KNOXVILLE, Tenn — The COVID-19 pandemic isn't stopping the further development of downtown Knoxville.
Right now, more than $180 million dollars is being invested in new condominiums, apartments, restaurants, offices and hotel renovations.
The city expects it to lead to another thousand people living in downtown by next summer, and developers don't plan to slow down.
“We’re very bullish about downtown. We’re not looking at short-term development – we’re looking at 20 to 50 years. So if there’s a little blip in the economy, that’s OK, we’ll continue on about our business,” said Tim Hill, co-owner of Hatcher-Hill Properties, which is managing two current construction projects.
Tax incentives are helping some of the developers transform downtown.
“Development projects face different sets of circumstances,” said Deputy to the Mayor Stephanie Welch, the City’s Chief Economic and Community Development Officer. “Some, like the mixed-use development under construction at the former state Supreme Court site, are so challenging, it’s almost impossible to envision them happening without some help from the City to close the financing gap and make these projects viable."
The city has details on nine projects currently underway in downtown Knoxville here. They include:
The Overlook will be a six-story condominium building with great views of the Tennessee River and Henley Bridge. It's being built on what was an empty gravel lot on Hill Ave. and is expected to open later this year.
The old State Supreme Court site will be transformed into a mixed-use development including a 237-unit apartment community, short-term rentals, and some retail. It's expected to open in early 2022.
Photos: $1.8 million in development in downtown Knoxville
The building that housed the old NV and Bowery nightclubs in the Old City at 125 E. Jackson Ave. will be transformed into two restaurants and two office suites and will also feature a courtyard/entertainment patio.
Stockyard Lofts will be a six-story, 152-unit apartment building on Willow Ave. in the Old City. It will also have 5,000 square feet of retail space at ground level.
The City House Town Homes on Vine Ave. is nearing completion. It will add seven 3,000 square foot condos to downtown living options. Each one includes a rooftop deck with amazing views of the city.
In addition to these, Smokies owner Randy Boyd is in conversations with city leaders about possibly bringing baseball back to open. He owns close to a dozen acres near downtown. The latest plans describe a mixed-use development around the stadium with retail, restaurants and living spaces built in cities like Atlanta and Chicago.