Inside of Knoxville

Phase 3 Opens as First Creek at Austin Redefines Affordable Housing in Knoxville

Leslie Bateman·September 30, 2025

It’s June, and it’s the kind of hot that makes you wonder if the ice cream truck coming towards you is real or some kind of desert mirage. A young girl bursts out of her front...

Jennifer Montgomery Shares ‘Local Lore’ With Anyone Who Wants to Tag Along

Leslie Bateman·September 29, 2025

It’s Sunday evening, and a small crowd has gathered on the sidewalk of W. Jackson Avenue for a “Local Lore” walking tour led by Jennifer Montgomery. This edition, presented in partnership with Knox Heritage (where Jennifer...

City Announces Revised Emerald Youth Foundation Contract, Additional Chilhowee Park Investments

Leslie Bateman·September 24, 2025

This morning Mayor Indya Kincannon’s administration announced a revision of its purchase and development agreement with Emerald Youth Foundation, as well additional investments. The complete unedited news release is below: Working together, the City of Knoxville...

Park(ing) Day 2025: Turning Parking Spots Into Pop-Up Parks

Leslie Bateman·September 19, 2025

Starting at noon today, Park(ing) Day takes over Market Street with local teams transforming curbside parking spaces into mini-parks, lounges and creative gathering places. The international event, now in its 20th year, reimagines how public space...

A Conversation With Director Casey Sams About Clarence Brown Theatre’s ‘Sense and Sensibility’

Leslie Bateman·September 18, 2025

Clarence Brown Theatre kicks off its 2025–26 season with Sense and Sensibility, Kate Hamill’s witty and modern adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic novel, on stage Sept. 17–Oct. 5. The production blends the romance and social commentary...

Knoxville SOUP: Serving Up Crowdsourced Microgrants for 15 Years

Leslie Bateman·September 17, 2025

It’s a brilliant yet simple concept: host a public soup dinner, charge $5, invite four organizations to pitch, and let the people decide which project should get funded. At the end of the night, every dollar...

Henley Bridge Gets Glow-Up Just in Time for Georgia Game

Leslie Bateman·September 13, 2025

The year of our lord 2025 shall forever be remembered in Knoxville as the Year of the Bridge. (For the record, this is IOK’s second bridge story just this week). I figure it’s time for a...

Gay Street Bridge Repairs on Schedule; City Also Studying Possible Future Replacement Options

Leslie Bateman·September 11, 2025

This morning the City of Knoxville shared an update on the Gay Street Bridge, which has been closed since last June. This is the release in full. With the Gay Street Bridge expected to reopen in...

Catching up With Ashley Capps About the 2026 Big Ears Lineup & Beyond

Leslie Bateman·September 9, 2025

The 2026 Big Ears Festival lineup has just been announced and it’s a banger. Featuring over 250 events in 20+ downtown venues across four days (March 26-29), Big Ears is a world-renowned, boundary-defying celebration of music...

Compass & IOK Present ‘City Council Candidate Forum: The Game Show’

Leslie Bateman·September 8, 2025

Elections are serious business, but candidate forums don’t have to be stodgy affairs. This fall, Compass and Inside of Knoxville are teaming up to try something different. On Wednesday, Sept. 24, at 6:30 p.m., all City...

Inside of Knoxville Cake, Inside of Knoxville 15th Anniversary, June 2025

A (Cringing) Plea for Your Support of Free, Independent, Local Journalism

Leslie Bateman·September 5, 2025

So, I was sitting with Alan last week on his balcony overlooking Krutch Park. Alan sipped coffee, retired life looking real good on him. A bald eagle circled overhead like it was auditioning for a Lee...

Former KMA Director David Butler Is at Home With Art

Leslie Bateman·September 4, 2025

When Iliana Lilienthal asked—well, told—David Butler she wanted a select batch of his pastels for Lilienthal Gallery’s Deconstructing Landscapes exhibition, he was caught off guard. She’d spotted them in his South Knoxville home during a party...

See Inside Sauna House, Moving Into Former Mighty Mud in North Knoxville

Leslie Bateman·September 2, 2025

If it feels like Knoxville is in its sauna era, that’s because it is. Last winter, South Knoxville enjoyed two pop-ups: Sage Sauna at Trailhead Beer Market (Alan wrote about that here), and Sauna House at...

ETCDC Community Collaborative Reimagines Knox Central & KCS Sites

Leslie Bateman·August 22, 2025

Community input and the importance of process have been hot topics this week. One nonprofit that helps facilitate collaboration—and has come up with a pretty neat system for doing so—is the East Tennessee Community Design Center...