The kids sat patiently in uniform while the adults talked about the reopening of Claude Walker Ball Park and then took the field after a brief ceremony to play baseball. That is exactly what GEM Community Development Group, Emerald Youth Foundation and the City of Knoxville had envisioned a year ago after forming a partnership to renovate the park. A … Read More
The first residential structure at the new Knoxville stadium will be named “The Beauford Delaney Building” in honor of the internationally acclaimed artist whose original childhood home stood one block from the site of the transformational project on the edge of the Old City. Downtown Knoxville-based Partners Development will serve as the developer for the $45 million project, and the … Read More
The Tennessee Smokies will take on a new name when the team moves back home to Knoxville. The Smokies part will remain – its association with the team spans decades. The new part will be Knoxville, which returns the name used for the team from 1925 to 1967 and then again from 1993 to 1999 when it was called the … Read More
The News Sentinel started its stadium story with this sentence: The Tennessee Smokies are coming home to Knoxville. This longtime baseball fan will add: It’s about time. Minor League Baseball left Knoxville in 1999 because city and county leadership and the ownership at the time couldn’t reach an agreement on a location. The Smokies departed for Sevier County and have … Read More
The push for approval of a new multi-use stadium went 2-2 at the plate this week – and looks to do the same next week to bat a thousand. The Sports Authority and the Knoxville-Knox County Planning Commission, in separate meetings, both granted unanimous approval this week to move ahead with the $80.1 million overall project. The Sports Authority voted … Read More
Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon posted a video this week to explain her support for the proposed multi-use stadium to be built in East Knoxville on the edge of the Old City complete with a background of baseball sounds and images. The Sports Authority, Knoxville City Council and Knox County Commission all will vote within the next week after a workshop … Read More
A local developer has plans to build a $22 million hotel in the Old City if approval is granted for a new baseball stadium and multi-use facility. “I’m excited about the growth of downtown Knoxville,” said Nick Patel, a University of Tennessee graduate and president of TCH Knoxville, LLC, which owns seven other hotels in Knox and Sevier counties. “The … Read More
A column in the News Sentinel by Katherine Whitehead outlined well what a new baseball stadium could mean in Knoxville to even a casual fan. Whitehead wants an experience both inside and outside the stadium, especially after the game ends. She wrote this about going to a game with her partner: When springtime rolled around, he took it upon himself … Read More
Does Knoxville want a new multi-use stadium? The unequivocal answer is yes. A poll commissioned by the Knoxville Area Association of Realtors (KAAR) and conducted by nationally respected firm American Strategies indicated nearly 60 percent of registered voters in Knox County are in favor of the proposal to build a new stadium on the edge of the Old City in … Read More
A panel presented by the Beck Cultural Exchange Center examined the history of the proposed site for a multi-use stadium on the edge of the Old City and unanimously agreed that the development project should move forward in East Knoxville. Rev. Reneé Kesler, president of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, moderated the panel, which consisted of two former Knoxville mayors in … Read More
