Downtown Home Tour: options are amazing!

Jane Venable, left, and Kim Cunningham visit one of the VIP homes on the Downtown Home Tour: the lovely residence of Kim and Jim Hays in the Burwell Building, located at 602 S. Gay Street, the same structure that houses the Tennessee Theatre.

We started our day in the Burwell Building on Gay Street. It was built in 1908 and expanded in 1928.

I loved the living room of the Hays’ home on the third floor. It was one of the two VIP condos on the tour.

The beautiful master bedroom.

Check out the dresser drawers!

The extra bedroom is turned into an office.

I liked this sweet arrangement — especially the rabbit wearing glasses!

And this cat!

Our gracious hosts, Jim and Kim Hays.

Brunch fare.

And mimosas!

It was fun running into Jenny Bushkell, left, and Carole Coode there.

Up on the sixth floor of the Burwell Building, Carole Sue Thomas welcomed guests in her kitchen. “It’s the largest room in the condo,” she said. “And it’s never used! I make coffee!”

She’s in the travel industry — and it shows. Her job with Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises keeps her on the road — or on the water or in the air — a lot. Love this light fixture!

Check out the wallpaper in this guest bathroom!

And what a creative way to wedge in a sink!

Hahaha!

Also on the sixth floor of the Burwell Building is the condo of Julie Mitchell.

Clearly a music lover, her living room features two jukeboxes and a huge CD collection!

I’ve never seen such an interesting way to display CDs.

She had a couple of these antique cone amplifiers. You place your cell phone in a little slot, and the music you select comes out of the cone! We tried it out and it works great!

A music lover’s art!

We crossed the street to enter The Holston, 531 Gay Street, where we were greeted by volunteers Anthony Wilson, left, and Tyler Janow, who also are downtown dwellers. This was the second VIP condo on the tour.

The Holston was completed in 1913 as the headquarters of Holston National Bank.

Jenny Eversole, a downtown resident who was working as a volunteer, passed out foot coverings for those entering the 14th floor condo of Jim Harness and Rick Kennedy.

Jim Harness in the kitchen. That’s Nancy Voith to the left, a fellow tour ticket-holder.

There’s plenty of room for their piano!

Living room.

The view from the deck to the northeast is awesome!

Rick Kennedy in the master bedroom.

Love it.

Art reflective of the downtown environment!

Then, I made the trek to Knoxville’s Old City and 220 W. Jackson Avenue where Fire Street Lofts are located. Originally constructed in 1925 as a warehouse in the city’s garment district, it today houses 39 condominiums.

Ryan Connor, left, and Jackson Gainer live on the second floor.

Here’s the very cool master bedroom.

Spacious living room.

Comfy dining area.

And a great little deck that they have made the most of.

Kim Henry lives on the third floor of Fire Street Lofts. She was welcoming folks in the kitchen.

Homey living room.

Great looking master bedroom.

The next stop was the all rental units at Marble Alley, 300 State Street.

Marble Alley has great amenities for its tenants. Like this convenient coffee station located in the lobby.

Fitness center.

Jennifer Higgins lives on the fourth floor.

Here’s her very inviting living room.

Bedroom one.

Bedroom two.

Down on the second floor is Danny Burale’s bachelor pad!

He has a good view of the pool.

Minimalist bedroom!

Here’s the saltwater pool to which all tenants have access. A great downtown amenity, for sure!

Across downtown is Kendrick Place, located at 508 Union Avenue. It was purchased and redeveloped in 1981 by the late Kristopher Kendrick, known as “the father of downtown.”

Only a few feet from the entrance to Chesapeake’s restaurant is the townhouse of Dan and Grace Manore. Here’s Dan in the basement space he is in the process of remodeling.

Up two flights of stairs, Grace, in the blue t-shirt, talks to guests in the master bedroom.

I thought the kitchen was great.

Living room looked restful.

Another bedroom.

I have lived downtown for 18 years, but had never been inside the residential space in the Medical Arts Building, located at 601 W. Main Street. Built in 1932 in the Gothic revival style, it used to house many well-known doctors, a dentist, accountants and other professionals. In 2014, it was turned into a residential development.

Suzanne Moll lives there and she agrees with me that the views from her 10th floor unit are the star attractions. Here’s looking southwest.

Northwest sights.

A view of the Tennessee River to the south.

Living room.

Master bedroom.

Second bedroom.

Kitchen.

Finally, a visit to the James Park House, 422 Cumberland Ave. It’s not a residenial building, although it was built as one. It is the headquarters of Gulf & Ohio Railways.

Doc Claussen, whose family owns the building and the company, provided guided tours every 15 minutes. When I arrived in the afternoon, he said he had given the tour and the same speech 17 times that day!

Conference table.

Another meeting room.

A safe in a bathroom!

This replication of a painting by Knoxville artist Russell Briscoe is called Main Street Station Knoxville, 1892. It was painted in 1972, but depicts a time when more than 100 trains arrived and departed daily, connecting Knoxville to locations in every direction.

I really liked this stained glass train art.

Claussen’s late mother, Linda, was an accomplished quilter and her work is displayed in a lot of places in the James Park House.

An employee break room.

Kitchen — with more train art!