Culture
A Farewell to Nikki Giovanni and a Word on Words
I’ve been unable to shake thoughts of the loss of poet, activist, and life-force Nikki Giovanni who left this world just over a month ago. While many other events from the past two or three months...
New Exhibition, “Nouveau” Opens Tonight at Lilienthal Gallery
The latest exhibition presented by Lilienthal Gallery, “Nouveau,” makes its debut tonight. It’s definitely a “go big” kind of exhibition, with six different artists presenting large pieces, making large statements. Included are returning artists Yigal Ozeri...
New Book, “The Kitty of Knoxville” by Wesley Bennett Highlights the City
A new children’s book, The Kitty of Knoxville, with ties to downtown and the University of Tennessee has been published by Wesley (Wes) Bennett. A long-time friend (and neighbor for ten years), Wes told me several...
A Headless Governor and a Mystery on Gay Street
On a recent Sunday afternoon two families along with others gathered at 601 South Gay Street to unveil a piece of art, a window into Tennessee History, and a mystery all in one sculpture. Is it...
Business
Able Trade Increasing Community Reach with Workshops and More Studio Space
Tucked away at the end of Jackson Terminal is a studio/workshop that, while easy to miss if you’re not looking, is an incredible asset to the Maker community in Knoxville. When many shops were shuttering their...
Two Closures and an Opening
As mentioned yesterday, the end of one year and the beginning of the next often ushers in change in the downtown business world. Closings are almost a given and, often, there are new businesses giving it...
Two Openings and a Closure
A couple truths: There are always closures and openings around the turn of each year. Also, I can’t keep up with them all. As the pace of everything associated with downtown has reached new speeds, I’m...
Sage Spa Connects New and Old Friends With a Unique Experience
Sage Sauna opened just a few weeks ago outside Trailhead Beer Market (1317 Island Home Avenue) offering a completely new concept for our area. A popular idea in Scandinavia and some parts of the northern U.S., Sage...
Development
Knoxville Becomes Tennessee’s First Charging Smart City (Plus Big Ears News, Japanese New Year!)
As the country slowly and inexorably moves toward electric vehicles, the City of Knoxville continues to keep pace or better. Yesterday the announcement came that Knoxville is the first city to join Charging Smart. Their website...
Pedestrian Bridge Project Gets $24.7 Million Federal Grant
This is the first article I’ve written about the pedestrian bridge project. It may seem an odd omission to readers, so I’ll start this one with a bit of editorializing to explain myself, and then we’ll...
Construction Underway Soon for Sevier Avenue Streetscapes Project
“The commercial spine of Sevier has faded to a pale copy of its past character.” – 2006 South Waterfront Vision Plan Twenty-ish years ago, a baby-faced, ambitious city mayor named Bill Haslam invited the city to...
A Look Inside the New Jenny Boyd Carousel Theatre Opening in 2025 to Continue A Legacy of Theatre in Knoxville
When I began writing this article, I would casually mention the University of Tennessee’s Carousel Theatre to Knoxville natives, many of whom immediately shared their memories of it, recalling it as their first live theatre experience....
Events
Downtown Knoxville Ten Day Planner (1/12 – 1/21/2025)
If you want your event included, please make a Facebook event, invite me via the “invite” button on the event page (Alan Sims – you’ll have to friend me), and it will be included. I need...
Downtown Knoxville Ten Day Planner (1/5 – 1/14/2025)
If you want your event included, please make a Facebook event, invite me via the “invite” button on the event page (Alan Sims – you’ll have to friend me), and it will be included. I need...
Ring in the New Year: Downtown Knoxville’s Celebrations
Ringing in the new year has different meanings for different people. Some celebrate quietly at home. Some celebrate with parties, decorations and special food. Some choose to get out and celebrate with live music, friends and...
Downtown Knoxville Ten Day Planner (12/29/2024 – 1/7/2025)
December 2024 If you want your event included, please make a Facebook event, invite me via the “invite” button on the event page (Alan Sims – you’ll have to friend me), and it will be included....
Life
Snow in Downtown Knoxville, January 2025
For the second year in a row we’ve gotten a significant snow in January. I’ll take it. In the early 1980s when I moved to Knoxville, multiple snows a year seemed normal. In recent years we’ve...
Top Ten Downtown Knoxville Articles for 2024
With over three hundred articles coming and going on the website each year, it is easy to miss a few each year. These ten might have been hard to miss as they were the most read...
Downtown Knoxville Year in Review: 2024
Let’s take a minute before we look ahead into next year and consider the year that was. January gave us a powerful winter storm and several major stories. Downtown business and development news hardly slowed over...
Downtown Knoxville Christmas Eve Services 2024
Welcome to this year’s edition of downtown Christmas...