South Knoxville, TN

Project Team : BarberMcMurry Architects - Ryan Dobbs and Michael Travis

The park will be set high on the bluffs above the French Broad River, commanding a view and audience that honors East Tennessee’s veterans. The site design takes advantage of the site’s panoramic view of the East Tennessee Veterans cemetery across the French Broad River, and the Smokies beyond. A covered pavilion will anchor a large plaza that leads to a promontory overlooking the river and the veteran’s cemetery, allowing for reflection and connection. The site will also include a reflective garden for small gatherings, a memorial walk, nature trail, and a Memorial Wall framing an overlook.

The pavilion uses a material palette of textured fiber cement panels, painted steel, and wooden accents – all a reference to the durability and utility of materials used in the military. The French Broad Veterans Memorial Park will be a place where families can gather to honor East Tennessee’s veterans, as well as a space for building public awareness and engagement with and for veterans.