East Knoxville Resident Challenges City Council to redirect $5 Million Greenway Funding to Small Business Capital Grants, Cooperative Development, and Community Land Trusts

KNOXVILLE - During the Public Forum at the October 28, 2025 City Council meeting, East Knoxville resident Crystal Flack delivered a formal statement challenging the City's priorities regarding the East Knox Greenway Project (Corridor F), calling for a fundamental shift from beautification infrastructure to economic empowerment initiatives.

The East Knox Greenway Project, which will connect Harriet Tubman Park with the Knoxville Botanical Garden, was originally slated to receive $42.6 million in federal funding through the Neighborhood Access and Equity Grant Program. That grant was eliminated in July 2025 when the program was defunded. According to Flack's statement, KCDC Director Ben Bentley has indicated the city will pursue the project using local funding sources—property tax and sales tax revenue. The current Phase 1 contract with Barge Design Solutions totals $827,770, with the overall project estimated at approximately $5 million according to the City of Knoxville's website.

"East Knoxville does not need this investment in beautification. We need economic empowerment," Flack stated in her address to Mayor Indya Kincannon and City Council members.

Flack's statement outlined decades of what she characterized as "intentional municipal disinvestment" in East Knoxville, contrasting the area's economic challenges with developments in other parts of the city. She expressed concern that beautification projects in historically disinvested Black neighborhoods often lead to rising property values, increased taxes, and displacement of long-term residents—a pattern she described as "legal gentrification."

Specific Economic Development Proposals Presented:

Flack's statement called for the redirection of greenway funding to support:

• Small business capital grants – Direct funding for existing Black-owned businesses to grow and compete, beyond traditional workshop programs
• Seed funding for aspiring entrepreneurs – Actual capital rather than solely educational resources
• Ongoing operational support – Mentorship, technical assistance, and resources for business sustainability
• Community cooperatives – Collective ownership models including grocery store cooperatives and housing cooperatives
• Community land trust establishment – To enable collective land ownership and wealth building
• Down payment assistance programs – To help residents transition from renting to ownership

"We don't need recreational paths that connect downtown to premium destinations through our neighborhood, making us a corridor to walk through, instead of a community to invest in," Flack emphasized. "What we need is economic empowerment which includes the current residents before investing our tax dollars and the City's budget in beautification infrastructure."

Flack specifically noted that current "affordable housing" developments often fail to serve residents earning $15,000-$35,000 annually in the poorest sections of East Knoxville.

Her closing appeal to the Council and Mayor was clear: "Build the greenway after you build economic opportunity in East Knoxville."

Written copies of the formal statement were hand-delivered to the Assistant City Recorder following the meeting adjournment for distribution to the Mayor and each Council member.

This statement represents a growing conversation in cities nationwide about equitable development, community investment priorities, and the prevention of displacement in historically marginalized neighborhoods.