A unique outdoor dinner celebrating Knoxville’s 225th anniversary, a farmers’ market, a movie screening, a 5K race and a festival will make for a festive downtown this weekend. Motorists are advised that some streets – and the Gay Street Bridge on Sunday night – will be closed to accommodate the special events.
Here’s a rundown of this weekend’s happenings and street closures:
Movies on Market Square – Today (Friday, Sept. 30)
The Knox County Public Library is hosting the 13th year of Movies on Market Square, which is presented by Knoxville TVA Employees Credit Union, to highlight its vast collection of movies and music with more than 50,000 titles. The Sights and Sounds Department at Lawson McGhee Library has one of the broadest physical collections of film and music of any public library in the Southeast.
Street closures:
- Wall Avenue, between Gay and Walnut streets – closed from 7:30-10 p.m. today.
Market Square Farmers’ Market – Saturday, Oct. 1
The 13th season of the downtown farmers’ market offers locally grown produce, meat, eggs and plants, as well as locally-made artisan foods and crafts. For details, visit www.marketsquarefarmersmarket.org. The Market Square Farmers’ Market connects local growers and buyers from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Market Square and along Union Avenue and Market Street.
Street closures:
- Market Street, between Clinch and Union avenues – closed from 6:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday;
- Union Avenue, between Walnut and Gay streets – closed from 6:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday;
- Temporary no-parking zones on Market Street and Union Avenue will be in effect starting at 5 a.m. Saturday.
HoLa Festival – Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 1-2
Now in its 18th year, HoLa Festival – featuring the dance, music, food and traditions of 24 countries – is a highlight of Hispanic Heritage Month. See a schedule of performances by visiting http://www.holahoralatina.org/2016-hola-festival/.
Street closures:
- Union Avenue, between Walnut and Gay streets – closed 3-10:30 p.m. Saturday, closed 8 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday;
- Market Street – closed from 3 p.m. Saturday until 7 p.m. Sunday;
- Temporary no-parking zones on Market Street and Union Avenue will be in effect starting at 5 a.m. Saturday.
Making Strides Against Breast Cancer – Sunday, Oct. 2
The American Cancer Society 5K walk starts at 3 p.m. at World’s Fair Park. For details, visit http://bit.ly/2ddgaaa.
Street closures:
- Rolling roadblocks along the route: World’s Fair Park Drive to Clinch Avenue; to 16th Street; to Volunteer Boulevard to the TRECS Building; U-turn back up Volunteer to Lake Loudoun Boulevard; to Neyland Drive; to the greenway and back to World’s Fair Park Drive.
- Neyland Drive – One westbound lane between Locust Street and Lake Loudoun Boulevard will be closed, 3-4 p.m.
Dinner on the Bridge – Sunday, Oct. 2
The Arts & Culture Alliance is hosting a celebration of the 225th anniversary of the founding of Knoxville with a Sunday evening dinner on the deck of the Gay Street Bridge.
Proceeds to the ticketed event will go into the Arts & Heritage Fund, which supports local arts and heritage organizations. Visit http://bit.ly/2ddDgNV for details or to purchase tickets.
Street closures:
- Gay Street Bridge, between Blount and Hill avenues – closed from 6 a.m. Sunday until midnight.
- Sidewalks on the bridge will be closed from 6-10 p.m.
A reminder to Dinner on the Bridge attendees: The Hill Avenue Viaduct remains closed while crews complete a $1.14 million renovation, and the closure will affect one of the routes used by motorists to access the Dwight Kessel Garage at Hill Avenue and State Street.
Motorists can access the garage from Central Street by turning right onto short one-block section of Main Street to enter at the garage’s north side. Or they can approach the garage from the west on Hill Avenue (accessible from Gay Street, or from Walnut Street coming up the hill from Neyland Drive) to access entrances on either the south or west sides of the garage.
