Finding your way around downtown Knoxville is getting easier by the day, thanks to a comprehensive system of signs being installed this winter. The first of nearly 250 new signs in the downtown Wayfinding project were installed this week, and work will continue into April.
The signs provide an attractive, coherent system to guide both motorists and pedestrians around downtown, highlighting public parking, historical sites, cultural attractions, districts such as the Old City, recreation opportunities, government buildings, hospitals and transportation options.
The new signs will replace about 400 existing signs, which will be removed. The net effect will be fewer signs downtown, with more information. The $1.2 million project is 80 percent federally funded, with a 20 percent local match.
There are three main goals of the project, said Project Manager Anne Wallace with the City's Office of Redevelopment:
Navigation. Wayfinding aims to assist both locals and visitors as they explore downtown - motorists as well as pedestrians. That includes directions to and improved signage at garages, and even electronic messaging at City garages that helps people find alternative parking if that particular garage is full.
Economic development. Tourists are likely to extend their stay if they find out about secondary points of interest once they're downtown, and easy-to-read signage is an effective way to tell people about what downtown offers, Wallace said.
Branding. Giving downtown a "unique look" is intentional, according to Wallace. Aesthetically, the new signs carry color schemes and motifs inspired by downtown's architecture and history.
"Downtown can be confusing," Wallace said. "We still sometimes have people walking down Gay Street asking how to get to Market Square. This will make it easier for everybody to navigate and enjoy everything downtown has to offer."