Year-end highlights don’t get much more important than this: Crime (including murders) is down citywide, and the number of non-fatal shooting victims plummeted by 45 percent in 2024, compared to 2023.
Additionally, all high-priority property crimes are down a combined 10 percent, including a 22 percent reduction in car burglaries and 15 percent reduction in burglary and breaking-and-entering reports. There has also been a 12 percent overall reduction in car thefts.
“Public safety is job #1, and these numbers prove our efforts are paying off,” Mayor Indya Kincannon said. “Every crime prevented represents a life spared from pain and anguish, and restores peace of mind for the people of Knoxville.”
City professionals, across all departments, accomplished much in 2024.
Hard-working Public Service professionals planted 696 trees and collected 98,005 bags of litter from our streets’ rights-of-way.
Transit ridership is way up – more than 2.8 million Knoxville Area Transit rides in 2024.
City Engineering managed investment of $48.7 million in the construction of capital projects and the resurfacing of 47.86 miles of streets. Plus, more than 49,300 private development projects were reviewed and inspected.
The award-winning Baker Creek Pavilion opened last spring, and lots of new athletic fields and courts opened citywide, including a new mini pitch at Harriet Tubman Park, turf infields at Christenberry, and new facilities at Lakeshore Park.
Mayor Kincannon continued her focus on increasing affordable housing. In her five years as Mayor, the City has invested $40 million and leveraged more than $600 million in private investment.
#KnoxvilleJobWellDone
Here is a department-by-department breakdown of some of the City’s 2024 highlights and projects:
FIRE
Did you know Knoxville Fire Department firefighters responded to more than 25,000 emergency calls for service through November and taught fire safety to 8,000 students?
In a variety of ways, the Knoxville Fire Department in 2024 bolstered its capabilities to provide life-saving services.
• KFD’s Swift Water Rescue Team was officially credentialed by the state of Tennessee as a Type II Rescue Team in September. The team was deployed to two separate disasters to assist flooding victims in East Tennessee and South Carolina.
• KFD graduated a recruit class of 28 firefighters in January and has another recruit class of 17 that started training on Oct. 21.
• Twenty firefighters graduated from KFD’s Advanced Emergency Medical Technician (AEMT) Academy in November; an additional 22 firefighters completed their required training to obtain or upgrade their EMS license.
• KFD ranked first in the state of Tennessee for the number of firefighter training hours.
• KFD placed several new apparatuses in service this year, including an engine at the Baxter Avenue station, a Special Operations Ambulance and a tanker.
• Four open houses were hosted at different fire stations, plus Community CPR classes – KFD is committed to neighborhood-level community engagement!
• KFD continued its support for Fulton High School’s Fire Management Program and its 865 Academy by providing training in CPR, fire inspections, emergency management, special operations, fire investigations and Civil Service exam preparation.
• Eight firefighters graduated from McNabb Crisis Intervention Team training.
POLICE
Crime statistics are down across the board in Knoxville – and nowhere is that more evident than in the East Knoxville TLC area.
Citywide, the Knoxville Police Department's 2024 priority crime report shows a slight decrease in murders in Knoxville. But the number of victims – 23 – is well below the five-year historical average of 31.
Look closely at KPD's East District: The number of murders dropped from 24 in 2022 to 8 in 2024.
And zoom in further to the East Knoxville Place-Based Strategy (PBS) zone – better known as the Tender Loving Care East zone, bounded by Cherry Street, Linden Avenue, Spruce Street and Wilson Avenue. It was designated for extra attention in November 2023 because it was then a high-crime area.
There were no murders – no fatal or non-fatal shootings – last year inside the TLC East. Zero.
Credit community policing – officers walking the beat, residents getting to know their neighborhood officers, and vice versa – along with other City and partner service providers.
According to a fall 2024 survey of TLC zone residents:
• More than two-thirds of residents said they'd seen a positive change in their community within the past 12 months.
• Half said they felt safer. Another third said their sense of safety was about the same. Only 3 percent said they felt less safe.
• Forty-four percent of the residents praised their neighborhood KPD officers' helpfulness as "excellent," "very good" or "good." Half the residents had had no direct interaction or did not answer the survey question.
HOUSING AND NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT
In 2024, the Housing and Neighborhood Development team continued to make progress on addressing our community’s affordable housing crisis and responding to the needs of our growing population.
In Fiscal Year 2023-2024, the Affordable Housing Fund allocated $7.4 million toward eligible uses.
Up to 187 development projects in various planning and construction stages across the city will provide more than 2,200 new housing units, collectively valued at around $445 million. Projects range from affordable housing developments to market-rate apartments and single-family homes – all needed to catch up to demand.
In 2024, HND secured $1.8 million for a Youth Homeless Demonstration Program grant, which is being managed by the Office of Housing Stability. They also received $4.7 million in funds from the Lead Grant and Healthy Homes Initiative. These funds will help residents afford the cost of lead abatement in homes older than 1970 and keep those homes affordable as they are made healthier and more livable.
HND staff embarked on the Five-Year Consolidated Plan process, to collect community feedback on the priorities that will guide how we allocate federal funds on local housing and community development activities. They also finalized an Equity Plan, with data on housing segregation and community input on improving housing accessibility.
PUBLIC SERVICE
The City’s Public Service Department does a lot to keep the City clean and pretty through litter control and beautification efforts – but its crews also pick up tons of leaves and yard waste, mow parks and rights-of-way and patch potholes.
In the past year, our dedicated Public Service professionals:
• Collected 19,988 tons of brush and 1,888 loads of leaves that were composted and diverted from the landfill
• Patched 5,762 potholes on local City-owned streets
• Mowed more than 1,000 overgrown or abandoned lots, 10,469 miles of right-of-way, and 6,948 acres in City parks
• Planted 696 trees
• Collected 98,005 bags of litter from the rights-of-way
• Performed almost 17,000 Neighborhood Codes Enforcement inspections
FLEET SERVICES
In 2024, the City’s Fleet Services Department acquired and placed into service 145 new vehicles – and almost half of them were fully electric or alternative fuel/hybrid vehicles.
Other accomplishments:
• The City’s Fleet Services Department was recognized by NAFA as having one of the 100 Best Fleets in America for the fifth year in a row
• Was named a “Leading Fleet” by APWA and Government Fleet magazine, ranking 6th overall (a designation earned by only 50 public fleets in the U.S. each year)
• Completed more than 10,000 repair order tickets to keep City vehicles and equipment running and providing services to residents every day
KNOXVILLE AREA TRANSIT
This year, transit ridership is way up. Knoxville Area Transit provided more than 2.8 million rides, surpassing 2019 (pre-COVID) ridership numbers.
KAT has increased ridership by more than 8 percent year-to-date with the launch of KAT Reimagined on Aug. 26. With this new bus network, KAT now provides consistent service 7 days a week, more frequent bus service, and more access to jobs.
Service has increased by 150 percent on Sundays!
KAT has also made great strides in the availability of rider tools, including an updated website, the Transit app, and a new upgraded fare system, katpay, which launched Oct. 23 and utilizes fare capping.
Fare capping enables frequent riders who can’t afford the upfront cost of a 30-day pass to save between $160 and $370 per year.
#KATGoesThere
#RideForChange
ENGINEERING
City Engineering had a busy year – and the numbers prove it!
Here are some select highlights:
• $48,672,770 – Dollars invested in the construction of capital projects
• 24 – Capital budget construction projects administered
• 17 – Projects designed in-house
• 47.86 – Miles of streets resurfaced
• 10,442 – Linear feet of sidewalk replaced or built
• 49,300+ – Private development projects reviewed, inspected and development documents scanned and digitized
• 525 – Reviews of requested roadway safety changes and improvements
• 169 – Curb cuts constructed
• 150+ – Traffic control setups and staffing for special events
A few specific Engineering accomplishments worth celebrating:
• Sutherland Avenue at Tobler Lane Quick Build Project
This is one of many www.KnoxvilleTN.gov/VisionZero projects!
The City installed “centerline hardening” and curb bulb-out measures with rubber curbing to better protect pedestrians from turning vehicles.
These measures reduce the speed of turning vehicles by tightening the turns, forcing vehicles to turn at more of a right angle, and greatly increasing the visibility of crossing pedestrians.
• Old Broadway sidewalks
The new 3,800 linear feet of sidewalk and greenway along Old Broadway, from the northern intersection with Broadway to the intersection of Mineral Springs Avenue and Broadway, connects Fountain City to neighborhoods south of Sharps Ridge.
The route separates users from the heavily-traveled interchange of Broadway at I-640. It’s a popular, new and safe detour for bicyclists and pedestrians around a dense traffic hub.
• Stormwater upgrades and repairs
In 2024, the City’s Stormwater Engineering Division rehabilitated 1,536 linear feet of deteriorated drainage pipe using the cured-in-place pipe method.
This process significantly extends the service life of the existing pipe by decades, at a fraction of the cost of digging up and replacing the pipe – and the job gets done in just a few days.
But that’s just a small part of what Stormwater Engineering does.
This past year, City staff responded to 1,127 requests for service made through 311. Staff investigated 86 resident-reported water quality concerns and 125 sinkholes.
PARKS AND RECREATION
Celebrating our community’s 2024 accomplishments would not be complete without a shout-out for all the City park upgrades! Many thanks to the City’s many parks partners.
Among the new or improved amenities:
• Restrooms at Baker Creek Preserve and Lakeshore Park
• New athletic fields and courts – a lot of them! There’s the new mini pitch at Harriet Tubman, turf infields at Christenberry, and new facilities at Lakeshore
• Accessibility improvements at Cal Johnson, West Hills and Lakeshore
• 2 more dog parks – Fountain City and Love Towers
• New playgrounds as well!
Also: Did you know that 743 children enjoyed City Parks and Rec’s Summer Camp programs, while 471 participated in the City’s After School Program?
URBAN DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT
The award-winning Baker Creek Pavilion opened last spring, offering amenities to complement the most popular trailhead in the Urban Wilderness.
Building on the success of the nearby bike park and Gateway Park phased improvements, the pavilion project provides a unique shade structure, picnic tables, bathrooms, a water refilling station, and additional parking for Baker Creek Preserve.
Earlier in 2024: An open house in March at The Standard stimulated a robust public engagement about the McClung Warehouse / West Jackson Avenue redevelopment site. Conversations plus results of an online survey will help inform a Request for Proposals (RFP) for redevelopment of this large site in our downtown core. Almost 300 people provided input.
OFFICE OF NEIGHBORHOOD EMPOWERMENT
Strong grassroots neighborhood organizations are needed to build a vibrant, healthy and connected Knoxville.
A telling statistic: The Office of Neighborhood Empowerment in 2024 worked hand-in-hand with 87 different neighborhood groups to help them advance the projects and amenities their families value.
In 2024, in partnership with the Office of Neighborhood Empowerment, City Engineering installed 41 new speed humps as part of the popular Neighborhood Traffic Safety Program.
Neighbors collaborate, sign petitions requesting traffic-calming, then work with the City on the design.
HENLEY BRIDGE LIGHTS
Decorative lights have returned to the Henley Bridge for the first time since September 2018!
City Engineering’s Signal and Lighting team spent many hours this summer rejuvenating the 180 bollards and lights and updating the system with the latest technology. It was tiring and tedious work, but now, the lights can be programmed to virtually any color combination to commemorate community events, festivals, and local causes.
Seeing an unusual color combination and wondering what local event or cause is being celebrated? Check out the schedule of commemorative lightings for early 2025: www.KnoxvilleTN.gov/HenleyLights
CHAPMAN HIGHWAY SAFETY
The City was awarded a $17.8 million federal Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grant in 2024.This federal grant, paired with a $4.45 million City match, will fund major safety improvements to Chapman Highway between Blount Avenue and Woodlawn Pike.
These improvements include a separated shared-use path and a landscaped median, making this section of Chapman Highway safer for all roadway users.
Click here for more information.
CRADLE OF COUNTRY MUSIC PARK
In spring 2025, a transformed Cradle of Country Music Park will reopen in downtown Knoxville.
The project was a collaboration between multiple City departments and divisions (Engineering, Parks and Rec, Urban Forestry, Horticulture), the Public Arts Committee, THEVERYMANY artist studio, the state of Tennessee, Visit Knoxville, the Downtown Knoxville Alliance, and the project’s local design and construction team.
When the park reopens, it will have new landscaping, additional trees, and a whimsical curved metal canopy atop a stylistic concrete pier.
COVENANT HEALTH PARK
Batter up!
As construction of Covenant Health Park gets closer to completion, it’s fun to see the milestones keep happening. In late 2024, the seats were installed! The infield and grass went in! The iconic water tower is back!
The City’s Engineering Department has been providing lots of behind-the-scenes support.
Did you know that Stormwater Engineering Division staff helped coordinate and inspect more than 1,500 linear feet of storm pipe installation, over 2,300 linear feet of roadway and underground utility duct bank construction, and three public plazas around the City- and County-owned multi-use stadium?
Look for professional baseball and soccer, plus concerts and other public events, to come to East Knoxville starting in April 2025.