Blog: City Blog

Urban Wilderness: 1 week, 2 milestones

On a Friday and then the following Monday, two important Urban Wilderness projects were celebrated.

First came the March 22 ground-breaking for the Augusta Quarry Phase II project - a $3.6 million investment that will add first-ever restrooms and changing stations, an expanded overlook, a smoother and more accessible pedestrian path to the water, and really unique floating beach and swim platforms. Look for the quarry with new and improved amenities to reopen late this fall.

Combined with Phase I work that added a new entrance and parking, and major Aslan Foundation funding for design services, the total public-private investment in Augusta Quarry will exceed $8 million.

Three days later, on Monday, March 25, dozens of mountain bikers and South Knoxville residents joined Mayor Indya Kincannon and Vice Mayor / 1st District City Councilman Tommy Smith in officially opening the Baker Creek Preserve Pavilion.

During and after the celebration, children climbed, biked and skated. Families of bicyclists readied for the pump track. Instead of a traditional ribbon-cutting, a parade of bicyclists rode through a break-away banner. Check out the video!

This $2.6 million City family-friendly amenity includes restrooms, shaded picnic tables, more parking spaces, a water-filling station for people and dogs, and huge wall maps of the nearby trails.

But the whole is more than the sum of its parts. The pavilion serves as an anchor and a gateway to the network of Urban Wilderness trails.

Mayor Kincannon said the iconic, one-of-a-kind structure will serve as a landmark and a gathering place for family and friends wanting to connect prior to working out at the next-door bike park, enjoying nearby restaurants, or further exploring the Urban Wilderness trails.

"You say: 'Meet me at the Baker Creek Preserve Pavilion,'" Kincannon said. "People will know what that means and where to meet you."

Here is a small gallery from the March 25 Baker Creek opening:

Families of bicyclists turned out for the March 25 opening of the Baker Creek Preserve Pavilion

Families of bicyclists turned out for the March 25 opening of the Baker Creek Preserve Pavilion

Mayor Indya Kincannon and Vice Mayor Tommy Smith helped kick off the Baker Creek Preserve Pavilion festivities on March 25.

An enthusiastic crowd of mountain bikers and South Knoxville residents attended the grand opening of the Baker Creek Preserve Pavilion.

The hardscapes at the Baker Creek Preserve Pavilion blend urban and wild!

Meanwhile, here are a few photos from the March 22 ground-breaking for the Augusta Quarry Phase II project, celebrated with South Knoxville residents, members of the construction and design teams, and Andrea Bailey, Executive Director of the Aslan Foundation, which partnered in co-funding the project.

Mayor Kincannon and Aslan Foundation Executive Director Andrea Bailey

Mayor Kincannon and Aslan Foundation Executive Director Andrea Bailey

Posted by evreeland On 27 March, 2024 at 2:52 PM