By Ken Lay
The temperature late Thursday morning was a bit on the cool side.
But the cool temperature couldn’t dampen the enthusiasm of a celebration as the City of Knoxville hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony marking the completion of Phase 1 of renovations and improvements to the Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum in East Knoxville.
Phase 1 of the project began in 2024 and involved the restoration of the Jim Howell Family Home, which houses the visitor’s center, a gift shop and offices.
The home, which was built in 1929, was determined to be in extreme peril by the East Tennessee Community Design Center in 2021. It had previously been listed on the Knox Heritage Fading and Fragile List.
The Howell House was awarded a $240,315 grant from the City of Knoxville to repair the roof, water damage and other critical issues to the facility, which is open to the public 365 days of the year.
But that was only the beginning. KBGA also matched the city grant with $136,000, including $60,000 from the East Tennessee Historical Commission. Some of the project was funded by private donations. Other repairs were made beginning in June 2024 and completed in September.
Knoxville Botanical Garden Chief Executive Officer Sharon Moore explained the repairs, which included masonry, roofing, foundation, siding and lintel work.
“We repaired the roof, and you may be thinking, why does the roof still look old?” she said. “We had an unwelcome sunroof, but they repaired it, and they replaced as many of the original shingles as possible.
“I’m thankful to the City of Knoxville and our partners.”
Knoxville City Mayor Indya Kincannon lauded the repairs and the private donors who made the renovation possible.
“This is an absolute jewel for our city, Knoxville, our community and for East Knoxville and I’m glad that we were able to give a grant of almost a quarter of a million dollars,” she said. “It wasn’t enough to complete the project or even to complete Phase 1, but when we took the lead, other people knew this was important, so they made donations. They have all kinds of events here, music events, dance events, weddings, celebrations of life and educational events for kids.”
