At the 2018 American Institute of Architects National Convention in New York City, the Beardsley Community Farm Education Center was named a Merit Award recipient of the AIA Gulf States Region.

The project was one of just 14 recipients out of 136 submissions across the six-state region.

The Beardsley Community Farm Education Center, located at 1741 Reynolds St., was a collaborative project between the City of Knoxville, the Knoxville Community Action Committee, CAC Beardsley Community Farm, the University of Tennessee College of Architecture and Design, Elizabeth Eason Architecture, Merit Construction, and the Public Building Authority.



A UT student-led design/build architecture project, the new facility houses office space, an indoor and outdoor classroom, restrooms, a washing area for the foods produced on the farm, and storage space for gardening supplies.

This was the only East Tennessee chapter project to receive an award at the AIA National Convention this year. For more information on the process of building the Beardsley Community Farm Education Center, visit https://bit.ly/1rKL6Qu.

At the state level, the City’s Greenways Corridor and Feasibility Study led by Ross/Fowler P.C. was recently highlighted as a Merit Award recipient by the Tennessee Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects.

Outlining 13 new greenway corridor projects with an estimated $45 million investment, the study has positioned Knoxville Parks and Recreation to prioritize construction of 24 miles of greenways in the future.

Consultation from the City’s Greenways Commission (consisting of community representatives from each City Council district) as well as input gathered from multiple public meetings helped to steer the selection of the 13 corridors. The study was funded through a grant from the Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization.

To view the corridors featured in the study, visit: https://bit.ly/2lFTL5U.