The new restrooms at Sequoyah Park will open on Friday, July 30.

"Sequoyah Park is one of our most widely visited parks, and the greenway there is one of our most popular trails among runners," said Joe Walsh, Director of Knoxville Parks and Recreation. "It only made sense for Sequoyah to be next on our list of parks to receive a new restroom facility."

The City Parks and Recreation Department has made a commitment to add restrooms to one large park on an annual basis. Recent recipients have included Tyson, Holston River, and Adair parks.

"At the time when many of our larger parks were built, accessibility issues were not taken under consideration and there were fewer regulations. We're taking it upon ourselves to go back to these parks and provide proper restroom facilities," said Walsh.

The process for the Sequoyah project took longer than others because the park is on TVA property. Due to the restroom site's proximity to the river, the City had to complete a cultural resource study.

Once cleared, city officials met with the Sequoyah area residents to get the community involved.

When the project was announced, Darrell Johnson with Johnson Architecture stepped forward and donated the design services for the new facility.

Holston Construction Company won the bid for the City to complete the designed building for approximately $148,000, a price within the original budget of the project.

Randy Boyd of Petsafe volunteered to donate a dog water fountain for the facility and Holston Construction subsequently agreed to install the fountain free of charge.

"Sequoyah Park is one of those gems in our Knoxville recreation system," said Walsh. "It's a recreation director's dream to see a neighborhood take as much pride in their park as Sequoyah has, even over restrooms."

The new Sequoyah Park restrooms are located near the western-most parking lot of the park. City contractors will handle custodial and security services for the restrooms.

For more information on Sequoyah Park, please visit www.cityofknoxville.org/parks or call 311.