The upcoming Pellissippi Place on the Oak Ridge Corridor [1]has not been in the news much lately. The plans are in the works and the project is growing. If it is development they want, then development they will have. As citizens of this beautiful area, it is to our benefit to track the development to ensure it is held to a higher standard than most every other past developement project in Blount County.

The Pellissippi Place Riverwalk

As you can see, the plans show the attractive aspects of the R&D park.

Master Plan 1 [2] calls for a riverwalk (think San Antonio, TX), a square with a fountain, residential, retail, and commercial development. Open space [3], trails, and walkways are included. There is also a reference to office space over the parkway (as in Pellissippi), which of course is not there and has not been approved.

Check out Master Plan 2 [4] and the Land Use Districts [5].

Years ago, when the City of Alcoa was originally designed by/for the Aluminum Company of America (ALCOA), one of their guidelines was to have one acre of green space for every 100 citizens. "It was this vision which gave birth to Springbrook Park..." I don't know if we can expect this vision in the 21st Century. What I do know is we can insist new developement be designed with a vision of green space, trees, walkability, and aesthetics. It has been obvious that when money runs low, this vision is the first to be eliminated. As citizens of this beautiful area we should not let that happen. If they cannot afford the entire vision, they should not be allowed to proceed with any portion of the project.

One other thing, let's hope there are no plans to bring in industry like this [6] at the East Tennessee Technology Park to Blount County.