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Downtown Strategic Plan approved by board
A new strategic plan for downtown Knoxville was approved by the CBID board of directors during the February meeting. The plan is designed to serve as a roadmap for the organization over the next three years. This plan includes four strategic priorities, each with measurable goals, objectives, timetables and financial impact. These priorities include:
1. Business Recruitment and Retention - CBID will proactively focus on retention of our current businesses and recruitment of retail and office projects.
2. Big Ideas - Create an evaluation/prioritization process and funding mechanism by which CBID can take an ongoing, proactive leadership role in making catalyst projects happen.
3. Governance - Ensure that CBID is compliant with laws/regulations and has the legal authority to meet its future goals and objectives.
4. Support & Maintain Quality of Life - Enhance and promote downtown as a vibrant place to live, work, play and shop.
To download the complete strategic plan as approved, click here. [Approved Strategic Plan .doc].
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CBID approves grant bridging financial gap to land Urban Outfitters in downtown Knoxville
 During the February Board of Directors meeting, the Central Business Improvement District (CBID) board of directors
approved a facade improvement grant request in the amount of
$500,000 in order to help bridge a financial gap necessary to land
Urban Outfitters in the Arnstein Building adjacent to Market Square.
As proposed, property owners, Arnstein Partners, LLC, will begin making necessary building improvements immediately and turn the space
over to Urban Outfitters for tenant improvements in October 2010. Urban
Outfitters would be scheduled to open in March 2011. The store would occupy levels 1 and 2 of the building, which is approximately
11,542 square feet.
"A retailer like Urban Outfitters is a perfect fit in downtown
Knoxville," said Patrick Hunt, CBID Board Chair. "This is a true
catalyst project for downtown and has the potential to be a real
'tipping point' for downtown, creating an environment for other
retailers to follow."
For more information on the grant, click here. Photo by Josh Flory.
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Henley St. Bridge redesign to include designated bike lanes
 The Tennessee Department of Transportation, in response to requests
from the City of Knoxville and the CBID, will include bicycle lanes on a renovated Henley Street
Bridge.
"In response to your request, I am directing our Design Division
staff to revise the final striping plans for the Henley Street Bridge
to include five travel lanes, two bicycle lanes and sidewalks," TDOT
Commissioner Gerald F. Nicely stated in a letter to Mayor Bill Haslam
on Wednesday.
Haslam and the CBID board of directors sent letters to Nicely on
Feb. 2, formally asking the TDOT commissioner to revise the
department's initial plan to include six traffic lanes on the bridge.
The Henley Bridge will be rebuilt and widened as part of a
rehabilitation project expected to begin in 2011.
In addition to requesting the addition of bike lanes, the CBID board of directors also urged TDOT to use the project as a time to consider ways to improve pedestrian access and usability for the entire Henley Street corridor.
For more information on the bridge project, click here. Photo by Frank Kehren.
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