Town Homes Planned for North Central (Former Site of the Dempster Building)

Long time readers may remember a story from 2019 in which I detailed plans to renovate and bring back to life the Dempster Building at 609-617 North Central Street. Then owned by Dewhirst Properties, they hoped to construct apartments inside the 1895 building. It got its name because it was once owned by George Dempster (inventor of the Dumpster) and his brothers. For a look inside and a deeper dive into the history of the building, check out the link above for the previous article.

Alas, as with many such plans, reality intruded. First, came a pandemic, and by then priorities had shifted, with Dewhirst Properties selling the property in 2021 and the property transferring ownership again in 2024. The new owners, Paragon Development, L.P., determined the building had sufficient structural issues that a re-purpose for residential use would not work. The building was demolished and plans have now been announced for townhomes lining Central Street, as well as an additional building fronting Broadway (the property goes through). I met with Managing Partner Eddie Shainin to get the details.

The company has developed and is developing several projects around the city, including apartments in south Knoxville, as well as on Dandridge Avenue near the baseball stadium. They are currently developing the former Fraternal Order of Police building on Hall of Fame Drive into a Regis Workspace and an adjacent building into a golf simulator.

The project at the former site of the Dempster Building will include “higher-end town homes with a little bit of office space on the property.” It is adjacent to the Knox Walls project introduced in 2024. Nine town homes will be included, ranging from three to four stories. The office space, which will face Broadway, will be used by Paragon. An entrance off Broadway, past the small office building, will lead to residents’ two-car garages behind each of the new homes.

The four-story homes include a room on the rooftop, while the three-story homes have rooftop access without the additional room. The four-story units will come in at around 3,500 square feet with four bedrooms, and the three-story units at about 2,400 with three bedrooms with “higher-end finishes and character.” Each of the town homes includes a second-floor balcony overlooking Central, and all residents will share guest parking and a common area for cookouts or other gatherings, to the rear of the building.

Of the size of the new homes, Eddie said the company tries to build things that may not be the focus of other developers and while one and two bedrooms have been common in recent projects, not many downtown developers are building three and four bedrooms. He said, “There is a reason for that: It’s hard to get a return on three and four bedrooms.” The target audience is people who want to live in their homes. He thinks this will appeal to people who want a neighborhood and not necessarily people looking for short-term rentals. The price will likely be between $1.3 million and $1.6 million.

While the company’s focus is mostly on residential apartments, the narrowness and location of this site didn’t lend itself to that kind of structure. He likened the new homes to Hatcher-Hill’s project, City House Town Homes, developed on Vine Avenue in 2020. While the concept is similar, the look is a bit different. Architects for the project are Benefield-Richters, with Amy Sherrill acting as lead architect. The design is modern, though with an eye toward working with the building environment both in scale and material.

Designs have been finalized and applications for approvals with the city are underway and anticipated in the next couple of months. Conversations with the appropriate parties in the city have been ongoing and approval is anticipated. He hopes to break ground in “April or May.” Once started, the project should take “fourteen to eighteen months,” meaning that the new homes should be ready in late 2027.

The demolition in August was quite dramatic and striking against the backdrop of Knox Walls; Leslie snapped a few photos: