KCDC breaks ground on neighborhood components of Transforming Western

Knoxville’s Community Development Corporation (KCDC), along with business and community leaders, officially broke ground July 8 on several neighborhood components of Transforming Western to provide residents with economic opportunities, healthy food options, a new park and youth enrichment.

The latest additions to the ongoing neighborhood revitalization will include a new Connections Building and destination park and the expansion of the Beaumont Youth Center, helping create a community where Knoxville residents can grow, learn and enjoy spending time together.

Part of the funding for the new amenities comes through the New Markets Tax Credit Program, which helps economically distressed communities attract private investment by offering federal tax credits through Community Development Entities (CDEs), including CAHEC New Markets, the Reinvestment Fund and the Rose Urban Green Fund. Additional support comes from lending partners Regions Bank and Three Roots Capital.

“It’s inspiring to see the Transforming Western initiative advance with such strong support from residents, community leaders and funding partners who are helping make our shared vision a reality,” KCDC Executive Director and CEO Ben Bentley said. “These diverse funding sources allow us to provide more than housing by adding supportive services like educational and vocational initiatives, youth development, and recreational opportunities that help create a stronger, more connected community.”

The Connections Building, destination park and Beaumont Youth Center expansion are all expected to be completed in 2027.

The City of Knoxville will contribute $26.5 million over six years to support infrastructure and other improvements to transform the Western Heights and Beaumont neighborhoods.

“It’s exciting to see Transforming Western move closer to completion,” Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon said. “After safety and housing, the next most important component of a neighborhood is the connection between neighbors and opportunities to thrive. The elements we’re breaking ground on today – including a new destination park – are those amenities that make a neighborhood a home.”

These neighborhood investments have been made possible through an unprecedented collaboration among federal, state and local governments, philanthropic organizations, private-sector partners and community supporters. Philanthropic support for the neighborhood components has been provided in part by the Bill & Crissy Haslam Foundation, Clayton Homes Foundation, Home Federal Bank, East Tennessee Foundation, and Kennerly, Montgomery & Finley P.C.

Grant support for the neighborhood components has been received from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Choice Neighborhoods grant, U.S. Department of Transportation Safe Streets for All grant, America’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative, Tennessee Department of Health, Variety, the Children’s Charity of Eastern Tennessee, Trinity Health Foundation, Tennessee Arts Commission, First Horizon Foundation and the Y-12 Federal Credit Union Gives Foundation.

CONNECTIONS BUILDING

The 16,114-square-foot building will be located at 1253 W. Oak Hill Drive and offer access to healthy foods and entrepreneurship opportunities, including culinary training and food-business start-up incubation services. Building tenants Real Good Kitchen and Junior Achievement of East Tennessee will offer an assortment of programs, including food education and financial literacy.

Real Good Kitchen, which will occupy 8,000 square feet of space on level two of the building, will have a commercial teaching kitchen designed and built out by KaTom Restaurant Supply for culinary workforce training experience that will enhance employment opportunities. It will include two full kitchen lines, a separate allergen kitchen, a bakery and stalls for pop-ups to sell food. Real Good Kitchen will also offer dining options and a grab-and-go concept operated in a 340-square-foot space near the recreation area.

The Connections Building also could be used as rentable, private space for about 100 people for events with food services from Real Good Kitchen food business partners already onsite.

Junior Achievement of East Tennessee, which will be located in 6,000 square feet of space on level one, will provide an entrepreneurship and financial literacy education center. Programming will focus on middle and high school students to complement the elementary school programming already offered by Junior Achievement in Anderson County.

Architecture for the $15 million Connections Building is provided by Sanders Pace Architects, and Merit Construction is general contractor.

DESTINATION PARK

The two-acre destination park will be located along W. Oak Hill Drive between Reed and McSpadden streets and provide an immersive play experience for children of different ages and spaces for community gatherings and events.

The amenities will include: The Cascades area with a splash pad and boulders, and 1,800-square foot capacity for up to 120 users at one time; Ridge & Valley Playscape area built into the ridge with little and big kid playgrounds and two pavilions that can be reserved for birthday parties and gatherings; The Grove canopy of trees; parking plaza that doubles as outdoor event space with food truck hookups; outdoor stage that can be reserved and used for community events; The Steppes area, an ADA pathway with built-in boulders and seating for the stage area; north lawn with open play area; and a corner plaza.

Once completed, the destination park will become a public park managed by the City of Knoxville’s Parks & Recreation Department.

Landscape architecture for the $8.5 million destination park is provided by Merritt Chase with partner Sanders Pace, and Merit Construction is general contractor.

BEAUMONT YOUTH CENTER

The expansion of the Beaumont Youth Center will add activities and spaces for teenagers and youth and will be operated by Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley. Teenagers will have access to a new teen center, and younger children will have a new youth lounge in addition to new classrooms and a meal prep area for all ages.

The expanded center, located at 1331 W. Oldham Ave., will provide services for up to 200 youth daily, which marks an increase of 200 percent from the current facility. The 6,770-square-foot expansion will bring the Beaumont Youth Center to a total of 13,878 square feet.

Architecture for the $10 million Beaumont Youth Center is provided by Design Innovation Architects; Jenkins & Stiles is general contractor.

TRANSFORMING WESTERN

The first step of the overall Transforming Western initiative was completed in October 2022 with the official opening of the Western Heights Head Start center, which provides comprehensive preschool programs for neighborhood children from infant to age 5 by the Knoxville-Knox County Community Action Committee (CAC).

The first new phase of housing for the Transforming Western initiative opened Jan. 14, 2026, with The Overlook at Beaumont, which includes 76 rental units with one- to five-bedroom options, including 31 subsidized replacement units, 30 affordable units and 15 market rate units.

The groundbreaking for phase 2 took place June 5, 2025, with completion expected in 2026 of two mixed-income residential buildings with a total of 52 one- to four-bedroom units and 15,000 square feet of mixed-use space that will include the Knoxville Arts Center and a health center operated by The University of Tennessee Medical Center. Construction of phase 3 is expected to start in 2027.

Construction for phase 4 is underway and will include a total of 47 one- to four-bedroom units in three residential structures and an amenities building featuring a fitness center, community room, meeting space, leasing office and maintenance office.

The overall redevelopment of the neighborhood will occur over six phases with completion expected in 2029 and an anticipated 479 total housing units. Beyond housing, Transforming Western is bringing together partners from across the public, private and philanthropic sectors to create a neighborhood where families can thrive.

The funding for Transforming Western comes in part from a competitive $40 million U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Choice Neighborhoods grant that was announced in 2022.

Established in 1939, Western Heights is KCDC’s largest affordable housing development. KCDC’s lead partners in the Transforming Western planning process include the City of Knoxville, Brinshore Development and Knoxville-Knox County Community Action Committee (CAC).

While significant progress has been made, additional private and philanthropic investment will help bring the full neighborhood vision to life. Information about the Transforming Western initiative, project updates and opportunities to support the ongoing transformation of the neighborhood are available at www.transformingwestern.com. Community members, businesses, foundations and philanthropic organizations interested in supporting the ongoing transformation of the neighborhood are encouraged to learn more, get involved or make a contribution.