City hosts community meeting on proposed EYF purchase
By Ken Lay
In what was promoted as a community meeting, the City of Knoxville hosted an event for residents to voice concerns over the proposed purchase of a portion of Chilhowee Park by the Emerald Youth Foundation.
But it wasn’t what it was supposed to be.
Knoxville City Mayor Indya Kincannon opened the meeting with a few remarks and then it became a free-for-all on Monday, Sept. 15, at the E.V. Davidson Center gymnasium in East Knoxville.
She said she would consider changes to the plan but didn’t offer any specifics about the changes. The sale is scheduled to be up for vote at the city council meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 30, after being tabled twice.
“I’m not here to make speeches. I’m here to talk with you,” Kincannon said.
There were a few who had questions for the mayor, Emerald Youth Foundation officials and City of Knoxville Parks and Recreation employees.
But the meeting was upstaged by protestors who took issue with the way that the city has handled the proposed purchase, which involves the sale of public land to a private entity. The protestors showered the gymnasium with chants of “Not for sale,” as a few of the attendees walked the gym to learn about the Emerald Youth Foundation proposed new facility similar to the one located on Texas Avenue in the Lonsdale Community.
“Tonight was a total waste of time,” said state Representative Sam McKenzie. “These people wanted to be heard.
Denzel Grant, who is seeking the District 6 seat on city council, said he was opposed to the sale of the land to Emerald Youth.
“I’ve been in opposition to this,” Grant said. “The city is just trying to push this through.”
Some opponents to the plan cite the city’s lack of transparency and others oppose the sale of public land to an openly religious organization and others want Chilhowee Park preserved as a historical landmark.
But one graduate from Emerald Youth Academy, the foundation’s charter school, said a facility on the east side of town would be a positive.
“I was a graduate of the first class at the academy,” said Justice Hayes, who went on to graduate from Central High School. “A lot of people don’t know this, but my mom passed away when I was in elementary school, and I have a family.
“I wouldn’t be the person that I am if it wasn’t for Emerald Youth. I wouldn’t change anything. They set people up for success. My cousins all went through Emerald Academy. One is in the military and one is living in Arizona now.”
