The Lonsdale Community, located along Sharps Ridge in North Knoxville, has long been one of the most diverse communities in Knoxville. Founded in 1919, the Sam E. Hill Elementary School had been an educational anchor for Lonsdale families for over 100 years until it was closed in 2022 as Knox County Schools plan to consolidate resources to provide students with a more modern learning facility.
In 2019, Sanders Pace Architects was commissioned by the Knox County and Knoxville Public Building Authority to lead a new master planning process to establish a community-driven vision for the redevelopment of the Sam E. Hill Elementary School site. Through more than two years of community engagement, SPA worked closely with the Lonsdale Neighborhood, the Public Building Authority and other key stakeholders to create a dynamic new site program that includes a new community park capable of hosting health and wellness initiatives, outdoor strength-training equipment, a new basketball court, a locally themed playground, an accessible recreational path loop and a large gathering area to support robust neighborhood gatherings, such as the Lonsdale Homecoming Celebration. At the center of the park, the gymnasium structure of the original Sam E. Hill Elementary School will be adaptively re-used as a community center, hosting community gatherings, meetings and performances. A series of new park pavilions with integrated restroom facilities adjacent to the new community center will support park programming, hosting community festivals, celebrations and weekend markets.
The Lonsdale Park and Community Center, rooted in a vision that celebrates community’s past and future, is scheduled to open in the spring of 2027.