At many colleges and universities, especially state flagships with large alumni bases like Tennessee’s Knoxville campus, the college version of sports venue adjacent mixed-use development could potentially draw year-round visitors to stadiums like Neyland that are otherwise active only seven or eight days annually. Tennessee Athletic Director Danny White, who has made facility development and renovation a priority during his three years in Knoxville, told Sports Business Journal last fall that the goal of the proposed Neyland mixed-use district is to “make our big-ticket venues, our keystone venues something our fan base can interact with all year long.”
In brief, UT’s RFP — issued by the university, not the athletic department — says it seeks to develop a “transformative new campus district anchored by a full-service hotel, with condotel, conference/event space, and an entertainment district through a public-private partnership.”
The project aims to create a stronger sense of arrival on the south side of Neyland Stadium; improve the exterior aesthetic of that side of the venue; enhance vertical circulation within the stadium; and create a stronger connectivity between Food City Center and Neyland Stadium and with the rest of the campus, plus thoughtfully engage the Tennessee River waterfront. Neyland Road runs between the river and the mixed-use development (and stadium) site.
Some of the development proposal’s basic goals (some of which the RFP indicates are negotiable or subject to change): The initial phase would include a 250-key hotel specifically branded with the university and its history and traditions in mind, as well as open spaces immediately adjacent to the hotel and stadium. The RFP suggested the hotel could reach a height of 12 stories.
The winning developer will create an entry plaza at Neyland Stadium’s Gate 10 with ample gathering and queuing space for roughly 15,000 fans, and the new entertainment district will need to somehow connect to two of the stadium’s concourses on the eastern side of the stadium. Supporting retail and entertainment amenities (need to be destination concepts) should be no less than 15,000 square feet, and must preserve stadium ingress and egress, and other related stadium assets.
