By Vivian Shipe
KNOXVILLE, TN — Under the watchful eye of the massive statue of Alex Haley, Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon and KCDC Director Ben Bentley, stood at the base of the statue and made an announcement that would begin to right a terrible wrong. It was an announcement that would finally reconnect East Knoxville with the rest of the city; removing a barrier set in place more than 60 years ago when Urban renewal, or Urban REMOVAL destroyed the black community when it brought the interstate through it’s heart, built a civic coliseum in its neighborhoods, and in doing so, destroyed thousands of homes, churches and businesses from which the African American community has yet to recover. But, the winds of change have finally caught up with time.
Change will come in seven stages through a federal grant of 42.6 million dollars , a Restoring Communities grant awarded from the US Department of Transportation. Along with members of city council and community leaders, several key players spoke in support of the changes that would bridge the south , north, and downtown areas to the “heart of the city”, as Councilwoman McKenzie calls East Knoxville which lies in her district . Visionary Reverend Renee Kesler, who had a key part in bringing the grant to life in a way that the end result could be seen and felt on paper was also in attendance and stood at the side of McKenzie as she acknowledged the work and passion put into the grant by Kesler. Tanisha Fitzgerald-Baker, chair of the African American Equity Restoration Taskforce, developed to find and create moments such as this also took to the podium to share her thoughts of the change to come.
The work to reconnect East Knoxville will begin in 2025. The grant covers more than half of the cost of the project and when complete will have not only restored connectivity by creating walking and biking trails, the project will cross the river to connect East and South Knoxville also. The project has many other new projects and pathways among them, a Cultural Corridor, long a dream held by Rev. Kesler, will come to life with landmarks along the way of African Americans who contributed to the history of Knoxville and the world.
Seven has been called the number of completion; in this case it is only just the beginning. It’s been a long time coming, but a change has come.
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