City Council’s agenda Tuesday night (March 4, 2025) was relatively short on agenda items, but impactful in terms of investing in Mayor Indya Kincannon’s and Council’s shared priorities.

City Council in an 8-1 vote approved Mayor Kincannon’s proposals to pay for Gay Street Bridge repairs; fund a modern new Fire Department station and streetscapes upgrades in Burlington; support affordable housing in South Knoxville; and proceed with multiple transportation public safety projects.


Gay Street Bridge

• $2 million to repair and reopen the bridge to pedestrians and bicyclists by early 2026

• $25,000 to the Old Sevier Merchants Association to market its business corridor and communicate to patrons during the Sevier Avenue Streetscapes Project

Burlington

• $4.5 million to build a modern, new KFD Station No. 6 in the heart of Burlington

• An additional $2 million for the Burlington Streetscapes Project to replace sidewalks, traffic signals and streetlights in the historic Burlington business district and to create on-street parking and relocate overheard utilities

Affordable housing

• $1 million from the Affordable Rental Development Fund to make financially viable the conversion of the former Giffin Elementary School, a nearly 100-year-old landmark in South Knoxville, into 36 affordable rental apartments; the overall project – Historic Giffin Square – will add 77 total units of affordable housing 

Transportation and public safety

• $360,000 in professional design services to design safety improvements at Magnolia Avenue intersections at Cherry, Hembree and Castle streets; the Federal Highway Administration awarded the City an $8 million Safe Streets for All (SS4A) grant in 2023 to reduce vehicular, bicycling and pedestrian fatalities on Magnolia, Broadway and Woodland Avenue

•      $170,000 to purchase and maintain vehicle detection equipment at signalized street intersections; the equipment provides automated traffic counts that help make traffic flow more efficiently as the City moves forward with Advanced Traffic Management Systems projects