Forum Participants Rank Development Preferences for Two Downtown Locations
By Roger Harris, The Knoxville News-Sentinel, Tenn.
Mar. 2–Downtown developers Leigh Burch and David Dewhirst said Thursday they would be interested in responding to Knox County’s requests for proposals for the former News Sentinel site at the corner of State Street and Church Avenue.
Both are the most active developers of office and residential space in the central business district.
Burch and Dewhirst were among 35 downtown residents, business people and others who attended a public forum to discuss ideas for the former newspaper property and a four-acre site bounded by State and South Central streets and Union and Commerce avenues.
The Knox County Mayor’s Office hosted the meeting at the Knoxville Area Chamber Partnership office on Market Square.
The county owns the nearly one-acre former News Sentinel location. The city of Knoxville owns the State Street property, but the county controls the air rights.
Meeting participants divided into three groups to discuss development ideas for both sites and rank their preferences. The three most popular ideas, in order of preference, were a public library, a mixed-use retail and office space development and affordable or moderately priced housing.
Some participants suggested a public-private partnership develop a mixed-use tower on the former newspaper site. Whatever is developed on that parcel should have a connector to Gay Street, several participants said.
The government could build a library on the first few floors with privately financed office and residential uses on the upper floors, said downtown resident Pat McHugh.
“The one thing we all agreed on is we don’t want to make that area into an office ghetto where everything closes at 5 and nothing else happens there,” McHugh said.
Meeting facilitator Lynne Fugate, former executive director of Nine Counties One Vision, said all of the ideas generated at the meeting would be reported to the mayor’s office.
The county plans to solicit requests for proposals for the former newspaper site first. RFPs for the State Street property will be sought after the city releases the property to the county.
The county previously transferred the State Street site to the city for use as a transit center. The city is now considering other sites for a transit center.
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