PART OF THE
CUMBERLAND AVENUE CORRIDOR PROJECT

Knoxville, TN – The newly-rebuilt McDonald’s on Cumberland Avenue opens this Tuesday at Midnight, and it is the first local business on the UT Strip to be remodeled based on the City of Knoxville’s Corridor Project. The purpose of the Corridor Project is to create a more attractive, economically successful, vibrant and safe Cumberland Avenue. "The city of Knoxville is very excited about the improvements to the McDonald's location and the willingness of the owners to have their renovations support the goals and purposes of the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project", says Anne Wallace, Cumberland Avenue Project Manager for the City of Knoxville.

In addition, the new restaurant reflects McDonald’s decision to transform to a more upscale dining experience – complete with modern and stylish décor, comfortable seating and an exterior that encourages you to come in and stay awhile. The restaurant operates a 24-hour drive-thru, with both 24-hour lobby and drive-thru service on the weekends.

“We are so proud of this restaurant,” said local owner/operator Joe Burger, “and we hope our customers, especially the students, will really enjoy this place, inside and out. This restaurant is part of the UT atmosphere – so you’ll see lots of orange inside, including the orange and white checkerboard tile over the beverage center. Students can enjoy free WI-FI and the convenience of electrical outlets throughout the seating options. Or, the new patio outside which is a new addition to the restaurant.”

The entire Burger family (yes, that’s Burger) is involved in the business. Joe & his sons, Jason and Joe Burger III, are all owner/operators, with five McDonald’s restaurants in the Knoxville area (Western Ave., Farragut, Windsor Square, Lenoir City and Cumberland Ave.). The Burgers relocated to East Tennessee in 2007 from Pawley’s Island, South Carolina where they owned and operated two McDonald’s restaurants.

The restaurant will open at Midnight on Tuesday – and the first 100 students (with valid UT ID) will receive a Free Extra Value Meal each week for a year. “We know students look for great food and great value,” said Mr. Burger. “We provide that with a menu that offers lots of food and beverage choices, and our everyday value on the Dollar Menu for both lunch/dinner and breakfast. And our McCafe® line includes a broad line of espresso-based coffees and sweet treats – Lattes, Cappuccinos, Mochas, Frappes, and Smoothies.”

The Burgers are members of the Smoky Mountain Owner/Operators’ Association – a local co-op consisting of eleven franchisee organizations with 75 restaurants located across East Tennessee and Southeast Kentucky. McDonald's USA, LLC, is the leading foodservice provider in the United States serving a variety of wholesome foods made from quality ingredients to millions of customers every day. More than 80 percent of McDonald's 14,000 U.S. restaurants are independently owned and operated by local franchisees. For more information on McDonald's visit www.mcdonalds.com or log on at any of the 10,000 Wi-Fi enabled McDonald's U.S. restaurants.

Weekend Events

Friday, September 23
Movies on the Square
Market Square
6:00PM - 10:00PM
The furry fun will begin at 6:30Pm and the movies begin at dusk. This weeks movie is Scooby Doo.

Friday, September 23 - September 25
Greekfest 2011
St. George Greek Orthodox Church, 4070 Kingston Pike
Sept. 23 & 24: 11:00AM - 10:00PM
Sept. 25: 12:00PM - 6:00PM
Festival highlighting Greek Orthodox religion, Greek food, customs, dancing, shopping, art, and the Knoxville Greek Orthodox Church. For more information visit http://greekfesttn.com/default.aspx.

Saturday, September 24
Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts

The Big Knox Venture Race
The Square Room and Market Square Stage
9:24AM
The Big Knox Venture Race will send teams on an adventure course through downtown Knoxville. For more information visit http://www.knoxventure.org/

Hola Festival
300 Block of Gay St. (West Depot Avenue and Gay St by Regas Square.)
11:00AM - 8:00PM
The festival will feature delicious authentic Latin food, Latin rhythms, traditional music, dances, an International art and craft marketplace. At 2 p.m. the signature "PARADE OF NATIONS" will showcase traditional attire. For more information visit http://www.holaknoxville.org/festival/index.php

September 16th Update

2011-09-16T14:17:00.003-04:00

CAMA Update

The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association held their monthly meeting on September 7th at 3:00 pm in the Goal Post Tavern. Businesses and organizations represented at the meeting included the City of Knoxville, UTPD, KPD, Regions Bank, UT Federal Credit Union, Graphic Creations, The Tin Roof, University Liquors, and Goal Post Tavern.

KPD and UTPD noted a successful opening home game weekend without any major crimes to report. The merchants requested additional enforcement for on street parking in the district to assist with turn over of those spaces. Additionally, city staff discussed the panhandling brochure that was posted to the blog previously and there was interest in having the brochure available for various businesses to provide to patrons. City staff also provided a project update for the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project that included discussing the draft of the form based code that had recently been received and more details regarding the right of way process for the streetscape project.

Weekend Events

Friday, September 16
Movies on the Square
Market Square
The furry fun will begin at 6:30Pm and the movies begin at dusk. This weeks movie is How to Train Your Dragon.

Saturday, September 17
Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts.

Artists at Work
Market Square
5:00PM
A drawing circle of easels, paper and pencil for artists and the pubic to join in. A model will be featured in the center of the circle, and the participants can learn to draw what they see in the world around them. Free, all drawing materials provided by school of art.

As always, thanks for your interest in everything connected to Cumberland Avenue. Have a safe and fun weekend!

September 2nd Update

2011-09-02T15:36:00.006-04:00

City of Knoxville Update

The 24th Annual Boomsday event is scheduled for Sunday, September 4th! Festivities kick off at 1:00 p.m. on Neyland Drive with entertainment and food throughout the afternoon. This year's festival will feature a Family Fun Zone with inflatables and games; Live Entertainment on the Daystar Production Stage showcasing live music entertainment from over 10 bands; Little Debbie; and activities and contests from Journal Broadcasting, and many more fun activities. For more information see the city's press release here or visit the event website here.

There are also a number of events downtown and along the Cumberland corridor with First Friday tonight (for more information click here), the UT Vols season opener against Montana on Saturday at 6:00 pm (for parking and directional information please visit here), and the weekly Market Square Farmers Market. Just a brief reminder for residents and visitors alike, the city of Knoxville has adopted a "no panhandling" ordinance; for more information please click here which includes a brochure from the Knoxville Police Department about panhandling.

CAMA Update

The next regularly scheduled Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 7 at 3:00 pm in the Goal Post Tavern. For more information about CAMA click here. Hope to see everyone at the meeting!

As always, thank you for your interest in all things that touch Cumberland Avenue and have a safe and fun-filled holiday weekend!

August 26th Update

2011-08-26T10:44:00.006-04:00

CAMA Update

Merchant Association member, Teri Branam of UT Federal Credit Union, asked to share this parking lot information with Blog followers since UTFCU has offered their parking lot for free public parking on nights and weekends*:

UTFCU parking lot will be closed for re-paving (weather permitting) Friday, August 26, 2011 5:30 pm through Monday, August 29, 2011 at 8am.

* With the exception of home football game weekends.

In other CAMA news, the Merchants have announced new interns for this fall: Walter Weller (Logistics & Statistics with a concentration in Marketing), Mashundra (Sha) Maclin (Communication Studies with a minor in Business Administration), and Raquel De Bastiani (Marketing with a minor in Spanish). We look foward to working with you and thanks to our outgoing interns Ana Richters and Kiah Simmons who did a great job, especially getting the new CAMA website running which you can find here.

The next regularly scheduled CAMA meeting is set for September 7 at 3:00pm at the Goal Post Tavern.

Weekend Events

Friday, August 26
Gospel on Market SquareMarket Square
6:00PM - 10:00PM
Spiritual preaching, dance, gospel singing

Friday, August 26 & Saturday, August 27
Worship in the City
World's Fair Park
9:00AM - 11:00PM
We will recruit 80% of the Worship in the City participants to donate 1 hour of their time during the 2 day celebration for a community wide Kids Against Hunger food packing event. For ticket information call 679-8850

Saturday, August 27
Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts

The Mechanicsville Homecoming
Danny Mayfield Park
10:00AM - 8:00PM
6th annual homecoming event in Danny Mayfield. There will be choirs, vendors, open mic talent, music, food and more.

HKRG vs. Jacksonville Roller Girls
Civic Coliseum
6:00PM
For tickets contact 215-8999

Pow Wow Heritage Festival
10:00AM - 8:00PM
Livestock Pavilion, Chilhowee Park
Visit http://www.indiancreekproductions.com/ for more information

The Man Run
UT Medical Center
8:00AM
The Man Run for Prostate Cancer Education and no-cost screening in our community. For more information visit http://www.utmedicalcenter.org/cancer-institute/calendar/the-man-run

Young Guuna DJ's Car Show
Midway, Chilhowee Park
11:00AM - 6:00PM
Spectator Admission: $8.00, Children 10 & Under -$5.00. For more information call (865) 254-4740

Saturday, August 27 & Sunday August 28
Pro Wakeboard Tour
Volunteer Landing
Sat: 8:00AM - 8:00PM; Sun: 9:00AM -5:00PM
Pro wakeboard competition & vendor displays

Thanks for your interest in all things related to Cumberland Avenue. Have a safe and fun weekend.

August 22nd Update

2011-08-22T16:54:00.001-04:00

KUB Update

August 22, 2011

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)
Re: Traffic Advisory – Road Closure for Utility Construction

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closure [August 23] – KUB will close the eastbound curbside lane of traffic on a section of Cumberland Avenue between S. Twenty First Street and Mountcastle Street from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. on Tuesday, August 23, for water system repairs. One eastbound lane and both westbound lanes will remain open on this section of Cumberland Avenue during this period.

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 this location to assist motorists traveling in the areas. Due to the ongoing presence of workers and equipment, motorists are advised to use extreme caution and expect temporary delays in this area.

Effective July 1, Tennessee’s Move Over Law requires motorists approaching a utility vehicle with flashing lights to move over if safe to do so, creating an empty lane buffer. When changing lanes is not possible, motorists must reduce speed.

August 12, 2011

2011-08-12T15:11:00.005-04:00

University of Tennessee Update

Welcome to all students! Classes start on Wednesday, August 17th - here's to a safe and productive school year.

The UTPD organized safety event "See Something. Say Something." was a great success with more than 40 participants from UTPD, KPD and neighborhood stakeholders. The volunteers were able to talk to more than 400 residents in Fort Sanders and provided an additional 550 plus packets of information to housing units. That's more than a 1,000 residents that received a warm welcome to the neighborhood and needed safety information. Several of the students and residents I talked with were very appreciative of the visit and information.

For more about the event, visit the local news coverage:
News Sentinel Article
WBIR
WATE

Knoxville Area Transit (KAT) Update

Effective Monday, August 15, the new trolley routes, which were approved by the Knoxville Transportation Authority (KTA) board earlier this year, will take effect.
New Trolley Routes

Downtown Loop: runs Monday-Friday, 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Downtown Loop extension (providing service to Summit Towers) runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Every 10 minutes)

Gay Street Line: runs Monday-Thursday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Fridays, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. (Every 10 minutes)

Vol Line: runs Monday-Thursday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Fridays, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. (Every 10 minutes weekdays before 6 p.m.; every 15 minutes after 6 p.m. and on Saturdays)

Trolleys do not run on holidays or on Saturdays when there is a UT home football game. The trolley service operates fare-free. For more information visit KAT's website here for a Trolley Route Map visist here.

Weekend Events

Friday, August 12

Shakespeare on the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Shakespeare on the Square presents "Othello"

Saturday, August 13

Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts
Saturday, August 13

Irish Fest on the Hill
Immaculate Conception Church - 414 W. Vine Ave.
1:00PM - 9:00PM
The 4th Annual Irish Fest on the Hill will be at Immaculate Conception Church on Saturday, featuring Kids Crafts & Activities, Live Irish Music, Irish Beer & Food, Irish Dancers from the Drake School of Dance and the Celtic Canine Parade.

Christenberry Block Party
Christenberry Ball Fields
5:00PM - 8:00PM
Neighborhood block party to support Christenberry community; celebration of book drive & back-to-schooll music, food, games, art, storytelling.

HKRG vs. Montgomery Roller Girls
Civic Coliseum
6:00PM
For tickets contact the ticket office at 215-8999.

Shakespeare in the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Shakespeare on the Square, final show of "The Comedy of Errors"

Sunday, August 14

Shakespeare on the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Shakespeare on the Square, final show of "Othello"

Thanks for your interest in all things related to Cumberland Avenue. Have a safe and fun filled weekend!

August 5th Update

2011-08-05T11:15:00.006-04:00

Knoxville Area Transit (KAT) Trolley Update

As a reminder, the trolley routes will be changing on Monday, August 15, 2011. The new Vol Line will travel from downtown to 17th Street. Effective with this change, there will be no trolley service on Cumberland west of 17th Street. However, trolley service will begin operation on Saturdays, as well as on Friday and Saturday evenings until 10:00 p.m. For information on the new routes, visit KAT's website here.

CAMA Update

The regular monthly meeting for the Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association was held at Goal Post Tavern at 3:00 pm on Wendesday August 3. There was a bit of confusion about the start time of the meeting and it was discussed that future meetings would start at 3:00 pm on the first Wednesday of the month.

The merchants welcomed a new KPD liaison, Officer Frank Ramsey, who is a 20 year plus veteran of the police force. Officer Ramsey provided an update on the district over the last month and mentioned that KPD is starting a new online service with www.raidsonline.com which will allow public access to crime maps for the city. A request was made for KPD to increase patrol on metered parking during the day as a new school year is about to start and it would be a helpful reminder to students and visitors using the district's on street parking.

Corporal Cedric Roach with UTPD was provided an update to the merchants on UTPD's efforts to encourage students to "See Something. Say Something." This campaign will kick off with an outreach to students in the Fort Sanders Neighborhood on Tuesday, August 9th. Volunteers and UTPD staff will provide resource information to students in the form of a handbill and magnet, as well as online resources. The event starts at 10 am and is scheduled to last 2-3 hours. If interested in volunteering for this event, please contact Lt. Emily Simerly 865.974.0163.

City staff provided an update on the Cumberland Avenue Corridor project. A draft of the form code has just been received from Code Studio and will be the subject of a public meeting after staff review. The streetscape project continues to progress through the TDOT right of way process, and as the details of this process have evolved, the city recognizes that it is very doubtful that the project will be ready for construction in 2012. An update was also given to the merchants regarding the KAT Trolley changes taking place on August 15.

Additionally, staff from the Metro Pulse were on hand to discuss marketing opportunities for the district and individual businesses. If anyone is interested in this opportunity, please contact Tiffany Higgins, Account Executive, at higginst@metropulse.com.

For more information about CAMA visit here.

Weekend Events - there are a lot of great events all over town this weekend!

Friday, August 5
Shakespeare On the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Shakespeare on the Square presents "The Comedy of Errors"

Lonsdale Homecoming
Sam Hill School
6:00PM
3 day event with vendors, parade, city and county officials, old timers dinner and gospel program on Sunday evening.

Saturday, August 6
Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts.
Saturday, August 6

Shakespeare On the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Shakespeare on the Square presents "Othello"

1st Annual Everything Wheels Expo
Chilhowee Park Grounds (Park Side)
Sat: 10:00AM - 6:00PM
Sun: 10:00AM - 4:00PM

Tour de Fleur Wildflower Walks
Ten Mile Creek Greenway / Will Skelton Greenway
Time Varies
Walk the greenways with a nature guide discussing the wildflowers that have been identified with markers. Event is free and open to the public. The highlight of this walking series will be the sunflower fields at Will Skelton Greenway.

Opening of the Bethel Cemetery Civil War Museum
Bethel Cemetery - 1917 Bethel Ave
10:00AM - 4:00PM
Opening of a Civil War Museum at the site of the Bethel Cemetery.

Sunday, August 7
Shakespeare On the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Shakespeare on the Square presents "The Comedy of Errors"

Sports Car Club of America
Chilhowee Grounds - Zoo parking lot
11:00AM - 3:00PM

Thanks for your continued interest in all things related to Cumberland Avenue. Have a safe and fun weekend!

July 29th Update

2011-07-29T11:08:00.005-04:00

University of Tennessee Update

Its hard to believe, but 2011-12 classes start at UTK in less than a month on Wednesday, August 17th. The University of TN Police Department is coordinating a Welcome to UT Safety Campaign targeting students living in the Fort Sanders area.

On August 9, 2011, UTPD and UT Community Partners will participate in a door to door information sharing event targeting UT students. The focus of the year’s campaign will be ‘See Something. Say Something.’ During this brief educational interaction, we will provide resource information in the form of a handbill and magnet. Further information will be available to students via the internet. This one on one event is an excellent opportunity for UT Stakeholders to interact with students in a positive environment. This program lets UT students living in Fort Sanders know that the University cares about them having a safe, successful year and opens the door for communications.

The event starts at 10 am and is scheduled to last 2-3 hours. If interested in volunteering for this event, please contact Lt. Emily Simerly 865.974.0163 .

CAMA Update

Reminder that the next monthly meeting of the Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) is scheduled for Wednesday August 3 at 3:00 pm at the Goal Post Tavern. For more information about CAMA visit here.

Additionally, the City of Knoxville has received word that McDonald's restaurant on Cumberland Avenue has closed earlier this week for major renovations. A date for reopening has not been set yet, but we look forward to the new and improved aesthetics for this location.

Cumberland Ave. Corridor Plan Update

Work continues on the detailed plans for the streetscape project. New information from KUB has been provided to our consultants regarding the electrical systems based on the new substation that is being constructed on Dale Avenue. This substation will be providing power to the University, Ft. Sanders Neighborhood, the hospitals and the corridor. This information will be incorporated into the Right of Way plans that are being prepared for submission to TDOT.

Weekend Events

Friday, July 29
Shakespeare on the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Shakespeare on the Square performing "Othello"

Saturday, July 30
Market Square Farmers Market
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts.

City Wide Block Party
2400 Block of Martin Luther King Jr. Ave
5:00PM - 9:00PM
block party hosted by Eternal Life Harvest Center in Five Points this weekend.

Shakespeare on the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Shakespeare on the Square performing "The Comedy of Errors"

Victorious Living Ministries 1st Annual Street Dreams Bike Festival
2945 Wilson Ave, Claude Walker Ball Field
10:45AM
To use motorcycles as a way in promoting good citizenship inspire others to overcome their problems with advice and resources of people who understand and may have gone through the same things, but most of all to have a good time and show the great benefits of living in East TN. Contact Elroy Wilson at 865-522-2391 for more information.

Sunday, July 31
Shakespeare on the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Shakespeare on the Square performing "Othello"

Thanks for your interest in everything associated with Cumberland Ave. Have a safe and fun weekend.

July 1st Update

2011-07-01T16:27:00.000-04:00

Greetings! Happy Independence Day Weekend!
Work continues to progress on the right-of-way plans (ROW) for the Cumberland Avenue Streetscape project with our partners in the Engineering Department, Law Department, and our team of consultants. We anticipate having a public meeting to review the ROW plans towards the end of summer and will notify property owners and the public when a date is set for that meeting. Additionally, the urban design plan and streetscape plan were highlighted in an article on WBIR this week in conjunction with the McDonald's renovation project that will be starting soon, that information is available here.

CAMA Update

Reminder that the next monthly meeting of the Cumberland Merchants Association is scheduled for Wednesday July 6 at 3:00pm at the Goal Post Tavern. For more information about CAMA visit here.

Weekend Events

Saturday, July 2
Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts.

Saturday July 2 - 4
Salute to Service Members
Knoxville Zoo
9:30AM - 4:30PM
Knoxville Zoo honors service men and women on independence day by honoring them with free admission during the salute to service weekend on Saturday, July 2 - July 4th.

Monday, July 4
Festival on the Fourth
World's Fair Park
2:00PM - 10:00PM
The Festival on the Fourth promises once again to deliver a wide variety of family fun including entertainment, activities and treats at the City of Knoxville's Fourth of July celebration. For more information visit http://www.cityofknoxville.org/events/4th/default.asp

Tuesday, July 5
Jazz on the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Jazz Quintet performance each Tuesday evening.

As always, thanks for your continued interest in all things involving Cumberland Avenue - have a safe and fun filled weekend.

June 2nd Update

2011-06-02T14:57:00.000-04:00

KUB Updates

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory – Alternating lane closures for utility construction (weather permitting)
Dale Avenue Alternating Lane Closures [June 4 – 12] -

Beginning Saturday, June 4, and lasting until the following weekend, Knoxville Utilities Board and its contractors will intermittently close alternating lanes on a section of Dale Avenue between address 621 Dale Avenue and the N. Seventeenth Street intersection daily from 6 a.m. - 9 p.m. as part of construction activities at the new KUB electric substation located at 410 Dale Avenue.

Access to N. Seventeenth Street will not be affected as the contractor will keep one of the three affected lanes on Dale Avenue open at all times during this period. All lanes on this section of Dale Avenue will be reopened to traffic overnight during this period. The new substation at this location will serve as a source of electricity for the growing University of Tennessee campus and improve service and reliability to hospitals, businesses, and residences in the Fort Sanders
area. The overall project is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2011, weather permitting.

Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane Closures for Utility Work [All closures and work are weather permitting]
Neyland Drive Lane Closures [June 03] –

KUB’s contractor will temporarily close the eastbound curbside lane on a section of Neyland Drive between Leinard Lane and Lake Loudon Boulevard from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. on Friday, June 3, in order to install a sign on the river bank. The Third Creek Greenway will remain open behind the work zone.

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.

CAMA Update

On Wednesday, June 1st, at the Goal Post Tavern (formerly OCI) the Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association used its regularly monthly meeting to host a Candidate Walk for all interested candidates seeking a seat for Mayor or City Council. The itinerary included a meet & greet opportunity, a presentation by city staff of the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project, and a walking tour of the area. Additionally, representatives from McDonald's on Cumberland Avenue shared their plans for a major renovation that is scheduled to start later this month. Several candidates and merchants participated and enjoyed a very warm walk!

For more information about the event and to keep up with CAMA please visit their blog here.

Weekend Events

Thursday, June 2
Sundown in the City
Market Square
6:00PM - 10:00PM
Free concert featuring Jonny Lang and Megan McCormick

Friday, June 3
City People Downtown Dash
Downtown Knoxville
Registration: 6:00PM
Race: 7:00PM
The City People Downtown Dash is designed for the elite and recreational runners/walkers. A one mile run downtown -supporting efforts to improve the health, vitality and development of Knoxville's Center City! http://www.citypeople.org/

First Friday
Market Square, 100 Block of Gay St., and various Art Venues
5:00PM - 10:00PM
http://knoxvillefirstfriday.com/

Saturday, June 4
Market Square Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts.

Salute to Service
Island Home Airport, 2701 Spence Place, Knoxville, TN
10:00AM - 1:00PM
Service Commemorating the 67th Anniversary of D-Day

There are a lot of great events this weekend, hope you can get out and enjoy! As always thanks for your interest in everything involving Cumberland Avenue. Have a safe and fun weekend.

May 13th Update

2011-05-13T16:13:00.001-04:00

Greetings and congratulations to all graduates from the University of Tennessee! Today is the last day of graduation ceremonies. Things should be settling down to their summer time lull on the corridor, feel free to take advantage of the additional parking and support our businesses along the corridor.

As promised the notes from the quarterly Fort Sanders Stakeholder meeting are available here or under the links section of this page.

Weekend Events

Tonight! Friday, May 13
Symphony on the Square
Market Square
7:00PM
Free Family Fun!! KSO will present a short concert of light classics and pop tunes suitable for the outdoor venue. Rain date will be Saturday, May 14.

Saturday, May 14
2011 Run for Clean Air
Sequoyah Hills Park
7:30AM Registration
Race: 9:00AM
Community event centered around a 5k (3.1mi) run/walk to raise awareness for work that is ongoing to keep East TN's air clean.

Saturday, May 14
Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts.

Sunday, May 15
Revolution 3 Triathlon
Volunteer Landing
7:00AM - 4:00PM
Swim/Bike/Run Triathlon from Knoxville out to Blount Co. and back

May 6th Update

2011-05-06T13:41:00.000-04:00

Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Meeting Update

Thanks to everyone who attended our quarterly meeting at Fort Sanders Regional Hospital. The main focus of the meeting was an opportunity for stakeholders to provide updates and to have discussions about on going projects in the area. I will compile and post notes from the meeting next week.

We would also like to give a big thank you to Julie Doughtery and the staff at Fort Sanders Regional for providing meeting space, snacks and a great tour of the new Center for Advanced Medicine (CAM). The new medical office building officially opened in March of this year, but tenants are still moving in and finishing out office spaces. It is a great new facility and is directly connected to the existing hospital building and parking garage on Laurel Avenue. Below are some pictures from the tour - enjoy!

Looking out at the new entrance off of Clinch Avenue.

Center for Advanced Medicine, welcome desk

On the tour between the existing and new facility.

The new vestibule at the CAM.

The new Emergency Department loading/unloading area.

CAMA Update

The Cumberland Avenue Merchant's Association held their regular monthly meeting on Wednesday, May 4th at 3:00 pm in the new location of Old College Inn, 1820 Cumberland Avenue. The meeting was well attended and there were a number of updates from the merchants, KPD, UTPD, and the city.

KPD continued to note vandalism and thefts from motor vehicles which are crimes of opportunity. Please be sure to keep valuables out of sight and lock your doors.

UTPD announced their upcoming Memorial Golf Tournament on May 20th. For more information, please visit: http://www.utpolice.org/.

The Cumberland Avenue Corridor Streetscape report included information about the TDOT Right of Way (ROW) phase of the project. The consultants are continuing with detailed drawings for the ROW phase of the project. Property owners and tenants can expect to be contacted by the city or its representatives regarding temporary construction easements sometime this summer or fall. These easements would be to allow the city’s contractor to access private property in order to construct the project (for things like driveway tie-ins, utility tie-ins, equipment, etc.).

Additionally, the Merchants Association discussed having a Candidate Walk for Mayoral and City Council Candidates this summer. Keep an eye on their blog at http://cumberlandcorridor.blogspot.com/ for more information.

UT Update

Don't forget final exams wrap up on Monday, May 9th and Graduation Ceremonies run May 11th - 13th. Congratulations to all UT Graduates!

Weekend Events

Friday May 6 - Sunday, May 8
NSRA Street Rod Nationals South
Jacob Building
Friday & Saturday: 8:00AM - 5:00PM
Sunday: 8:30AM - 2:00PM

Friday, May 6 -27
Art Source
UT Gallery at 106 S. Gay Street
Wed - Fri: 11:00AM - 6:00PM
Sat: 10:00AM - 3:00PM

Saturday, May 7
Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts

Saturday, May 7
Vestival: The South Knoxville Art Heritage
4450 Candoro Ave.
11:00AM
The 11th Annual "VESTIVAL" The South Knoxville Art and Hertiage Festival features 2 stages of live music, performing artisit, entertainment, food and arts, crafts and vendors as well as children's activities. Suggested donation is $5.00 and all proceeds go to the continued restoration and care of the building. join us for a Mother's brunch at 11:00 am, Mother's free!

Thanks for your continued interest in all things connected to Cumberland Avenue. Have a safe and fun weekend!

April 29th Update

2011-04-29T16:58:00.000-04:00

Quarterly Fort Sanders Stakeholder Meeting

What: Fort Sanders Stakeholders Meeting
When: Thursday, May 5, 2011 at 4:30 p.m.
Where: Classroom 1, Fort Sanders Regional Hospital, 1819 Clinch Avenue. Please enter the hospital via the red canopy on Clinch. Signs will direct you to the Classroom.
Who: Anyone with an interest in the long range planning of Fort Sanders Neighborhood and surrounding areas.
Parking: Is available in the garage adjacent to Thompson Cancer Center at the corner of Clinch Avenue and 19th Street. Please bring your pass to the meeting and parking will be validated by Ft. Sanders Staff.

The purpose of the meeting will be to continue communication between the stakeholders in the Fort Sanders Neighborhood and to tour the new Center for Advanced Medicine at Fort Sanders Regional Hospital. This meeting is open to the public.

UT Update
Today is the last day of classes for the 2010-2011 Academic Year. Congratulations to the students for finishing classes! Best of luck with final exams, May 3-9. Graduation ceremonies will take place May 11-13.

Weekend Events

Friday, April 29
Dogwood Mile
Market Square, Gay St. & Wall Ave.
Kids Run: 6PM
1 Mile Run: 8:30PM
Walk, job or sprint through the streets of downtown Knoxville in this family friendly race.

Dogwood Arts Parade
Gay Street
7:00PM
A living breathing celebration of art, nature and community floating down Gay Street.

Saturday, April 30
Dogwood Classic 5K Run/Walk
Cherokee Blvd.
8:00AM
5K Run/Walk to celebrate the Dogwood season

Farmers Market
Market Square and Market Street
9:00AM - 2:00PM
Locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally made artisan foods & crafts

Chalk Walk
Market Square, Krutch Park and Krutch Park Extension
8:00AM - 5:00PM
Family Friendly Fun! Downtown sidewalks become the canvas for professional & student artists during this street painting festival. www.dogwoodarts.com

I hope everyone survived the severe weather this week and can enjoy the beautiful weekend ahead. Be safe and have fun. As always, thank you for your interest in all things related to Cumberland Avenue.

April 19th Update

2011-04-15T16:23:00.000-04:00

University of Tennessee Master Plan

The University of Tennessee at Knoxville announced on Friday, April 15th that they will hold a public meeting about the campus Master Plan. The public meeting will be for the community to review the draft master plan for the Knoxville and agricultural campuses. The meeting is set for 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, April 21, at the UT Visitors’ Center. The UT Visitors’ Center is located at 2712 Neyland Drive, Knoxville, Tenn., 37996. Parking is available at the center.

This community meeting is part of a series of meetings to get feedback on the draft plan. Once finalized, it will be a guide that helps the university pursue its overall goals and make decisions on land usage, placement of buildings and investments in infrastructure.

This new (2011) draft plan is an update to a previous version created in 1994 and updated in 2001.

A key element to moving UT Knoxville from a Top 50 public research university to the ranks of the Top 25 involves having the resources to improve and supplement campus facilities in order to support first-rate academic and research programs, along with student housing and services.

For more information about the master plan, visit http://www.utk.edu/masterplan/ or click here.

KUB Update

In a letter dated April 14, 2011 KUB announced that, "As part of ongoing efforts to provide improved utility services to our customers, KUB will soon begin a project to replace commercial/industrial electric meters throughout portions of the University of Tennessee campus and Fort Sanders neighborhood with advanced metering infrastructure that will allow for automated meter reading. KUB will also be placing communication devices on existing natural gas and water meters in the area at the same time".

This project is scheduled to being in the next two (2) weeks. KUB representatives will be contacting impacted companies at least three (3) days in advance of work on their property to coordinate meter exchange. There will be no extra charge on your bill as a result of the meter exchange and it will enhance KUB's meter reading efficiencies, reduce access issues, and help keep rates as low as possible.

If you have any questions regarding this process, feel free to contact a Customer Service Representative at 865.524.2911.

Thanks for your continued interest in all things connected to Cumberland Avenue, I hope to see many of you at the Master Plan Public meeting on Thursday. Have a great week.

April 8th Update

2011-04-08T16:40:00.001-04:00

Greetings! I hope everyone is enjoying the spring time weather. This has been another busy week.

CAMA Meeting Update

The April CAMA meeting was well attended at the new location of OCI (1820 Cumberland Avenue) and thanks to Mike Clark for hosting and providing snacks after a busy weekend moving. There were a number of regular attendees and some folks who were back after a hiatus, we were glad to see the General Managers of the Half Barrel, Buffalo Wild Wings and Tin Roof especially!

City Engineering provided an update on their traffic study regarding the Alcoa Highway interchange and the Metron Center Way intersection and it looks like additional study will need to be done prior to making changes. Policy and Communications offered updates on the Streetscape project which is proceeding with detail design and the Urban Design plan or form based code which is being reviewed independently. KPD also provided an update that showed a number of thefts from motor vehicles. These are typcially crimes of opportunity and we would encourage students, employees, guests and residents to make sure to remove valuables from sight and to lock your vehicles.

Additionally, if your business has promotions or information to share please be sure to visit the Merchants Association Blog over at http://cumberlandcorridor.blogspot.com/. Ana Richters, CAMA intern, is doing a great job, but can always use new information.

Weekend Events
Saturday, April 9

Rossini Festival Italian Street Fair
Gay Street 11:00AM - 10:00PM Rossini Festival Italian Street Fair. Entertainment, arts & crafts, food and beverage.

Bikes 'N Blooms
Ijams Nature Center - Island Home 10:00AM Experience the Dogwood Trails the lean green way - on a bicycle by-way of an organized or self-guided ride. Starting at Ijams Nature Center, we will use the greenways to get to Island Home, tour the neighborhood and return to Ijams. The route is less than 5 miles long and biking through Island Home Neighborhood. www.dogwoodarts.com

International Dance Challenge
Knoxville Civic Auditorium
9:00AM
Contact 215-8999

I hope you have a safe and fun weekend!

April 1st Update

2011-04-01T14:25:00.000-04:00

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!

March 11th Update

2011-03-11T15:11:00.000-05:00

The big news on the Cumberland Corridor this week came from Mike Clark's announcement in the Knoxville News Sentinel about the Old College Inn (OCI) making a move eastward towards the center of the district. For more information see Carly Harrington's article here. Bob Whetsel and I were on the corridor today discussing detail design elements and had a chance to drop in at OCI's for lunch. We wish OCI's and Mike Clark all the best in their new venture and want to give everyone a head's up that next month's Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) meeting may be in another location. We will keep you posted or you can find more information at the CAMA Blog.

This weekend also starts Spring Break for UT and Knox County Schools! We hope everyone has a safe and fun filled week. Just a friendly reminder to make sure to protect your residence and vehicles while traveling by removing valuables from sight and locking your doors.

Weekend Events
Saturday, March 12
Be Great Run 8 Event - 8K Run & 2 Mile Walk
Tyson Park
Registration: 7:00AM
Race: 9:00AM
8K Run & 2 Mile Walk benefitting the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tennessee Valley.

KSO "John Denver"
Knoxville Civic Auditorium
8:00PM
Contact the Ticket Office at 215-8999

Thanks for your interest in all things relating to Cumberland Avenue. Enjoy the weekend!

March 4th Update

2011-03-04T15:22:00.000-05:00

KUB Update

KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory – Area Lane Closures for Utility Work [All work weather permitting]

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closure [March 7] – KUB will close the westbound curbside lane of traffic on a section of Cumberland Avenue between Twenty Second Street and Volunteer Boulevard from 4 – 7 a.m. on Monday, March 7, as work is completed on the water distribution system in this area. One westbound lane, the center turn lane, and both eastbound lanes will remain open on this section of Cumberland Avenue during this period. Tuesday, March 8, will be used as the rain date, if necessary.

Some listed closures may extend beyond the scheduled times depending on the conditions encountered during excavation and construction.

CAMA Update
The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association met for their regular monthly meeting on Wednesday, March 2 at the Old College Inn. As always, the Knoxville Police Department provided an update on activity within the district and noted that there was reduced activity during the last month. Officer Varner wanted to remind everyone, especially students, that most vehicle break-ins occur as a crime of opportunity (i.e. if something of value is in sight). Be sure to keep valuables out of site and doors locked. The city provided updates on the Cumberland Avenue Streetscape, Form Code, Fort Sanders Stakeholder process, coordination for future construction projects in the area, and the Henley Street Bridge project. For more information about the meeting or merchants association, please visit their blog at http://cumberlandcorridor.blogspot.com/.

Weekend Events
Tonight, First Friday, Downtown Knoxville, for more information visit: http://knoxvillefirstfriday.com/wp/

Saturday, March 5
4th Annual Mardi Growl
Downtown Dog Park / Market Square
Parade @ 11:00am, Line-up at corner of Summit Hill Drive & Central Avenue
Festival on Market Square @ 12:00pm
Family Friendly Fun Rain or Shine!! Knoxville's largest costume dog parade and festival with Mardi Gras themed food, jazz music, animal rescue groups & other pet related organizations. Knoxville is quickly becoming the "pet friendliest community" in the nation.

City of Knoxville Step Show
Knoxville Civic Auditorium
7:00pm
For tickets call 215-8999

As always, thank you for your interest in Cumberland Avenue, I hope you have a safe and enjoyable weekend!

February 11th Update

2011-02-11T16:15:00.000-05:00

Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project
We are pleased to announce that the city of Knoxville received notice today that the preliminary plans submitted to TDOT for the Cumberland Avenue Streetscape project have been approved! We greatly appreciate TDOT's timely review and response to this request. The next step in the project will involve certifying right-of-way and finalizing details for the design before construction documents are created. Additionally, we will be hosting public meetings this spring or summer to discuss project details and construction sequencing before the project is let for bid.

Fort Sanders Stakeholders Meeting
The minutes from the Fort Sanders Stakeholder Meeting on February 3rd are now available in the Links section of the Blog or you can access them by clicking here.
If you see any additions or corrections, please contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.
Thanks again to all those who participated; it has been great to keep the dialogue going!

Weekend Events
Friday February 11-13, 2011
House & Garden Show
Dogwood Arts Festival
Knoxville Convention Center
Fri & Sat: 10 am to 8 pm
Sun: 11 am to 5 pm
Provides home owners, do it yourselfers and gardening enthusiasts a unique market place to shop, compare and save on a total selection of home and garden related products and services. http://www.dogwoodarts.com/

Saturday February 12, 2011
UT Sing All
Knoxville Auditorium
7:00 p.m.

Saturday February 12, 2011
Ice Bears vs. Augusta
Knoxville Civic Coliseum
7:30 p.m.

Saturday February 12, 2011
Job Fair at Knoxville Zoo
Knoxville Zoo
9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Knoxville Zoo is looking for a friendly and energetic people at their annual job fair.
For more information please visit http://www.knoxville-zoo.org/.

Have a safe and great weekend. Thanks for your continued interest in all things that relate to Cumberland Ave and Happy Valentines Day!

Februrary 4th Update

2011-02-04T16:52:00.000-05:00

Fort Sanders Stakeholders Meeting

Thanks to everyone who attended yesterday's quarterly stakeholder meeting at the UT Visitors' Center. We had great attendance for our first meeting of the year. I will prepare and post minutes from the meeting some time next week, but a brief summary of the meeting is that we discussed the draft district plan and decided that a separate meeting should be held to discuss what neighborhood conservation overlays are and are not; the city provided an update on the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Streetscape project and the ability to move the overhead utility line underground; several other stakeholders provided updates and Knox Heritage announced an open house for their Green house (see below for details). Additionally, Josh Flory from the News Sentinel's Property Scope Blog attended and wrote an article about the meeting which is available here.

CAMA Meeting

The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association held their monthly meeting on Wednesday, February 2nd at 3:00pm in the Old College Inn. Thanks to Mike Clark, CAMA President, for hosting the group. Several merchants turned out for the meeting and discussed items relating to business and traffic on the corridor. One major announcement from the group was that McDonald's has announced their plans for renovations starting May 1st of this year and reopening August 1st!

Weekend Events

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

Ice Bears are in town this weekend and play Huntsville at the Civic Coliseum on Saturday evening at 7:30 for more information call 215-8999.

Sunday, February 12th Knox Heritage hosts its open house for the Green House from 11:00 -1:00 for more information visit www.knoxheritage.org

As always, have a safe and fun weekend. Thanks for your continued interest in Cumberland Avenue!

January 25th Update

2011-01-25T16:24:00.000-05:00

Cumberland Avenue Streetscape Project

The City of Knoxville is pleased to announce that based on public comment, budget numbers and preliminary plans we will be able to put overhead electrical transmission lines underground, rather than moving them into the alleys bordering Cumberland, when construction beings on the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project.

For more information please view the City's press release here. If you have any questions or comments feel free to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

January 24th Update

2011-01-24T14:54:00.000-05:00

KAT Update:
The downtown trolley system serves a variety of needs including connecting UT to downtown; connecting visitors from hotels to the convention center; connecting outlying parking to downtown employment; and connecting Knoxville Station to downtown. KAT hopes to determine the best way to serve these needs given the continuing growth and change to the downtown area.

KAT is continuing to gather public input on the downtown trolley system. The second of two public meetings will be held on Tuesday, January 25th at 5:30 p.m. in the Market House room of the Chamber Partnership offices on Market Square. The public is encouraged to attend and provide input.

For those unable to attend one of these meetings, comments can also be made by calling KAT (865.637.3000), or via the "contact" section of our website, www.katbus.com. Written comments can also be sent to KAT Trolley Input, 301 Church Avenue, Knoxville TN 37915.

CAMA Update
The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) has worked over the last several months to obtain an intern who can assist them with marketing, social media, and information distribution especially as the streetscape project is forthcoming. Ana Richters, a Junior, in Communications Studies at the University of Tennessee has been selected by the organization to fill this role. Ms. Richters started attending the monthly Merchants Association Meetings in December and has recently started a blog on behalf of CAMA. You can view the CAMA Blog here or look for the link on the right hand side of this page.

Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Meeting
The next regularly scheduled stakeholder meeting for the Ft. Sanders District is scheduled for Thursday, February 3rd at 4:30 pm in the University's Visitors' Center at 2704 Kingston Pike. The purpose of the meeting will be to continue communication between the stakeholders in the Fort Sanders Neighborhood including small businesses, residents, the City of Knoxville and organizations like Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center and the University of Tennessee. This meeting is open to the public and everyone is welcome to attend.

January 14th Update

2011-01-14T14:10:00.000-05:00

Greetings and Happy New Year to all!

Our consultants at Vaughn & Melton shared an article regarding the City of Chicago's road diet for Lawrence Avenue which has similarities to the proposal for Cumberland Avenue. Check out the articles here and here. Below are photos of the Lawrence Avenue street conditions.

Existing streetscape conditions on Lawrence Ave. east of Western. Photo courtesy Ald. Eugene Schulter.

(From: Center Square Journal, July 6, 2010)

Proposed streetscape conditions (not finalized) on Lawrence east of Western. Photo courtesy Ald. Eugene Schulter

(From: Center Square Journal, July 6, 2010)

The Cumberland Avenue Corridor project is continuing with detail design work and preliminary plans.

Weekend Opportunities

Saturday January 15, 2011

17th Annual Eskimo Escapades
Volunteer Landing
9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m

YWCA Race Against Racism 5K & 1 Mile Walk
YWCA Phyllis Wheatley Center
Registration: 11:30 am
Race: 1 pm
5 K Run / 1 Mile Walk to Celebrate Diversity.

Sunday January 16, 2011

MLK "A Night with the Arts"
Bijou Theatre
6:00 PM
Performances by A Night with the Arts Tribute, Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, Knoxville Opera and the MLK Choir.

Monday January 17, 2011

Martin Luther King, Jr. Parade
MLK Blvd.
10:00 AM
Annual Parade starting at Tabernacle Baptist Church and concluding at Great Warner AME Zion Church

Thanks for your continued interest! Have a safe and fun weekend and here's to a prosperous 2011!

December 30th Update

2010-12-30T15:12:00.000-05:00

KUB Update

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane Closure for Utility Work

Neyland Drive Lane Closures Extended [January 3-7 – Weather Permitting] – KUB and its contractor will extend the lane closures on a section of Neyland Drive between Lake Loudoun Boulevard and Leinard Lane to January 3-7. The lane closures will be in effect in this area daily from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. as wastewater system construction continues. One eastbound and one westbound lane of Neyland Drive will remain open at all times during this period. All lanes will be reopened to traffic overnight, and for the morning and evening commutes.

Some utility-related closures may extend beyond the scheduled times, depending on conditions encountered during excavation and construction. Appropriate traffic control measures 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.

Hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year! Don't forget First Night, tomorrow, December 31st in the downtown area, for more information visit: http://www.firstnightknoxville.com/.

December 24th Update

2010-12-24T10:10:00.000-05:00

KUB Update

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory - Lane and Road Closures for Utility Work

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closure (December 27-30) - KUB contractor crews will close the westbound curbside lane of traffic on a section of Cumberland Avenue at the James Agee Street intersection daily from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m., December 27-30, as sewer system work is completed. One westbound lane, the center turn lane, and both eastbound lanes will remain open on this section of Cumberland Avenue during this closures. All lanes will be reopened to traffic during overnight periods.

Phillip Fulmer Way Road Closure (December 27-30) - KUB contractor crews will close Phillip Fulmer Way to thru traffic between Cumberland Avenue and Peyton Manning Pass daily from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. December 27-30, as sewer system work is completed. All lanes will be reopened to traffic during overnight periods.

Some utility-related closures may extend beyond the scheduled times, depending on conditions encountered during construction and excavation. Due to the ongoing presence of workers and equipment, motorists are advised to use extreme caution and expect temporary delays in these areas.

December 10th Update

2010-12-10T16:27:00.000-05:00

Blog Update
The Cumberland Connection Blog is working with the Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) to promote and prepare businesses for the upcoming streetscape project. While construction is several months away, the merchants are investigating new opportunities (including an intern and possible web presence) to promote and bring business to the district. To that end, the City is offering to post links to business websites on this blog. You'll find those links on the right hand side of the page and thanks to Debbie Billings of Graphic Creations for being the first to submit a website link! If you would like to add your business, simply contact me, Anne Wallace, at awallace@cityofknoxville.org and include your business name and web address.

KUB Update
From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)
Re: Traffic Advisory – Road Closure for Utility Work (weather permitting)

Caledonia Avenue Road Closure – KUB contractor crews will close a section of Caledonia Avenue, between Twentieth Street and Volunteer Boulevard, daily from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. on Friday, December 10, and Monday, December 13, in association with ongoing sewer system construction work in the area. This section of Caledonia Avenue will be reopened to traffic overnight and
throughout the weekend.

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closure [December 13] – KUB contractor crews will close the westbound curbside lane of traffic on a section of Cumberland Avenue at the James Agee Street intersection from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. on Monday, December 13, as sewer system work is completed. One westbound lane, the center turn lane, and both eastbound lanes will remain open on
this section of Cumberland Avenue during this closure.

Some utility-related 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 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.

Weekend Opportunities
Friday, December 10th
Comcast Christmas at Chilhowee Park
Chilhowee Park Grounds
6 pm to 9 pm
Annual Holiday event, FREE!! Family Friendly Fun!! Visit a winter wonderland at Chilhowee Park. Music, Food, Santa Claus photos, Horse drawn carriage rides thru the park's Christmas Light Tour, Marshmallow roasting, Caroling, Decorating cookies with Mrs. Claus and more! For more information visit: www.cityofknoxville.org/christmas

Christmas Express Train Rides
Volunteer Landing
Dec. 10 & 11: 10:30 am, 2 pm & 5 pm
Dec. 12: 1 pm & 4 pm
For more information visit: http://www.threeriversrambler.com/

Saturday, December 11th
Market Square Holiday Market
Market Street
11 am to 7 pm
A holiday market featuring locally made crafts and artisan foods.
For more information visit: http://www.knoxvillemarketsquare.com/

Candle Making Workshop at Marble Springs Historic Site
Marble Springs State Historic Farmstead at 1220 West Gov. John Sevier Hwy.
Noon
This hands on workshop will teach visitors about lighting sources on the 18th & 19th centuries. Visitors will learn how to make beeswax candles by the open hearth. Hot drinks & baked goods will be provided. Reservations required by Dec. 5. Fee: $5 donation for cost of materials; Parking is free. For more information visit: http://www.marblesprings.net/

Sunday, December 12th
Nativity Pageant of Knoxville - 42th Annual
Civic Coliseum
Sun: 3 pm
Mon & Tues: 7 pm
FREE no ticket needed. The production features live animals, realistic sets, authentic costumes & an original script told by pantomime drama. For more information visit: http://www.knoxvillenativity.com/

As always, thanks for your continued interest! Have a safe and fun weekend.

December 1st Update

2010-12-01T17:00:00.001-05:00

Ft. Sanders Quarterly Stakeholder Meeting - CANCELED

The Ft. Sanders Quarterly Stakeholder meeting originally scheduled for tomorrow, December 2 at 4:30 pm has been canceled due to a lack of agenda items. The City will reconvene the Stakeholder Group for our quarterly meetings on Thursday, February 3, 2011 at 4:30 pm in a location to be determined closer to date. Feel free to contact me if you have any agenda items for the February meeting at awallace@cityofknoxville.org. Thank you.

November 19th Update

2010-11-19T11:56:00.000-05:00

Update on City Council 11/11/10 Workshop
Provided by Neighborhood Advisory #103, David Massey, Neighborhood Coordinator

** This meeting was discussed at the last Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Meeting on October 21st and it was suggested that members of the group attend to understand how the City is dealing with absentee landlords and problem properties. The focus of this information is predominately residential properties.**

Knoxville City Council last week conducted a workshop devoted to the challenges posed by vacant and blighted properties - a problem to one degree or another for many if not most neighborhoods in both the city and the county.

Madeline Rogero, director of the Community Development Dept., presented the work of the Vacant Properties Committee, which she chairs. Her presentation was followed by questions and comments from members of Council, responses by various members of the committee, and comments from several neighborhood representatives.

She also noted that the City already employs quite a few tools to deal with problem properties. These include:
** Neighborhood Codes Enforcement and the power of the Better Building Board to declare houses unfit for human habitation or to order that dilapidated houses be torn down.

** Community Development’s programs to rehab houses and build new houses on vacant lots.

** The ability to determine and certify that a property is blighted; to acquire the property (at fair market value) with City Council’s eminent domain powers; and to rehab the property and return it to the private sector via Community Development’s Homemakers Program.

** Issuing proposals for redevelopment of city-owned lots in a way that insures that the winning bidder will actually carry through with promised renovations and return the improved property to the tax rolls.

Rogero then listed 11 separate new tools and strategies that the City is ready to implement or pursue in the near- to mid-term. These include:

** Increased use of Municipal Court by the Neighborhood Codes Enforcement office, and the possibility of imposing increased court penalties for violators of city housing codes.

** Changes to local ordinances to clear up uncertainties and vague language so that codes enforcement can be more effective and can be tougher on repeat offenders.

** Reform of property tax foreclosure laws so that properties taken to tax sale do not end up with uninsurable title, which is a roadblock to obtaining loans for redevelopment.

** Better tracking of all available data on problem properties.

Rogero noted that cities and towns all across the U.S. are facing problems with blighted and vacant properties. Some cities have implemented programs such as home maintenance education, landlord training, vacant property registration, rental property registration and inspections, and public identification of properties and owners that are consistently violating city codes. These tools may or may not be relevant or effective in Knoxville, Rogero noted. “No one size fits all,” she stated.

Rogero concluded by noting that the causes of vacant and blighted properties are complex, as are the solutions. “There is no silver bullet,” she said, no single program or law, that will solve the problem. Knoxville needs stronger disincentives for owners of blighted property. While government has a key role to play, the nonprofit and private sectors are critical to success, she noted.

Formed in mid-2009, the Vacant Properties Committee is composed of representatives from various city and county departments, the Knox County Trustee’s Office, KCDC (Knoxville’s Community Development Corp.), Metropolitan Planning Commission (MPC), and the Council of Involved Neighborhoods (COIN).

Rogero’s Power Point slides are available on the City’s Website, here.

For questions or information about the committee or the work that it is doing, contact David Massey, neighborhoods coordinator, at 215-3232 or dmassey@cityofknoxville.org.

Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project

The City of Knoxville is still taking comments regarding the November 9, 2010 public meeting for the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project. All comments should be submitted by close of business on Tuesday, November 23, 2010 and can be sent via e-mail to Anne Wallace at awallace@cityofknoxville.org. The meeting information is in previous blog posts and in the Links Section of this blog page.

Weekend Opportunities

Knoxville Ice Bears vs. Pensacola Ice Flyers, Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30pm at the Knoxville Coliseum, ticket prices vary.

UT Ice Vols vs. LSU, Friday and Saturday nights at 11:00pm (for those with insomnia!), at the Knoxville Coliseum, general admission $5, or $1 with student ID.

Tennessee Volunteers take on the Vanderbilt Commodores in Nashville at 7:30pm. The game will be televised, Go Vols! Be sure to take advantage of the opportunity to visit our Cumberland Avenue merchants!

As always, thanks for your continued interest in all things relating to Cumberland Avenue and the Fort Sanders District. There will be no blog post next Friday due to the Thanksgiving Holiday. I wish you and yours a very blessed and happy Thanksgiving.

November 12th Update

2010-11-12T16:29:00.001-05:00

Project Update
Greetings everyone! Below are some of the images that were presented in the public meeting on Tuesday, November 9th. These are examples of what Cumberland Avenue could look like as we implement the streetscape project.

This image is a plan view of the typical pedestrian corridor diagram. In it you can see the three lane cross section (one west bound, one east bound and a center turn lane) as well as the furnishing zone with trees, benches, bike racks, and lighting which acts as a buffer for pedestrians from vehicular or bike traffic. The red line in this drawing indicates the section line and perspective point for the images below.

This image shows the two cross sections of the street. The top section shows what the typical street section will look like between 17th Street and 22nd Street. The bottow section shows what the street section will look like west of 22nd Street.

This image shows a perspective of what Cumberland Avenue could look like if you were a pedestrian walking down the street (on the north side, facing west bound) after the streetscape project is completed.

Thanks to Carol R. Johnson & Associates' Knoxville office for producing these images. Again if you have comments or suggestions about the public meeting information please e-mail Anne Wallace at awallace@cityofknoxville.org by November 23. The presentation is available here.

KUB Update

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)
Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane Closure for Utility Work

Neyland Drive Lane Closures [November 15-16] – KUB’s contractor will close one westbound lane on a section of Neyland Drive between Lake Loudoun Boulevard and Leinard Lane daily from 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Monday, November 15, and Tuesday, November 16, for wastewater system construction. One westbound lane, the center turn lane, and both eastbound lanes will remain open at all times during this period.

Some utility-related closures may extend beyond the scheduled times, depending on conditions encountered during excavation and construction. Appropriate traffic control measures 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.

Weekend Opportunities

University of Tennessee Volunteers take on Ole Miss rebels here in town for Homecoming!
Day: Saturday
Date:Nov. 13, 2010
Location: Knoxville, Tenn.
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET Be sure to get out and cheer on the Volunteers and support our Cumberland Avenue Merchants!

Visit replicas of Christopher Columbus' ships. For more information, click here.

Kroger Free Day at Knoxville Zoo: Visitors to Knoxville Zoo will enjoy free admission and parking on Kroger Free Day, Saturday,Nov. 13, from 10:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. (Last admissions are one hour before closing at 3:30 p.m.) Kroger Free Day is a way to give back to the community and help other local charities who also make East Tennessee a better place to live, too. Visitors are encouraged to bring a donation for one of the charitable organizations who will be on-site on Kroger Free Day. For more information, click here.

As always, thanks for your interest and have a safe and fun weekend!

November 10th Update

2010-11-10T14:07:00.000-05:00

Thanks to everyone who attended the public meeting last night regarding the Cumberland Avenue Corriodr Project! There was good attendance and great participation in the discussion regarding utilities and the detail design work that has been completed to date.

The presentation for that meeting is available here or in the links section of the blog. Additionally, Hayes Hickman, reported about the meeting in a News Sentinel article available here.

Please send comments or questions about the public meeting or presentation to Anne Wallace at awallace@cityofknoxville.org by close of business on Tuesday, November 23, 2010. City Staff will take these comments into consideration as next steps are determined on the project.

Of course, if there are general questions or comments about the project, feel free to contact me at anytime. I'll continue to keep you posted about the project. Have a great week!

November 5th Update

2010-11-05T09:50:00.000-04:00

Cumberland Avenue Corridor Public Meeting Reminder

Tuesday, November 9, 2010
6:00 pm in Ballrooms A & B
UT’s Visitors’ Center (former Faculty Club)
2704 Kingston Pike (corner of Kingston Pike and Neyland Drive)

This meeting is open to the public and everyone is welcome to attend. City of Knoxville Staff and Project Consultants will give a presentation updating the public on the detail design work of the Streetscape project which will include information about the typical street section, landscape amenities and utility work. If you have any questions, please contact Anne Wallace at awallace@cityofknoxville.org

Weekend Events

Friday November 5, 2010
November's First Friday
Market Square, Gay Street, The Old City & Downtown North
5 pm to 9 pm
Gallery walk that includes the many special performances and holiday themed specials make downtown a hotspot for shopping and entertainment. www.knoxvillemarketsquare.com

Saturday November 6, 2010
Hockey - Knoxville Ice Bears vs. Columbus Cottonmouths
Civic Coliseum
7:30 pm
www.knoxvillecoliseum.com

Saturday November 6, 2010
UT Football vs. Memphis
Memphis, TN
8:00 pm
Go Vols!

Sunday November 7, 2010
ETN Chili Cook Off
World's Fair Park - Festival Lawn
7 am to 7 pm
Chili Cook-Off

Have a great and safe weekend, hope to see everyone at the public meeting!

October 29th Update

2010-10-29T13:53:00.000-04:00

PUBLIC MEETING
ANNOUNCEMENT

Tuesday, November 9, 2010
6:00 pm in Ballrooms A & B
UT’s Visitors’ Center (former Faculty Club)
2704 Kingston Pike (corner of Kingston Pike and Neyland Drive)

This meeting is open to the public and everyone is welcome to attend. City of Knoxville Staff and Project Consultants will give a presentation updating the public on the detail design work of the Streetscape project which will include information about the typical street section, landscape amenities and utility work. If you have any questions, please contact Anne Wallace at awallace@cityofknoxville.org

Fort Sanders Stakeholders Update

As promised, the minutes from the most recent Ft. Sanders Stakeholders' meeting are posted in the Link section of the blog or you can access them here. If you have any questions or comments regarding the minutes please send them to me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

Additionally, one of the stakeholder updates included a discussion of the Ft. Sanders Traffic Calming Plan that was requested by the Historic Fort Sanders Neighborhood Association and was prepared in conjuntion with the East TN Community Design Center and City Engineering. Below is a copy of the plan. The stakeholders present responded with general support for the plan. The next Stakeholders meeting is scheduled for Thursday, December 2 at 4:30 pm, location to be determined closer to date.

CAMA Update

The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association is scheduled for Wednesday, November 3rd at 3:00 pm in the Old College Inn. Members and guests are welcome. Come hear more about what your neighbors are up to!

Weekend Opportunities

There are a number of events in and around downtown tonight and throughout the weekend, for more information visit the City's website, here, and click on the calendar of events on the left hand side.

Saturday, October 30

Race for the Cure 5 K & Walk, World's Fair Park, 8:30 am, Race for the Cure is a 5 K and 1 mile Run/Walk to benefit Komen Knoxville - a breast cancer organization.

Tennessee Volunteers take on the South Carolina Gamecocks in Columbia. Game starts at 12:21 pm and is televised. Go Vols!

This weekend would be a great chance to visit some of your favorite spots on Cumberland Ave. Thanks for your continued interest; we hope to see you out at the public meeting. Have a great and safe weekend!

October 22nd Update

2010-10-22T15:29:00.000-04:00

Fort Sanders Stakeholders Update

Thanks to everyone who attended yesterday's special called Fort Sanders Stakeholder Meeting to discuss the draft Fort Sanders District Plan. The major outcome of this meeting was a request to table the Fort Sanders District Plan at Metropolitan Planning Commission (MPC)indefinitely in order to allow stakeholders of varying perspectives to continue meeting and discussing ways to improve the neighborhood. This idea was supported by those in attendance and a request has been submitted to MPC to table the plan.

Additionally, there were two up coming public meetings announced during the meeting that were of interest to Fort Sanders Stakeholders:

1) Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project Public Meeting
Date: Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Time: 6:00 pm
Location: Ballrooms A & B of the University's Visitors' Center, 2704 Kingston Pike (former Faculty Club)
What: A meeting to update the public on the detail design of the Cumberland Ave. Streetscape Plan. Open to the public.

2) City Council Workshop
Date: Thursday, November 11, 2010
Time: 5:00 pm
Location: Small Assembly Room of the City County Building
What: A Council Workshop to discuss absentee landlords and vacant property and their impacts on the community. Open to the public.

Full stakeholder meeting minutes are being compiled and will be posted sometime next week. For any questions, please contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

Weekend Opportunities

Friday October 22, 2010
Hockey - Knoxville Ice Bears vs. Fayetteville Fire Antz
Civic Coliseum
7:30 pm
Come celebrate the home opening game of the 2010-11 season.
http://www.knoxvillecoliseum.com/

Saturday October 23, 2010
UT Football vs. Alabama
UT Neyland Stadium
7:00 pm

Saturday October 23, 2010
Football Tailgate Party on Volunteer Landing
4:00 pm
FREE! Family Friendly Fun!! Live Music by Laurel Wright!! Come join us for a Tailgate Party, 3 hours prior to UT Football Game!
http://www.cityofknoxville.org/

Go Vols, Beat Bama! Don't forget to stop by Cumberland Avenue and support our great merchants before and after the game. As always, thanks for your continued interest and support. Have a fun and safe weekend!

October 15th Update

2010-10-15T15:25:00.000-04:00

October 8th Update

2010-10-08T11:00:00.000-04:00

Public Meeting Announcement for Ft. Sanders Stakeholders Meeting

What: Fort Sanders Stakeholders Meeting

When: 4:30 p.m., Thursday, October 21st

Where: Ballroom A, University of Tennessee Visitors’ Center,
2704 Kingston Pike

Who: Anyone with an interest in the long range planning of Fort Sanders Neighborhood and surrounding areas. City of Knoxville and MPC staff will conduct the meeting which will include a review of the revised Ft. Sanders District Plan, discussion of neighborhood traffic calming, and stakeholder updates (including an update on the Cumberland Ave. Corridor). A copy of the plan is available here or in the Links section on the right hand side of this blog.

Save the date! For a Cumberland Avenue Corridor Public Meeting

What: Cumberland Avenue Corridor Public Meeting

When: 6:00 p.m., Tuesday, November 9th

Where: Ballrooms A & B, University of Tennessee Visitors’ Center,
2704 Kingston Pike

Who: Everyone is welcome to attend this meeting! City of Knoxville Staff and Project Consultants will give a presentation updating the public on the detail design work of the Streetscape project which will include information about the typical street section, landscape amenities and utility work. This meeting is a follow up to the April 19th public meeting where a concept design was selected for further development. Additionally, staff will update the public on the status of the Form Base Code proposed for this area.

For questions please contact Anne Wallace at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

KUB Update

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane closures for utility construction (weather permitting)

Neyland Drive Lane Closures – KUB’s contractor will reduce a section of Neyland Drive to one eastbound lane and one westbound lane between Jacob Drive and Leinard Lane overnight starting at 6 p.m. on Friday, October 8, and lasting through 6 a.m. on Saturday, October 9, to facilitate safe traffic flow for trucks and heavy equipment moving in and out of the construction site for the new Lower Third Creek Wastewater Storage Tank. One east- and one westbound lane will remain open on this section of Neyland Drive during this period.

Caledonia Avenue Road Closure – Knoxville Utilities Board and its contractor will close a section of Caledonia Avenue between Twentieth Street and Volunteer Boulevard from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. on Friday, October 8, in association with sewer system construction.

Some utility-related closures may extend beyond the scheduled times, depending on conditions encountered during excavation and construction. Appropriate traffic control measures will be in place at each 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 these areas.

CAMA Update

The regularly scheduled monthly meeting of the Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) was held on Wednesday, October 6th at 3:00 pm in the Old College Inn. Thanks to Mike Clark, CAMA President for hosting the meeting with great hospitality! The meeting followed the standard format of a KPD report, update from the City on the Cumberland Avenue Project, and merchant updates. In addition to the regular monthly meetings, the merchants are working to hire an intern from UT to assist with marketing and promoting the businesses along the corridor. We will keep you posted about that effort.

Weekend Opportunities
The weather is beautiful and the feeling of Fall is in the air! There are a lot of great opportunities to get out and enjoy this weekend in Knoxville, here are a few that might be of interest!

Tonight: Movies on Market Square, "The Spy Next Door" (PG), Market Square Stage, 8 pm to 10 pm, FREE!! Family Friendly Fun!! Movies on Market Square invites the community to enjoy an outdoor movie under the stars! http://www.knoxlib.org/

All Weekend: Greekfest 2010, St. George Greek Orthodox Church at 4070 Kingston Pike, Fri & Sat: 11 am to 10 pm, Sun: 11 am to 5 pm
Festival highlighting Greek Orthodox religion, Greek food, customs, dancing, shopping, art and the Knoxville Greek Orthodox church.

Saturday: Hola Festival, 100-200 Block of S. Gay St. and Gay St. Viaduct, 11 am to 8 pm,FREE!! Family Friendly Fun! Family oriented festival featuring music, food, dance, children's activities, Parade of Nations, countries exhibits, community fair and vendors. http://www.holafestival.org/

Saturday: UT Vols Football vs. Georgia Bulldogs, Athens, GA, 12:21 pm. This would be a great weekend to visit our Cumberland Ave. merchants to avoid the crowds from in-town gamedays!

September 27th Update

2010-09-27T16:49:00.000-04:00

Henley Street Bridge Information - TDOT Update

The City of Knoxville will host an informational meeting on the upcoming closure and reconstruction of the Henley Street Bridge from 5-7 p.m., Tuesday, September 28 in the City County Building's Large Assembly Room.

Representatives from the Tennessee Department of Transportation will be on hand to discuss some of the details of the project which is slated to begin in early 2011.

TDOT will close the 80-year-old bridge for up to 36 months while the structure is dismantled, down to the arches, and rebuilt. The plans include expanding the deck from the current five-lane configuration to its maximum width of six lanes while keeping the sidewalks at their current width.

TDOT has agreed to the City of Knoxville's request to utilize the sixth lane for bicycle traffic.

During the September 28, meeting TDOT officials will describe steps being taken to reroute traffic via James White Parkway, the South Knoxville Bridge and Moody Avenue. Chapman Highway, between the Tennessee River and Moody Avenue, will remain open for traffic during the closure period.

For more information about the project, please click here.

September 24th Update

2010-09-24T13:12:00.000-04:00

Greetings everyone!

Ft. Sanders Neighborhood Update

The City's Codes Enforcement Department will be conducting a neighborhood sweep from 17th Street east to 11th Street on Wednesday, September 29th to identify violations and notify residents of those issues. This has been a successful program in the Park Ridge and West View neighborhoods within the last year. The purpose of the sweep is to identify code violations and educate both property owners and renters of their responsibilities.

The eastern section of the neighborhood was chosen because it is experiencing the most code problems. The day of the sweep all of the codes enforcement officers will walk through the neighborhood and will note any violations. The western portion of the neighborhood will be eligible for a code sweep at a future date and time.

This is an outside walk through; code enforcement officers will not enter a structure without a request or complaint filed. The majority of violations in the area typically deal with trash, trash can placement and alleyways. Additionally, a pamphlet will be left at every house with or without a violation noted in order to educate tenants to their responsibilities. If a violation is noted the codes enforcement officers will follow up in two weeks to check the status and then
proceed to more traditional means of enforcement if violation is not cleared up. Any questions on this effort can be directed to the city’s one call number, 311.

Staff Update

City staff had the opportunity to tour Ayers Hall on the Hill at UT and see the recent renovations to this historic 1920's structure.

The entry into Ayers Hall
Hand painted details on the stucco

The courtyard on the northside of the building, complete with a "T" shaped bench

A view of the south lawn looking towards the Tennessee River and Neyland Stadium

An example of the fine wood work and detailed finishesFinally, an image of the the lights and grand staircase!

These are just a few images of a great space that we very much enjoyed seeing. Thanks to Jeff Maples and Dan Smith for the tour and for the attention to detail on this campus jem.

Weekend Opportunities

Movies on Market Square, tonight 8:00 pm, the feature "Cats & Dogs", free.
Saturday the UT Volunteers take on the UAB Blazers at 12:21pm. Be sure to stop by and support our Cumberland Avenue Merchants and Go Vols!

September 20th Update

2010-09-20T16:14:00.000-04:00

KUB Update

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory – Road closures for utility construction (weather permitting)

Twenty-first Street Road Closure (Sept. 21-23) – KUB contractor crews will close a section of Twenty-first Street between Lake Avenue and Cumberland Avenue daily from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m., as wastewater system improvements are completed.

Twenty-second Street Road Closure (Sept. 22-24) – KUB contractor crews will close a section of Twenty-second Street between Lake Avenue and Terrace Avenue daily from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m., as wastewater system improvements are completed.

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 caution and expect temporary delays in these areas.

September 15th Update

2010-09-15T09:21:00.000-04:00

Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Meeting Minutes
Additional information and corrections to the minutes of the September 2nd Fort Sanders Quarterly Stakeholder meeting have been provided to City Staff. The minutes have been updated and the changes have been highlighted within the document. If there are any additional comments or corrections, please contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org by close of business on Friday, September 17th. Thanks so much!

KUB Update

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane closure for utility construction (weather permitting)

Dale Avenue Lane Closure – Beginning Tuesday, September 14, and lasting through early October, Knoxville Utilities Board and its contractor will close the curbside right turn lane on a section of Dale Avenue at the N. Seventeenth Street intersection daily from 7 a.m. – 6 p.m. as part of construction activities at the new electric substation located at 410 Dale
Avenue.

This lane closure will be in effect daily to facilitate safe traffic flow for trucks and heavy equipment moving in and out of the work site. Access to N. Seventeenth Street will not be affected as both the left turn lane and center thru/right turn lane on Dale Avenue will remain open during this period. The curbside right turn lane will also be reopened to traffic
during overnght hours and on weekends for the duration of this work.

The new substation at this location will serve as a source of electricity for the growing University of Tennessee campus and improve service and reliability to hospitals, businesses, and residences in the Fort Sanders area. The overall project is scheduled for completion in the summer of
2011, weather permitting.

Some utility-related 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 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.

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closure – KUB will close the curbside eastbound lane on a section of Cumberland Avenue between Seventeenth Street and Eighteenth Street from 2 – 8 p.m. on Wednesday, September 15, as water system upgrades are completed. Traffic flow will be maintained during this period as one eastbound and both westbound lanes will remain open on this section of Cumberland Avenue.

September 10th Update

2010-09-10T10:49:00.000-04:00

Greetings everyone!

As promised last week, the minutes from the September 2nd Ft. Sanders Quarterly Stakeholder meeting are now posted in the Links section of this page. If you have any questions, comments or changes regarding the minutes, please let me know directly at awallace@cityofknoxville.org. Additionally, last week's post originally stated the next meeting for Ft. Sanders Stakeholders was to take place on October 29th - that is incorrect and has been changed - the correct date is Thursday, October 21st at 4:30 pm, location to be determined and published closer to date. The purpose of this meeting will be to review the revised draft of the neighborhood plan. A copy of the revised plan will be posted on this site prior to the meeting. Thanks again to everyone who attended for their time and input.

Weekend Opportunities
Tonight starts two fun events: 1) Movies on Market Square - Fridays, 8-10, tonight's movie is Iron Man; 2) The Tennessee Valley Fair - September 10-19th, tonight's main event, the tractor pull at 7:00.

Saturday is the second home game for UT; they play the University of Oregon Ducks at 7:00pm. Go Vols and be sure to support our Cumberland Avenue Merchants before and after the game!

There will also be a community remembrance of those lost in the 9-11-01 attacks. The service will be held on the City County Building Lawn at 8:45 a.m., Saturday, September, 11th. We will never forget.

Thanks for your continued interest; have a fun and safe weekend!

September 3rd Update

2010-09-03T15:31:00.000-04:00

Greetings!

CAMA Update
On Wednesday, September 1st the Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) held their regularly scheduled monthly meeting at 3:00pm in the Old College Inn Restaurant. Several businesses were represented as well as KPD, the Metropolitan Drug Commission, UT Athletic Department, UT Safety, Environment & Education Center and City staff. City staff provided an update on the Cumberland Ave. Streetscape Plan and the Form Based Code. Additionally, City staff announced the Ft. Sanders Stakeholder meeting and the merchants elected a representative to attend that meeting.

Also at this meeting, UT Federal Credit Union announced that free parking is available to the Public at the Credit Union, 2100 White Avenue, weekdays after 6:00pm, and weekends except for game days. This is a generous offer which will support businesses during evening and weekend hours! This is a trial run, so please make sure to use the lot with respect.

Ft. Sanders Stakeholders Quarterly Meeting Update
Thanks to everyone who attended yesterday's stakeholders meeting; there was great attendance. The meeting minutes are being compiled and will be posted sometime next week. The agenda of the meeting included a welcome and introductions; Ft. Sanders codes sweep and educational opportunity; long range planning implementation strategy discussion; stakeholder updates and future meeting time.

A quick explanation of the codes sweep and educational opportunity - the City's Codes Enforcement Department will be conducting a neighborhood sweep from 17th Street east to 11th Street on September 29th to identify violations and notify residents of those issues. This has been a successful program in the Park Ridge and West View neighborhoods within the last year. More information will be posted about this in the minutes of the meeting and in future blog posts.

Also there was a lengthy discussion regarding the Ft. Sanders Long Range Plan and we are please to announce a consenus has been reached regarding the plan. A new draft reflecting the agreement of stakeholders will be distributed in the next few weeks. Also the next Ft. Sanders Stakeholder meeting will be to review this draft and is scheduled for Thursday, October 21th at 4:30 pm, location will be announced closer to date. Thanks to everyone for providing their thoughts on this plan!

KUB Updates
From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)
Re: Traffic Advisory – Road Closures for Utility Construction

Lake Avenue Road Closure [September 7-9] – Beginning on Tuesday, September 7, and lasting through Thursday, September 9, KUB and its contractor will close a section of Lake Avenue between Melrose Place and Eighteenth Street to thru traffic daily from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. in association with ongoing sewer system upgrades in the area. Crews will not work and the road
closure will not be in effect on Monday, September 6, due to the Labor Day holiday.

Some listed closures may extend beyond the scheduled times depending on the conditions encountere 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.

Weekend Opportunities
Tonight is First Friday Downtown from 5:00-9:00 pm, there are several galleries and shops that will be open this evening with special exhibits, check it out! Don't forget there is free parking at the Locust Street, State Street and Market Square garages and the Old City lot under James White Parkway.

The University of Tennessee's season opener is on Saturday at Neyland Stadium. Be sure to stop in and support our Cumberland Avenue Merchants. If you're interested in informaiton related to downtown parking for football games please visit here. Go Vols!

Finally, the 23rd Anniversary Boomsday Celebration will be Sunday, September 5th for more information regarding parking, what to bring and not to bring, boating, and road closures, please visit the city's website, here.

Thanks for your continued interest. Please have a safe and fun holiday weekend!

August 27th Update

2010-08-27T16:02:00.000-04:00

Welcome back to all of the UTK Students! We wish you a successful new school year.

Public Meeting Announcement for Ft. Sanders Quarterly Meeting

What: Fort Sanders Stakeholders Meeting

When: 3 p.m., Thursday, September 2

Where: Ballroom B, University of Tennessee Visitor Center, 2704 Kingston Pike

Who: Anyone with an interest in the long range planning of Fort Sanders Neighborhood and surrounding areas. City of Knoxville and MPC staff will conduct the meeting which will include updates on the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Plan and updates on the draft long range planning document for Fort Sanders, developed through a series of public meetings last year. The Ft. Sanders plan will be postponed from the MPC September agenda in order to allow for more consensus building.

The draft plan updates the 2000 Fort Sanders Neighborhood Forum Plan. Thursday’s meeting is the third in a series of quarterly meetings aimed at continuing communication between the stakeholders in the Fort Sanders Neighborhood including small businesses, residents, the City of Knoxville and organizations like Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center and the University of Tennessee.

KUB Updates

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)
Re: Traffic Advisory – Road Closures for Utility Construction

Lake Avenue Road Closure [August 30 – September 3] – Beginning on Monday, August 30, and lasting through Friday, September 3, KUB and its contractor will close a section of Lake Avenue between Melrose Place and Terrace Avenue to thru traffic daily from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. in association with ongoing sewer system upgrades in the area.

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.

Finally, don't forget the Jazz Fest and Farmer's Market downtown this weekend and next weekend is Boomsday (for more information visit: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/). Thanks for your continued interest; I hope everyone enjoys the beautiful summer weather.

August 6th Update

2010-08-06T14:50:00.000-04:00

Greetings! As promised the meeting notes from the July 29th Ft. Sanders Stakeholder meeting are now posted in the Links section on the right hand side of this page. Please review these notes and let me know if you have any additions, corrections, or questions. I can be reached at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

The Cumberland Avenue Corridor project continues to move forward in detail design. Today staff from Engineering and Policy & Communications met with representatives from KUB, AT&T, Comcast and our project consultants to discuss the overhead utility lines and assess situations on site. The city is close to making a decision regarding where to move the overhead utility line from Cumberland Avenue and we will keep you posted on this issue.

Additionally, in the next week or two KUB will begin the process of site preparation and clearing for the new utility substation at 17th Street and Dale Ave. For more information please visit KUB's special projects page.

Thanks for your continued interest and have a great weekend. Don't forget the First Friday events throughout Downtown this evening!

July 30th Update

2010-07-30T16:53:00.000-04:00

Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Update:
Thanks to everyone who attended yesterday's special called stakeholder meeting. Minutes from this meeting will be compiled and posted sometime next week for anyone who was unable to attend.

A few follow up items came out of the discussion: 1) The Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) meeting in which Ft. Sanders Regional Hospital will be requesting several variances will be held on August 19th at 4:00pm in the City County Building, for more information please visit: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/boards/zoning.asp; and 2) The Ft. Sanders Long Range Plan will be postponed from the August MPC agenda to September in order to allow stakeholders time to discuss additional points of concern and interest.

City Resurfacing Program:
The city of Knoxville's resurfacing program will be working in the Ft. Sanders neighborhood starting immediately and lasting for a few weeks. The streets that will be milled and re-surfaced are listed below:
Twenty First - from Cumberland to Forest
Twenty Second - From Cumberland to Forest
Twenty Third - From Clinch to Forest
Laurel - From Twenty Second to the west
Clinch - From Nineteenth to the west
White - From Twenty Second to the west
For questions or concerns regarding this work, please contact the city's Traffic Engineering Department at 865.215.6100.

KUB Updates:
The Knoxville Utility Board has announced several projects that will impact the Ft. Sanders area, please see the information listed below.

KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Traffic Advisory – Road and lane closures for utility construction (weather permitting)

Seventeenth Street Road Closure (Aug. 2) – KUB crews completing sewer system upgrades will close all lanes on a section of Seventeenth Street between the Cumberland Avenue and Clinch Avenue intersections from 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Monday, August 2. Traffic will be detoured around the construction zone via Sixteenth Street to Clinch Avenue during this period.

Neyland Drive Lane Closures (Aug. 3 – 6) – KUB’s contractor will implement temporary lane closures on a section of Neyland Drive between Lake Loudoun Boulevard and Leinard Lane nightly from 7 p.m. – 7 a.m. and daily from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. starting on Tuesday evening, August 3, and lasting through Friday afternoon, August 6, to facilitate the installation of a water line
and roadway resurfacing. One eastbound and both westbound lanes of Neyland Drive will remain open at all times during these periods. All lanes on this section of Neyland Drive will be reopened each morning from 7 – 9 a.m. to accommodate morning commuter traffic.

PACE 10 Work - Beginning in early August 2010 and lasting through May 2011 (weather permitting), KUB and its contractors will make wastewater collection system improvements in your area as part of the PACE 10 program. PACE 10 is KUB’s accelerated 10-year wastewater
improvement program to aggressively attack the problem of sewer overflows and to provide a wastewater system that can better serve current and future customers.

Construction will take place along sections of Lake Avenue, Terrace Avenue, Caledonia Avenue, Twentieth Street, Nineteenth Street, Mountcastle Street, Twenty First Street, Twenty Second Street, Twentieth Street, and along a portion of the alleyway running between Cumberland Avenue and Lake Avenue (from Nineteenth Street and Twenty Second Street). Limited work may also be required on weekends to facilitate timely completion of this project.

If you have questions or concerns regarding this project, please call Reno Hall with KUB Customer Support at (865) 558-2117 (office) or 705-2817 (mobile) from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. If you have questions after hours, contact KUB at 524-2911.

Knox Heritage Update:
Knox Heritage announced a "Green House Open House" for Saturday August 21, 2010. The public is invited to attend a free open house to tour the building and grounds, ask questions of the designers, contractors and KH staff, and see sustainable design and construction methods in practice. The house located in Fort Sanders at 1011 Victorian Way (formerly 1011 Laurel Avenue), near the intersection of Laurel and 11th and near Fort Kid. No need to RSVP, just show up from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. For more information please visit: http://www.knoxheritage.org/

Thanks again for your continued interest in all things that impact Cumberland Avenue and the surrounding area. Have a great weekend!

July 23rd Update

2010-07-23T15:32:00.000-04:00

Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Meeting Reminder

What: Fort Sanders Stakeholders Meeting to review variances requested by Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center for proposed new signs and wayfinding measures on the hospital’s campus

When: 3:30 p.m., Thursday, July 29

Where: 2nd Floor Classrooms (A&B) at the Howard Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy, 1640 Cumberland Avenue

Who: Representatives from the hospital will make a presentation and there will be an opportunity for questions and comments. Other stakeholders will also have an opportunity to present updates.

Anyone with an interest in the long range planning of Fort Sanders Neighborhood and surrounding areas is invited to attend.

July 16th Update

2010-07-16T16:46:00.000-04:00

Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Meeting Announcement:

There will be a special called Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Meeting on Thursday, July 29th at 3:30 p.m. in the 2nd Floor Classrooms (A&B) of the Howard Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy located on the University of Tennessee campus at 1640 Cumberland Avenue. Recommended parking is either on-street within the neighborhood or at the public parking garage on campus.

The primary purpose of this meeting will be to review the requested variances by Ft. Sanders Regional Medical Center for their campus signs and wayfinding. Representatives from the hospital will present this information to the group and there will be an opportunity for questions and comments.

Other stakeholders will also have an opportunity to present updates. Please feel free to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org if you have any questions or comments.

KUB Traffic Advisory:
Re: Traffic Advisory – Road and lane closures for utility construction (weather permitting)

White Avenue Road Closure (July 19-30) – KUB crews completing sewer system upgrades will close a section of White Avenue to thru traffic between 16th Street and 17th Street around the clock starting on Monday, July 19, and lasting through Friday, July 30. Construction activity will be limited to daylight hours only; however, the road closure will remain in effect for the duration of the project due to ongoing excavation in the roadway and the presence of construction equipment.

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closures (July 20-21) – KUB contractor crews will temporarily reduce a section of Cumberland Avenue to one eastbbound and one westbound lane between Volunteer Boulevard and Phillip Fulmer Way overnight from 7 p.m. – 7 a.m., beginning Tuesday evening, July 20, and lasting through Wednesday morning, July 21, as sewer system upgrades are completed. All lanes of Cumberland Avenue will be reopened to traffic starting a 7 a.m.
on July 21.

Some listed closures may extend beyond the scheduled times depending on the conditions encountered during 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 caution and expect temporary delays in these areas.

For more information or questions contact KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988).

June 13th - KUB Update

2010-07-13T10:28:00.000-04:00

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane and road closures for utility construction (weather permitting)

Kingston Pike Lane Closure – KUB crews will close the righthand westbound lane of traffic on a section of Kingston Pike between the Alcoa Highway overpass and S. Concord Street daily from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. on Wednesday, July 14, and Thursday, July 15, as upgrades are made to the natural gas distribution system. One westbound lane and all eastbound lanes will remain open during this closure.

Appropriate traffic control measures and devices will be in place at each
location to maintain traffic flow and alert motorists to the closures. Due
to the presence of workers and equipment, motorists are advised to expect
possible delays and use caution when traveling in this area.

July 9th Update

2010-07-09T11:31:00.000-04:00

We hope everyone had a safe and happy Independence Day!

The city has recently met with KUB to continue conversations about a new utility substation in the Ft. Sanders area. KUB has worked with the city, representatives of the neighborhood, Dow Chemical, the University of Tennessee, the hospitals and other stakeholders to determine a good location, discuss ways to minimize negative impacts, and improve aesthetics of the facility to compliment the neighborhood. The new electric substation in the Dale Avenue/Seventeenth Street area would support growth at UT and provide increased reliability to UT, area hospitals, DOW, and the Fort Sanders community.

For more information on the substation project, please visit KUB's website at Special Projects and scroll to the Proposed UT Substation information. A map of the location and two possible designs of the exterior can be downloaded from this page. You can also ask questions or make comments by e-mailing comm@kub.org.

In a move that caught many by surprise, Ft. Sanders Regional Hospital / Covenant Health demolished two houses on Laurel Avenue this past week. This was an appropriately permitted activity on properties the hospital had recently acquired. The properties are not a part of the Neighborhood Conservation Overlay or the National Register Historic District (which require additional approval from the Historic Zoning Commission prior to demolition).

The draft of the Ft. Sanders Neighborhood District Long Range Plan has been postponed until the August 12th MPC meeting in order to allow additional stakeholders input and refinement of the document. A copy of the document is in the links section of this page and comments can be sent to awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

The city remains committed to working with all stakeholders to improve communication and support quality development in the area. Thanks for your interest and have a great weekend!

June 25th Update

2010-06-25T14:06:00.000-04:00

The Cumberland Ave. Streetscape Team (city staff and consultants) met for a utility coordination meeting this week with several representatives from the Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB) and Comcast Cable. This meeting identified multiple options regarding the overhead electric lines along Cumberland Ave. These options need additional research regarding time and cost impacts for the project that will lead to future decision points. Additional utilities such as gas, water and waste water lines were also discussed.

Also KUB just released this information regarding Tyson Park:
For more information, contact: KUB Community Relations - 865-594-7988

KUB and its contractor will conduct testing on wastewater pipelines to facilitate future upgrades to the system in Tyson Park from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. beginning Monday, June 28 and lasting through Friday, July 2. This work will take place near the tennis courts between Third Creek and the bike trail.

Other than using the bike trail and greenway briefly for transportation of contractor equipment, this work will not affect access to the Third Creek Greenway, tennis courts, and other facilities within the park. In addition, area traffic and parking will not be affected.

Appropriate safety barriers will be in place to designate the immediate work area. While the roadway, greenway, and access to all facilities will remain open, park visitors and commuters are advised to use caution in the area due to the presence of workers and equipment.

This work is weather permitting.

I hope everyone is enjoying the first full week of summer! Have a great and safe weekend.

June 18th Update

2010-06-18T14:38:00.000-04:00

In follow up to the City's postponement of the Ft. Sanders Neighborhood Plan at MPC last week, City and MPC/TPO staff met on Thursday, June 17th with property owners who had expressed concerns regarding the document.

It was a productive meeting with an overview of the process that has occured to date and the goals of the plan. Owners were able to understand that while this was not a rezoning of property that plans are the basis of future land use. Some of the owners noted that it was important that the institutions in the area had participated in the process. The conclusion of the meeting was that the City would request an additional 30 day postponement (to the August 12th MPC meeting) so that these owners have plenty of time to digest the information included in the plan and then get back together with staff to ask any questions that they might have or make suggestions on ways to improve the document. If there are any substative changes identified through this process we will reconvene the full Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Committee prior to sending the document to MPC for consideration.

Next week City staff and the Cumberland Ave. consultants will be meeting with various utilities regarding the streetscape plan and options for removing the overhead utility lines. We'll keep you posted on the outcome of that meeting. As always, thanks for your continued interest and have a safe and fun weekend!

June 11th Update

2010-06-11T13:59:00.000-04:00

It has been a busy week here! On Monday, City staff met with our consultants on the Cumberland Ave. Streetscape Project and officially kicked off our detailed design process. One of the first steps to this process will be a utility coordination meeting that will help the City understand the options and costs associated with removing the overhead utility lines from Cumberland Ave. This meeting will occur before the end of the month and we'll keep you posted as details emerge.

As promised last week, the meeting minutes from the Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Quarterly Meeting are now posted under the links section on the right hand side of this page. Feel free to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org if you have any questions or corrections.

On Thursday, the final draft of the Ft. Sanders Neighborhood District Long Range Planning Implementation Strategy was scheduled to be heard at the regular monthly meeting of the Metropolitan Planning Commission (MPC). However, we were contacted Thursday morning by some property owners in the area who had questions about the plan and its impact to their property. In the interest of continuing and increasing communications with these stakeholders, the City requested that MPC postpone its hearing of this document for 30 days in order to allow time for the City and MPC to meet with these property owners. The plan is now scheduled to be heard at the July 8th meeting at 1:30 pm in the Large Assembly Room of the City County Building.

Finally, a possible item of interest:
Knox Heritage is holding an "architectural salvage sale" all day Friday, June 11, and from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 12, at their offices at 1300 North Broadway - in the carriage house of the WATE-TV property. For more information visit: http://www.knoxheritage.org/.

June 7th Update

2010-06-07T11:51:00.000-04:00

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)

Re: Traffic Advisory – White Avenue Road Closure

White Avenue – KUB and its contractor will temporarily close a section of
White Avenue between 16th Street and 17th Street to thru traffic daily
from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. weekdays between June 7-11 and June 14-18 as sewer
system upgrades are completed in this area. All intersections will remain
open during construction. Access to parking facilities in this area will
remain open. This section of White Avenue will be reopened to traffic the
weekend of June 12-13 and during overnight hours through the week.

Appropriate traffic control measures will be in place at this location to
alert motorists of the closure. Motorists are advised to expect possible
delays and use caution when traveling in this area.

June 4th Update

2010-06-04T11:35:00.000-04:00

Thanks to everyone who attended the Ft. Sanders Quarterly Stakeholder meeting yesterday at the University Visitors' Center. A draft of the meeting minutes will be posted to the blog next week.

One item that was covered in the meeting was the Ft. Sanders Neighborhood District Long Range Planning Implementation Strategy document. This is the draft plan prepared by the Metropolitan Planning Commission (MPC) that documents the Ft. Sanders Long Range Planning efforts and recommendations. This document will be sent to the monthly MPC meeting for consideration and a recommendation next week, on Thursday, June 10 at 1:30 pm. That meeting is held in the Large Assembly Room of the City County Building for anyone interested in attending.

The final draft of the planning document with pictures and maps is available at MPC's agenda website: http://agenda.knoxmpc.org/ from that page click on the agenda package, and then click on the link to item #6. The plan is contained in the subject line link. The next step for this document, if MPC gives a postive recomendation, is to send it to City Council for consideration.

Thanks so much for your continued interest and support of the Ft. Sanders area! I hope everyone has a great weekend - don't forget First Friday and the International Biscuit Festival.

May 28th Update

2010-05-28T14:34:00.000-04:00

MEETING ANNOUNCEMENT

What: Fort Sanders Stakeholders Meeting

When: 3 p.m., Thursday, June 3

Where: Ballroom B, University of Tennessee Visitor Center, 2704 Kingston Pike

Who: Anyone with an interest in the long range planning of Fort Sanders Neighborhood and surrounding areas.

City of Knoxville and MPC staff will conduct the meeting which will include updates on the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Plan and the draft long range planning document for Fort Sanders, developed through a series of public meetings last year. The draft plan updates the 2000 Fort Sanders Neighborhood Forum Plan.

Thursday’s meeting is the second in a series of quarterly meetings aimed at continuing communication between the stakeholders in the Fort Sanders Neighborhood including small businesses, residents, the City of Knoxville and organizations like Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center and the University of Tennessee.

Hope to see you on Thursday; have a great and safe Memorial Day Weekend!

For anyone interested in a local observance of Memorial Day a Ceremony to "Honor the Fallen" will be held at East TN Veterans Memorial in World's Fair Park from 10 am to 11 am on Monday May 31st. To Remember, Honor, Educate and Inspire…Please join East Tennessee in honoring those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for this country. For more information visit: www.etvma.org

May 20th Update

2010-05-20T16:26:00.000-04:00

KUB extends Cumberland Avenue lane closures through the weekend.

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closures Extended – The lane reductions on Cumberland Avenue between 16th Street and James Agee Street have been extended to run through this weekend, May 21-23,. This work and lane closures were originally scheduled to end at 7 p.m., Thursday, May 20, and go into effect again at 7 a.m., Monday, May 24; however, work this weekend is necessary to facilitate timely completion of sewer system upgrades in this area.

One eastbound lane and one westbound lane on Cumberland Avenue will remain open to traffic between 16th Street and James Agee Street. All construction activities and lane closures are scheduled for completion in this area by Thursday, June 17 (weather permitting). The lane closures in this area will be in effect 24 hours a day. After this weekend, a four-days-a-week lane closure - starting at 7 a.m. on Mondays and lasting around the clock through 7 p.m. Thursdays - is expected to resume for the duration of this project.

Customers with questions can call (865) 558-2330. Thanks.

May 17th Update

2010-05-17T12:50:00.000-04:00

We are pleased to announce that the city of Knoxville administration staff has decided on a course of action regarding the detail design of the Cumberland Ave Corridor Project. We will be pursuing the 3 lane cross section with the two way left turn lane and wider sidewalks, also known as Option 1B in the presentation materials. A veiw of this cross section, provided by Carol R. Johnson & Assoc., is below.

This design direction will provide the starting point for our consultants, Vaughn & Melton and will be developed over the next 12 months. A press release has been sent to City Council and local media outlets and is included under the links section on the right side of this page.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org. Thanks and have a great week!

May 14th Update

2010-05-14T16:23:00.000-04:00

This Traffic Advisory was just posted by KUB, it has impacts to Neyland Dr. and Cumberland Ave. east of 17th St., please see below for more information. Thanks and have a great weekend.

Traffic Advisory
May 14, 2010
From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)
Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane closures for utility construction (weather permitting)

Neyland Drive Lane Closures – KUB’s contractor will reduce a section of Neyland Drive to one eastbound lane and one westbound lane between Lake Loudoun Boulevard and Leinard Lane daily from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., starting on Monday, May 17, and lasting through, Friday, May 21, as roadway preparations are made in advance of utility work. One east- and one westbound lane of Neyland Drive will remain open during this period. All lanes on this section of Neyland Drive will be reopened during overnight hours.

Cumberland Avenue Lane Closures – KUB’s contractor will reduce a section of Cumberland Avenue to one eastbound lane and one westbound lane between 16th Street and James Agee Street starting on Monday, May 17, and lasting through Thursday, June 17, as sewer system upgrades are completed. The lane closures in this area will be in effect 24 hours a day, four days a week, starting at 7 a.m. on Mondays and lasting through 7 p.m. Thursdays during this four-week period.

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

April 30th Update

2010-04-30T16:31:00.001-04:00

Thanks to everyone who has submitted comments regarding the 3 proposed options for Cumberland Avenue streetscape design. We have received a lot of great comments and suggestions! City staff will be reviewing this information over the next few weeks. We look forward to working with you as we move through the detailed design process.

As always, if you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org. I hope everyone has a great weekend!

April 23rd Update

2010-04-23T15:56:00.000-04:00

First and foremost, thanks to everyone who attended the Streetscape Public Meeting on Monday at the UT Visitors' Center! The meeting was well attended and a good discussion followed the presentation. For anyone who was unable to attend the meeting, a copy of the presentation is available at: www.cityofknoxville.org/cumberland

Also the City will be taking additional comments until Thursday, April 29th (10 days after the meeting). Please find the comment card on the same page as the presentation (www.cityofknoxville.org/cumberland); it is an editable PDF file and once filled in please save and send it as an attachement to me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org. Everyone is welcomed and encouraged to submit comments.

Hope everyone has a wonderful and safe weekend! Don't forget some of the great events happening in the area: Dogwood Arts Parade (tonight on Gay St.), Pork Knox Q-Fest (tonight at World's Fair Park), Rossini Festival(tomorrow, 12-9 pm at Market Sq.), and Bikes & Blooms (tomorrow, 9:00 am, Sequoyah Hills Trail).

April 16th Update

2010-04-16T15:17:00.000-04:00

PUBLIC MEETING ANNOUNCMENT

Monday, April 19, 2010
6:00 pm
University Visitors Center
(former Faculty Club)
2704 Kingston Pike

The purpose of this meeting will be to inform the public of the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project status, present the concept designs for the streetscape and to receive comments and suggestions. The City has received a notice to proceed with detail design from TDOT and therefore has met the requirements for Environmental Clearance for the Streetscape Project. There will be an overview presentation about the project history and updates on the urban design plan for the corridor.

Please plan to attend.

The Press Release for this meeting is available at:

http://www.cityofknoxville.org/Press_Releases/Content/2010/0413a.asp

Also there are stories about the project from the local media in the Links sections to the right of this page.

As always thanks for your interest, have a great weekend and hope to see you on Monday!

March 26th Update

2010-03-26T14:03:00.000-04:00

The City of Knoxville is pleased to announce that we have received official notice to proceed from TDOT with the next phase of the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project! The project has received its Environmental Clearance from the state and city staff and our project consultants will be hosting a public meeting to finalize the concept design which will determine the course for detail design.

The public meeting regarding Cumberland Avenue Corridor Streetscape Concepts will be held on Monday, April 19th at 6:00pm in the University of Tennessee's Visitors' Center, 2704 Kingston Pike. Parking is available on site. Please make plans to attend, provide your input, and invite others who might be interested in this project. A press release regarding the meeting will be forthcoming and will be posted on the City's website, http://www.cityofknoxville.org/.

As always if you have any questions or comments regarding the project, please feel free to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

KUB Traffic Advisory - Laurel Ave.

2010-03-18T15:19:00.000-04:00

The following traffic advisory was issued by KUB's Community Relations Department Thursday afternoon to announce a lane closure for utility construction on a section of Laurel Avenue tomorrow. KUB has coordinated this work and lane closure with Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center. Contact KUB at 594-7531 if you have questions about this or any other KUB construction activities. Thank you.

From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 865-594-7988)
Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane Closure for Utility Construction (weather permitting)

Laurel Avenue Lane Closure – KUB crews will reduce traffic to one lane on a short section of Laurel Avenue between Nineteenth Street and Twentieth Street from 8 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Friday, March 19, as natural gas lines are relocated in this area.

Appropriate traffic control measures will be in place to alert motorists to the lane shift. Due to the ongoing presence of workers and equipment, motorists are advised to use caution and expect temporary delays at this location.

March 5th Update

2010-03-05T14:51:00.000-05:00

Thanks to everyone who attended the Fort Sanders Stakeholder meeting this week. We had a great turn out for the first quarterly meeting. As discussed in the meeting, the Draft Fort Sanders Neighborhood Plan and appendicies are posted under the Links section on this page. Please feel free to share these documents with anyone who might be interested. Of course, if you have any questions or comments about the documents, do not hesitate to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

Please note that Appendix C will have images added to it, prior to finalizing the document. Also the Plan will be sent to MPC and City Council for adoption as an update to the 2000 Fort Sanders Forum Plan after a period for review.

If anyone is interested in assisting with the facilitation of the future quarterly meetings, please let me know. The dates for the rest of the year are June 3, September 2, and December 2; the meetings will be on the first Thursday of the month at 3:00pm, location to be determined.

Finally, this is the First Friday of the month and that means lots of great activities downtown - hope you can get out and enjoy some of them. Have a wonderful weekend!

March 3rd Update

2010-03-01T10:23:00.000-05:00

Just a quick reminder of the Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Quarterly meeting at 3 p.m. on Thursday, March 4 in Ballroom B, University of Tennessee Visitor Center, 2704 Kingston Pike. PLEASE NOTE that this is a different location than that of previous Fort Sanders meetings hosted by the city.

The meeting Agenda and Press Release regarding the meeting are available in the Links section of this page. If you have any questions, please contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org

Thanks and have a great day!

February 19th Update

2010-02-19T15:46:00.000-05:00

Fort Sanders Stakeholder Quarterly Meeting Information
Date: March 4, 2010
Time: 3:00 pm
Location: Ballroom B, UT's Visitors' Center, 2704 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN

Please make plans to attend this meeting updating last year's stakeholder meetings. An agenda will be posted next week here on the blog. Also please note the location is different from the previous meetings; parking is available on site at UT's Visitors' Center.

Also this week, City staff received more good news from the Tennessee Department of Transportation regarding the Cumberland Avenue Streetscape Project. The Environmental Division has reviewed the proposed project for compliance with environmental laws and regulations. The project as proposed will not directly, indirectly or cumulatively have any significant environmental impacts. This assessment has been forwarded to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) for their review and approval. The next step for the streetscape project, once reviewed and approved by FHWA, will be the detailed design of the street. We will keep you posted on this process and let you know about any public meetings for the detail design. I would like to thank our consultants, City Engineering and TDOT for all their hard work and efforts to compile the necessary information for the Programmatic Categorical Exclusion for this project.

Thanks for your continued interest and have a great weekend.

February 12th Update

2010-02-12T15:20:00.000-05:00

Good news!

The city of Knoxville has recently been informed that the Tennessee Department of Transporation (TDOT) has selected the Ft. Sanders Sidewalk Improvement request for Fiscal Year 2010 Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Funds. This decision was based on a recommendation from the Knoxville Regional Transporation Planning Organization (TPO). The funds will be used to repair, replace and install sidewalks in the northwest portion of the neighborhood. I would like to thank TDOT, the TPO, and City Engineering for their assistance and guidance with this project. The grant amount is $250,000 and is programmed to be fully funded by TDOT. More information will be forthcoming as this project gets developed with the state.

Have a great weekend! Happy Valentine's Day, Happy President's Day, and thank you for your continued interest in all things that connect to Cumberland Avenue!

February 5th Update

2010-02-05T14:31:00.000-05:00

City staff attended the Cumberland Avenue Merchant's Association (CAMA) Meeting this week and provided a project update. The City is still in a public comment period on the draft form code and streetscape concept designs. There were several new attedees at the meeting and everyone was glad to see additional businesses represented at this meeting. The next CAMA meeting will be March 3, at 3:00 pm in the Old College Inn.

Ft. Sanders Stakeholder Meeting is scheduled for the first Thursday in March at 3:00 pm. This meeting was requested at the conclusion meeting of the Ft. Sanders Long Range Planning process and is anticipated to be a quarterly meeting throughout the year. Additional information and meeting location will be provided on the blog closer to date.

KUB announced that on February 1st, that the small parking area will close at the south end of the Third Creek Greenway near the Neyland Greenway intersection in association with a planned PACE 10 wastewater collection system improvement project in this area. The wastewater project will replace 2,100 feet of wastewater trunkline
along Third Creek. KUB will also construct a 6.5 million gallon wastewater storage tank at the west end of the Kuwahee Wastewater Treatment Plant. The overall project is scheduled for completion by spring 2011, weather permitting. For more information, please contact KUB Community Relations: (865) 594-7988

Have a great weekend and don't forget tonight's First Friday events downtown!

January 29th Update

2010-01-29T11:22:00.000-05:00

Over the last few weeks, city staff has continued to meet with stakeholders regarding the draft Form Code and the Streetscape concept plans including meetings with representatives of the Historic Fort Sanders Neighborhood Association, Knoxville Area Transit (KAT), the City's Operations Team, the Mayor's Student Advisory Board, and individual property and business owners. The discussions are going well and we would like to thank everyone for their comments and questions as we continue this public comment period.

Also this week, I was invited to participate in a panel discussion at the Nashville Complete Streets Workshop. Complete Streets are road networks that are safer, more livable, and welcoming to everyone. It was a great opportunity to discuss the Cumberland Ave. Streetscape project and the efforts of both local and state government to transform this strip into a more attractive, economically successful, vibrant and safe corridor.

If you would like more information about the workshop please visit: http://www.nashvillempo.org/completestreets.html
If you're interested in the Complete Streets Design Guidelines that were created for the Knoxville Regional Transporation Planning Organization (TPO) by Gresham Smith and Partners please visit: http://www.knoxtrans.org/plans/complete_streets/index.htm

Thanks for your continued interest! I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable weekend.

Happy New Year! January 8th Update

2010-01-08T12:30:00.000-05:00

Greetings everyone! I hope that you all had a wonderful holiday season.

City staff is continuing to meet with property and buisness owners along the corridor to discuss the draft Cumberland Ave. Corridor Form District and the concept designs for the Streetscape project. If you or someone you know would be interested in a one on one meeting regarding your property or business and this plan, please contact Anne Wallace at awallace@cityofknoxville.org. Also the draft code is currently being reviewed by the city's law department and an independent consultant.

Staff also attended the Cumberland Ave. Merchants Association (CAMA) and provided a project update on Wednesday, January 6th. The CAMA meets the first Wednesday of every month at 3:00 pm in the Old College Inn to discuss items of interest for merchants along the corridor; everyone is welcome and invited to attend. If you would like more information about CAMA, please visit: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/policy/cumberland/cama.asp

Finally, staff is finalizing the recommendations that came out of the Ft. Sanders Long Range Planning effort and will post the recommendations on this blog in the next few weeks.

Thanks for your continued interest and have a safe, happy, and prosperous new year!

December 11th Update

2009-12-11T16:02:00.000-05:00

City staff is continuing to meet with institutions, property owners, and business owners along the corridor to review the draft form code and to share the concept designs for the streetscape project. If you would like to meet with staff to discuss these items, please contact Anne Wallace, awallace@cityofknoxville.org. We would be happy to meet with you. We will continue to reach out to various stakeholders in this area while we are awaiting the approval of the Categorical Exclusion request for the streetscape project and the consultant's review of the form based code.

Additionally, KUB held a public meeting on Thursday, December 10 at Knoxville Redeemer Church for a proposed Electric Substation. Concept designs were available for viewing and the public had an opportunity to comment and ask questions of several KUB employees. KUB representatives mentioned that additional information may be available on their website for anyone unable to attend last night's meeting.

PUBLIC NOTICE:
Neyland Drive Lane Closures – KUB crews will temporarily close the inside east- and westbound lanes on a section of Neyland Drive between Lake Loudoun Boulevard and Leinard Lane daily from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., starting on Monday, December 14, and lasting through, Friday, December 18, as temporary paving is installed in the median in advance of work on the wastewater collection system. One east- and one westbound lane of Neyland Drive will remain open during this period. All lanes on this section of Neyland Drive will be reopened during overnight hours.

December 7th Update

2009-12-07T16:30:00.001-05:00

Thanks to everyone who participated in the Ft. Sanders Long Range Planning Meeting last Thursday. We are editing the Recommendations and Implementation Strategies to reflect the comments from the full committee. The recommendations should be available to post soon.

Up coming meetings of interest for the Ft. Sanders Community:

* CITY TO PROVIDE OVERVIEW OF HENLEY STREET BRIDGE PROJECT
Tuesday, Dec. 8, 6:00PM
Graystone Presbyterian Church
139 Woodlawn Pike, in South Knoxville.

John Hunter, chief traffic engineer for the City of Knoxville, will provide an overview of the project. Officials of the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) will be on hand to answer questions.

The five-lane bridge, built in 1930, is due for extensive repairs. The entire deck has to be replaced, along with the supports leading from the arches to the deck. No date has been established for the work.

* PROPOSED UT SUBSTATION PUBLIC MEETING
Thursday, December 10, 6-7 p.m.
Knoxville Redeemer Church (Chapel/Multipurpose Room)
1642 Highland Avenue

The purpose of this meeting will be to discuss the proposed construction of an electric substation at the corner of Dale Avenue and N. Seventeenth Street.

Please contact KUB at 594-7531 if you have questions about the meeting.

November 20th Update

2009-11-19T14:29:00.000-05:00

The draft of the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Form District code is now available online at the City's website: www.cityofknoxville.org/cumberland or through MPC's website: http://www.knoxmpc.org/.

Please review this document carefully and feel free to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org if you have any questions or comments. We are planning a minimum of a two month comment period for the draft code. Additionally, the City's Law Department and an independent consultant will also be providing a thorough review of the document.

Additionally, the notes from the November 5th Ft. Sanders Long Range Planning Subcommittee meetings have been compiled and are available in the Links section of this page. Thanks and have a great weekend - go Vols!

November 13th Update

2009-11-13T15:19:00.000-05:00

Thanks to everyone who attended meetings this week on the Cumberland Ave. Corridor Project and last week's Fort Sanders Long Range Planning Subcommitee meetings. It has been a busy month!

Minutes from the November 5th Fort Sanders LRP Subcommittee meetings are being compiled and should be posted next week. The focus of the the Quality of Life Subcommittee was to work on compiling recommendations for the full committee and the Long Range Physical Planning group discussed in detail recommendations for improvements to traffic circulation within the neighborhood for all modes of traffic. The final meeting for this process will be Thursday, December 3rd.

The Cumberland Ave. Advisory Board met on Wednesday, November 11th and discussed the status of the Streetscape Project and Urban Design Plan; a copy of the agenda packet will be available in the Links section. TDOT has indicated that their review of the Environmental Clearance request is close to complete; the next step is to submit the document to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) for final review. City staff provided an summary of the Traffic Memos provided by our consultants, Gresham Smith & Partners and a summary of the Form Based Code for Cumberland.

A public meeting was held on Thursday, November 12th to present the draft Form Based Code for review. A copy of this presentation will be available in the Links section and on the Cumberland Ave. Corridor Project webpage (www.cityofknoxville.org/cumberland). A draft of the code will also be published to the City's website in the next few days. Please send any comments or questions regarding the draft code to me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.
Thank you!

KUB Traffic Advisory for PACE 10 Project

2009-11-03T16:34:00.000-05:00

TRAFFIC ADVISORY: November 3, 2009
From: KUB Community Relations (Contact No. 594-7988)
Re: Traffic Advisory – Lane Closure for Utility Work (weather permitting) Cumberland Avenue Lane Closure – KUB crews will close one westbound lane of traffic on a section of Cumberland Avenue between 19th Street and 21st Street from 9 a.m. - noon, Wednesday, November 4, for sewer system inspection work. One westbound lane and both eastbound lanes of Cumberland Avenue will remain open during this period.

Appropriate traffic control measures will be in place to assist motorists traveling in this area. Due to the presence of workers and equipment, motorists are advised to use caution when traveling through this work zone.

PACE 10: A 10-year program to improve Knoxville's waterways through major investments in wastewater system improvements and cooperative efforts with customers and the community to address related environmental issues.

October 30th Update

2009-10-30T09:49:00.000-04:00

PUBLIC MEETING ANNOUNCEMENT

City staff invites the public to a meeting on the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project. The meeting will be held on Thursday, November 12th at 6:00pm in the UT Visitors' Center, 2704 Kingston Pike. The meeting will provide an update on the streetscape project and focus on the draft Form Based Code for Cumberland Avenue. Staff will outline the next steps in adopting the draft code and highlight the opportunities for public comment and input.

Fort Sanders Long Range Planning Subcommitee Meetings

The next meetings for the subcommittees will take place on November 5th at 3:30pm (please note the different time) in the Howard Baker Center for Public Policy. Parking is available on street within the neighborhood or at the University's Public Parking Garage on Phillip Fulmer Way.

Quality of Life Subcommittee will meet in Rooms 207/208 and discuss final recommendations for the larger committee.

Long Range Physical Planning Subcommittee will meet in the 3rd Floor Board Room and discuss traffic information and final recommendations for the larger committee.

All of these meetings are open to the public and anyone is welcome to attend. If you need any additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org

October 16th Update

2009-10-16T10:28:00.000-04:00

The notes from the October 1st Ft. Sanders Long Range Planning Committee meeting are posted in the Links section of this page. In follow up to the discussion at this meeting, City Staff, UT Representatives and Knoxville Area Transit (KAT) met to discuss concerns regarding the signal at Metron Center Way. A brief summary of that meeting is available in the notes. Additionally, the notes from the September 3rd Quality of Life Subcommittee meeting are also posted and were handed out at the last full commitee meeting.

City staff attended the Transportation Planning Organizations Technical Committee meeting on Tuesday, October 13th. A couple of items of interest were presented at that meeting: 1) The Federal Government's recission of funds for the Federal Highway Administration on October 1st will have a local impact because of the reduction in TDOT and TPO funding. A specific impact to Ft. Sanders is that the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) funding that was requested for sidewalks and bus shelters in the neighborhood will not be available this fiscal year. 2) Some reduction to the Surface Transportation Program (STP) funds will occur, but project funding is decided at the local level. If you have any questions regarding this information feel free to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org.

Finally, a City Council Workshop was held last night to discuss the Downtown Wayfinding Project. This project is anticipated to be the starting point for future wayfinding efforts in Knoxville's core neighborhoods. The consultants, Merje Design, out of Philadelphia have started design development based on several stakeholder meetings and two public meetings. This information was presented to Council and the public last night. The consensus from the workshop was that the general design concepts were reflective of downtown Knoxville and that a few relatively minor tweaks would have the design in great shape. If you'd like more information on this project please visit: www.cityofknoxville.org/wayfinding.

October 2nd Update

2009-10-02T15:48:00.000-04:00

Thanks to the Knoxville Museum of Art (KMA) for hosting our Ft. Sanders Long Range Planning meeting on Thursday, October 1st!

It was a great opportunity to learn about the master planning process that the museum recently underwent with Sasaki Associates out of Boston. The image to the right is a concept plan that shows connectivity to the neighborhood and World's Fair Park, as well as, some inventive ideas for reusing parking lots and providing additional landscape in the area. Please note that plan shows some land outside KMA's ownership and that the designs for these areas are just to show potential possibilites.

Image Courtesy: Sasaki Assoc.

If you would like more information about the plan, please visit:
http://www.sasaki.com/what/portfolio.cgi?fid=497&project_type=4&page=1

If you would like more information about KMA, please visit:
http://www.knoxart.org/

Thanks also to all of the stakeholders who participated in this meeting. I am compiling the notes from the meeting and hope to post them next week. Have a great weekend and go Vols!

September 18th Update

2009-09-18T15:51:00.000-04:00

Good afternoon. This has been a busy week behind the scenes. The city has been working with our consultants to meet additional requests from TDOT for our Environmental Clearance document. We have also been working on the proposed Cumberland Ave. Form Code and have a meeting with various deparments next week to review the proposed code and plan the public review process.

Also the link on the right hand side provides the minutes from the September 3 Physical Land Use Subcommittee from the Ft. Sanders Long Range Planning process. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org. The next full committee meeting is scheduled for 3:00pm at the Knoxville Museum of Art. Please note the location change.

Thanks and have a great weekend. Go Vols!

Project Updates

2009-09-11T17:08:00.002-04:00

The City is continuing to work with our consultants on the Streetscape Project. Our Environmental Clearance Request document has been sent to TDOT and reviewed. The City, Vaughn & Melton and S&ME are currently working to provide TDOT with additional information that has been requested for this process.

Also the City is continuing to review the Technical Memos, "Traffic, Pedestrian, Bicycle and Transit Operations Study" that have been provided by our consultants Gresham, Smith and Partners. These documents will help provide the basis for the design work, when the City is approved to move into that phase of the project.

More information will be posted on the Ft. Sanders Long Range Planning Process as the subcommittee meeting notes are compiled. Thanks!

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

2009-09-04T16:29:00.000-04:00

Thanks to everyone who participated in the Fort Sanders Subcommittee meetings yesterday! They were very productive and we look forward to providing updates to you on those meetings over the next few weeks. A spreedsheet detailing the Implementation Strategies from the previous planing efforts, what has been accomplished and opportunities for the future, is located in a link on the right. This will help to guide the committees as they formulate recommendations by the end of the calendar year.

I hope everyone has a wonderful long weekend and is able to enjoy the University's first home game and the city's Boomsday Festival. For more information on Boomsday events please visit: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/Press_Releases/Content/2009/0901c.asp

Ft. Sanders Subcommittee Meetings

2009-08-28T17:34:00.000-04:00

Fort Sanders Long Range Planning Subcommittees will meet on Thursday, September 3rd at 3:00 pm in the Howard Baker Center for Public Policy, located on the University of Tennessee campus at 1640 Cumberland Avenue.

Quality of Life Subcommittee: Rooms 207 & 208

Land Planning Subcommittee: 3rd Floor Executive Board Room

These are public meetings and anyone is welcome to attend. Staff members from the City of Knoxville and from the Metropolitan Planning Commission will moderate the meetings. The focus of these meetings will be to create goals and action items to improve the area.

Multiple Updates

2009-08-21T16:02:00.000-04:00

Fort Sanders Long Range Plan Update:
The full stakeholder committee met on Thursday, August 6th at the Baker Center to continue the discussion. The major focus for this meeting was threefold: 1) Update the full committee regarding the Physical Land Use and Quality of Life subcommittee meetings held July 2nd; 2) Discuss interim steps and actions (applications for funding and google site); and 3) Review the 2000 Implementaion Strategies and prioritize for the future.

Notes from the meeting will be available on the blog in the next few days. Please see the link to the Knoxville News Sentinel Article on this event:
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2009/aug/16/panel-to-focus-on-fort-sanders-future/

Traffic Circulation Study Update:
Part of the Cumberland Avenue Streetscape Plan calls for a traffic circulation study to be completed by the city's consultants Gresham Smith and Partners to understand the impacts of the proposed changes and to mitigate any negative factors. The third phase of this study is currently under staff review and we hope to share it with the public soon.

Stakeholder Updates:
1) Knox Heritage hosts: Art & Architecture Tour of Historic Fort Sanders
Led by Jack Neely and Randall De Ford on Friday, September 4 - 6 p.m.
Begins with reception at the Knoxville Museum of Art.
Tickets are $60.
Visit http://www.knoxheritage.org/specialevents
Or call 523-8008.

2) Rohm and Haas Seek proposals for $30,000 Grant
Awarded to a non-profit or community organization to make land improvements.
Deadline is 5 pm, Friday, September 18th.
For more information contact Ms. Kara Cleveland, at the Shelton Group
934-1774

If you have items of interest for the areas connected to Cumberland Ave., please send them to me at awallace@cityofknoxville.org and I will be happy to consider them for this blog.

Streetscape Update

2009-07-31T13:49:00.000-04:00

The Cumberland Avenue Corridor Plan is composed of two major parts: 1) The Streetscape Plan, and 2) The Urban Design Plan. The city has been awarded a contract from the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) to implement the Streetscape Plan which proposes improvements to facilities for all modes of transportation. The general concept of the plan is to change Cumberland Ave. from a 4 lane cross section with two eastbound and two westbound lanes to a 3 lane cross section with one eastbound, one westbound, and a center two-way left turn lane. This concept will provide wider sidewalks, shared travel lanes for bikes and vehicles, as well as defined space for transit stops. As a part of this project the overhead utility lines will be moved to provide a cleaner, more aesthetically appealing environment with street trees and other amenities. For more information on the plan, please see the link on the right.

Update: The city’s consultants Vaughn & Melton and S&ME have submitted the required “Historical Resources Survey Report” for the projected impacts of the Streetscape Project to TDOT. This information is part of the requirements for the project to receive its Environmental Clearance from TDOT to be able to proceed with detailed design work. The document submitted on July 24th, was revised by S&ME to meet requests for additional information from TDOT. We don’t know the timeline for review of this document, status of review will be updated on this blog.

Additionally, two requests have been made requesting funding for projects that will support the Streetscape Project. The first was submitted to the Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) requesting Congestion Mitigation and Air Quailty (CMAQ) funds to improve sidewalk connections within the Fort Sanders neighborhood and also to provide bus shelters within the area to support the existing transit lines (KAT buses, trolleys, T Link, etc). That application was submitted on July 10th. The second request was made on July 17th for TDOT fiscal year 2009 Safety Funds which would be used to improve the intersections of 17th Street and Clinch Ave. and 17th and White Ave. These requests are currently being reviewed by the appropriate agencies. Status of review will be updated on this blog.

Image Credit: Bruce Mccamish,
www.amazingaerialphotography.com

Ft. Sanders Planning Update

2009-07-24T16:09:00.000-04:00

In March 2009, the City and MPC staff organized a stakeholder meeting for the Fort Sanders area in response to a request for long rang planning. The meetings have been held monthly on the first Thursday of the month at the Baker Center. The boundaries for this area are generally World's Fair Park to the east, the intersection of Kingston Pike and Neyland Dr. to the west, Grand Ave. and industrial properties to the north, and the Tennessee River to the south.

At the inital and subsequent meetings of stakeholders, the group identified several opportunities and constraints within the neighborhood including land use issues and quality of life issues. It was determined that the committee should be divided into to two subcommittees on: 1) Physical Land Use, and 2) Quality of Life. These subcommittees are meeting on the alternate month from the full committee.

Both of these subcommittees met on July 2 and notes from those meetings are available in the Links section on this page. The next full stakeholder committee meeting will be on August 6 at the Baker Center

Welcome!

2009-07-22T10:38:00.000-04:00

The function of The Cumberland Connection Blog is to keep all of our partners informed about changes and issues that are impacting the areas connected to Cumberland Avenue.

This includes information regarding the Fort Sanders Long Range Planning effort, information from our partners (UT, the hospitals, etc.), and provides updates on the city's urban design and streetscape projects for Cumberland Ave.

Additionally, it provides a tool for the merchants and neighborhood residents to stay connected to the city.

This blog will be updated most Fridays with information covering the up coming week. Additional post may be made for time sensitive matters. Thanks!