The construction crews keep coming up on and zooming past milestones, one after another, as they build the publicly-owned multi-use stadium that will expand the footprint of downtown and connect with East Knoxville.



The stadium will host professional baseball, soccer and concerts starting in 2025, and it's more than 50 percent finished. Big milestone, box checked.

Decorative brick is starting to go up on the Jackson Avenue facade, thanks to dozens of masons. Check.

The wooden roof deck over the grandstands - premium cross laminate timbers - is in place. Done.



The concourse is being waterproofed. Almost done.

The foundation for the bridge over First Creek has been poured. Done. Check.

The 16 concession windows are framed out. Another box checked.

And soon, the six towering light poles that are on site will be hoisted by supersized cranes and placed vertically in position. That's the next major milestone, just weeks away.

"The construction team is making really good progress," says Barry Brooke, the Sports Authority's construction representative. "The project is on schedule for the stadium to open in a little less than a year from now."

Brooke points out the wooden roof over the concourse - "a major upgrade," he says. "It looks so much better, warmer and less industrial, than a metal roof."

Installing the roof, Brooke says, "was a huge milestone. It allows crews to do all the framing in the dry."

This week, crews have been pouring hot waterproofing material between the two layers of concourse concrete - also a major step.

"Concrete is porous, so once the waterproofing is done, crews can hang drywall," Brooke says.

Elsewhere on the stadium construction site, seating areas are being installed on the third base side; the actual seats are coming later this year, but the concrete is being poured that will support the seating.

Also, terraced concrete has been poured for what will be a picnic area beside foul territory near left field.

And a prefabricated stone retaining wall is being built in left field - that's where a bullpen will be, with the concourse running behind and above it.



The 360-degree concourse, by the way, will be a unique feature for a minor league stadium. Visitors will be able to walk entirely around the baseball or soccer playing fields.

The concourse will swing out past the outfield and includes a bridge that crosses First Creek behind what will be center-right field. As of now, the foundation for the bridge has been installed on the south side of the creek.

Eventually, a new road and pedestrian pathway will connect the stadium site with the First Creek at Austin community that's under construction. And to the west of the stadium, a large public plaza roughly the size of Market Square will be built, and eventually an improved pedestrian pathway is envisioned along Jackson Avenue, beneath the Hall of Fame Drive and James White Parkway overpasses.

Also, the 233-unit Yardley Flats apartment complex on the stadium's third base side, named in honor of civil-rights pioneer William Francis Yardley, is progressing quickly. Four of the five stories are built and being framed out. 

Currently, the six mammoth light poles are resting in what will be the stadium's outfield. They'll be going vertical later this spring.

Many commenters say they thought the installation of the roofing made the stadium look substantially more finished. The same surely will be true when the light poles are installed. That's the next major milestone.