(Today’s article is written by Insideofknoxville.com intern Alexa-Marie Melendez.)
Knoxville continues to see growth and development, resulting in reconstruction of various parts of the city. Public and private partnerships work together to cultivate a more advanced and prosperous city. One of the projects on the city’s agenda is the $150 million Knoxville Science Museum, proposed in 2018 by Jim Clayton, founder of the Clayton Family Foundation (CFF). The following year, Jim successfully locked down the $65 million worth of property through a lease agreement with Knox County City Council. The charitable organization founded by CFF was originally set to open its doors in December 2021, but the unprecedented time of COVID and post-COVID shifted the timeline for the museum.
Struggling with preliminary costs and sourcing materials due to the pandemic, various steps of the museum’s construction halted while waiting for the new standards and regulations for museums in the post-COVID landscape. This resulted in a two-year extension beyond the original 2022 lease expiration date.
Additionally, construction of Knoxville’s Science Museum depended on the relocation of Knoxville Police Department Headquarters. City council made the decision to group the Knoxville Police Department, along with the Knoxville Fire Department, City Court, the backup E-911 center, Knoxville-Knox County Emergency Management Agency, and City Pension System, in the large new public safety complex at the site of the former St. Mary’s Hospital.
The KPD moved from the building on Howard Baker Jr. Avenue which had been home to the police department headquarters for around 60 years. The Knoxville Police Department closed its doors in June 2023, officially moving out in October. KPD now operates from the new 200,000-square-foot complex, located on Huron Street (the former location of Saint Mary’s Hospital). Within the interval of KPD relocating, Clayton obtained a demolition permit in September 2023. Clayton and his team continue to work toward construction and excitement is growing once more.
While we’d all like to know when the museum will open, Clayton and Knoxville Science Museum Inc. have refrained from giving a timeline for the museum’s completion. Clayton and his team have the permit and have completed the interior abatement. The next step in the project is the completion of the abatement and demolition processes. Demolition is being overseen by Environmental Abatement Inc. and a typical demolition of a similar size takes about six to nine months.
The lease agreement with Knox County City Council specifically states that the Clayton Family Foundation can only build proposed science museum. This differs from the construction of Knoxville’s baseball stadium by Randy Boyd, for example. With complete ownership of the property, Boyd has the flexibility to shift plans if needed. As is, the stadium is set to open for the 2025 baseball season and, as a baseball fan, I’m thrilled that the project is underway.
But there is another difference: The vision of the museum means a great deal to Clayton, a science enthusiast with an interest in technology and invention. From a young age, science and STEM thinking have been constants in Clayton’s life. Clayton’s first job after graduating high school was working at a radio station. He later enrolled in pre-engineering at Memphis State, transferring to the University of Tennessee’s engineering program in 1953.
Clayton plans to share this love for all things science throughout the museum, as Barber McMurry Architects presents three designs for the museum. Each of the three designs contains exhibit space, classrooms, an auditorium or amphitheater, learning spaces, and indoor and outdoor dining. All designs also include pedestrian access to and from the museum that connects to other parts of the city, such as parking garages, Mary Costa Plaza, and the planned Urban Wilderness connector.
The foundation’s main goal is to create an attraction that gives back to the community and provides something for everyone. Clayton believes that education and a love of science are meant to be shared and appreciated by all ages. He hopes the museum will be well-anchored in the community and facilitate cooperation with local schools, STEM programs, and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Partnerships are already being discussed.
Currently, we can only speculate and hope that construction of the Knoxville Science Museum Inc. will start soon. Knoxville Science Museum board member Mark Freeman informed Knox News that demolition will not require traffic changes around the site.