Anticipate three closures of the Gay Street Bridge this month and into November: Twice to accommodate one-day special events, followed by a longer-term closure for infrastructure upgrades.

Dinner on the Bridge

The Gay Street Bridge will be closed most of Sunday, Oct. 15, for Dinner on the Bridge, a fundraising event by the Arts & Culture Alliance to benefit the Arts & Heritage Fund.

The bridge will be closed starting at 6 a.m. Sunday, and it will reopen at midnight. Sidewalks on the bridge will be closed at 4:30 p.m.

Open Streets Knoxville

A second special event – Open Streets Knoxville, hosted by Bike Walk Knoxville – is scheduled for Sunday afternoon, Oct. 29. This fifth Open Streets event, offered for the first time in South Knoxville, is a free community happening that promotes physical activity and social interaction.

From 2-6 p.m. on Oct. 29, the Gay Street Bridge, Council Place and Sevier Avenue will be closed to motorized vehicles, allowing Open Streets participants a half-day of playing in the streets – dancing, exercising, socializing, eating and shopping.

Water line installation

Immediately after the Open Streets event, the Gay Street Bridge and Council Place will close for about a month, beginning Monday, Oct. 30. A contractor, Charles Blalock & Sons, will be installing a water line running between East Blount Avenue and Council Place as part of the Blount Avenue Streetscape Improvement Project.

Vehicles and Knoxville Area Transit’s Route 40 buses will be detoured across the Henley Bridge.

There will be two-way traffic on the section of Sevier Avenue just south of the Gay Street Bridge while Council Place is closed. Bicyclists also will be accommodated along the new two-way route along this section of Sevier Avenue.