Don’t miss this event next year: “Symphony Soiree” brings international music - and food - to the table

There are all kinds of fancy fundraisers for the Knoxville Symphony: the elegant Crystal Ball, dinners and lunches in fine homes, and special private performances by visiting guest artists.
But my favorite one of all is a simple pot luck supper held in a church meeting hall early on a Sunday night. Florescent lights, paper napkins and [...]

Downtown: ideal setting for great progressive dinner

It is a real thrill to have a progressive dinner when everyone lives within walking distance. What better place for that than downtown?
At the end of this post, we’ll share some tips we’ve learned about how to have a great progressive dinner. But first, come along to a downtown version a bunch of us had just last Thursday. [...]

Downtown goes to the dogs - and one cat!

From Great Danes to chihuahuas, the dogs definitely had their day in downtown Knoxville on Saturday. The third annual Mardi Growl parade and festival - a fund-raiser for Young-Williams Animal Center - attracted more than 300 canines and their humans. And one cat.
Although one wag described the event as “The Watch Where You Step Festival,” [...]

The “messenger god” meets the mortals (a lot of ‘em!) at Moxley Carmichael’s 2010 client party

We were a little nervous when former Sheriff Tim Hutchison and state Sen. Tim Burchett arrived at the Moxley Carmichael party at about the same time last Friday. The two men are locked in a not-all-that-friendly race to be the next Knox County mayor. But all was well. Soon the room filled with many other [...]

Bistro at the Bijou: a chef-owned restaurant

After closing for renovations for a week after New Year’s and limping along without bar service for a couple more weeks, the Bistro at the Bijou is back in full swing and better than ever.
Martha Boggs, who has been general manager of the Bistro for 17 years, purchased the restaurant from absentee owners who have held it [...]

Does downtown need a dedicated business recruiter? Lack of new retailers is a real threat, some say

Someone who wakes up every day thinking about how to get more retail businesses to locate in downtown Knoxville. That’s what some folks think we need.
The other school of thought, though, is more like, “If we build it, they will come.” Don’t spend money on a dedicated recruiter, but rather spend money making downtown even [...]

“Light someone else’s candle.”

That was the instruction from Robert Loest, a nationally known investment adviser and downtown Knoxville resident, who was one of the organizers of the first annual “Strollstice” last night.
More than 50 people gathered at the Market House bell on Market Square to pick up candles and parade through Market Square, down Gay Street and other [...]

Downtown hotel transformed into “Rosy’s Diner” for 80th birthday of beloved cartoonist Charlie Daniel

More than150 folks donned “Rosy’s Diner” baseball caps and filed into the ballroom of the Crowne Plaza hotel Friday night for a laugh-filled celebration of News Sentinel editorial cartoonist Charlie Daniel’s 80th birthday.
Rosy’s Diner is a staple location for much of the action that takes place in Daniel’s cartoons. Good sport Donna Colburn of the News Sentinel put [...]

Expect News Sentinel’s new publisher to be active in community - once he gets his feet on the ground

“Good communities don’t just happen,” Patrick Birmingham told area leaders last week. “This is a great community because the people in this room have worked hard to make it great.”
 
Birmingham is the new publisher of the Knoxville News Sentinel. Bruce Hartmann, the former publisher who recently was promoted to a larger role in the News [...]

A pear tree still grows in Knoxville; a hate-mailer apologizes; KMA gets cleaned up and more

A lot has been happening since the Blue Streak reported on several local controversies. Here are a few quick updates:

You might remember this story from July. It involves a dispute at Kendrick Place condos over a pear tree growing on the property line between Kendrick Place and the Masonic Lodge on Locust Street. Some residents [...]