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The next step may finally realize the county’s dream

It was a noble experiment, born of a perceived need for an outlet for area truck farmers. It came into being, on Knox County’s ticket, when former Gov. Ned McWhirter sent the state’s farmers’ market money to White Pine, a couple of counties east. He preferred investment in rural areas. Rightly or wrongly, McWhirter’s attitude conspired to place a lot of needed investment in poorer rural spots.

Knox County Executive Dwight Kessel responded with a “Hell, we’ll build our own,” and picked the Washington Pike site now being let out for lease bids. Why it didn’t work out as planned calls for a complicated answer.

The Knox County Farmers’ Market was well-designed and well located—for something—it just didn’t turn out to be a good place for a farmers’ market, not in the long run.

First the county acquired a prime 40 acres at the Washington Pike-McCampbell Drive intersection for $2.4 million in 1990. Over the next couple of years, the county invested $2.8 million in site development, including a little over a million in construction, including the central pavilion. In 1993, the year the market was completed, another $860,000 was spent by the county, mostly on completing construction. It opened to great fanfare and a steady stream of business.

Things seemed to start out just fine. Vegetables gathered and sold there under the management of the original contractor, Neely Produce, were fresh and reasonably priced, and the selection was good. It was an asset to the whole of East Knoxville and particularly to the Mall Formerly Known as East Towne.

The Neely contract ran until 1996, when business was in decline and county money was still subsidizing the arrangement. That subsidy never ended, through the tenancy of Chattanoogan Roger Dotson. The number of farmer-peddlers dwindled, and most of the pavilion was taken up by handicraft stalls. It lost its character as well as much of its early business, and when it was turned over to the county’s Industrial Development Board a couple of years ago, it was a shell of its former self. The county had invested more than $6 million in the property and its operation, and it added about 34 acres to the site via condemnation, for another $180,000. The Metropolitan Planning Commission was to study its reuse, and when that study was concluded, the Development Corp. of Knox County’s mission was to redevelop it into a community asset once more, with good public uses on the 74-acre tract—and a profit potential.

The county put out a request for proposals early this year, based on a long-term ground lease to the developers. The idea is for the county to get rent in lieu of taxes and still hold title to the land, while getting some public amenities paid for by the developers.

By the April 13 deadline, the Development Corp. had two proposals, and they were similar in some respects.

The Graham Corp. of Knoxville had assembled a local team to propose a retail and residential village concept, including a lawn/lake park area and a central market pavilion, with room left for a branch library and/or senior-citizen center.

Holrob Investments of Knoxville has formed a group called the Holrob-Farmers Market Partnership, proposing a mixed-use village-look retail and park complex, absent a residential component. It proposes a Target store and a Kroger, along with smaller shops. Forty-four acres would go to park land.

Either concept sounds pretty attractive, and the public comment period ends today, with a 5-8 p.m. hearing in the Knoxville Center’s City Hall office, where the proposals will be on view. Written and oral comments will be recorded and shared with the IDB’s evaluation committee before a developer is picked.

It’s beginning to look as if the long-standing county effort to realize the market property’s potential and to provide a strong community contribution to that corner of East Knoxville may be approaching fruition. More power to that effort.

May 20, 2004 • Vol. 14, No. 21 © 2004 Metro Pulse