The empty 200 block has been cited for years by downtown leaders as a barrier that keeps people from wandering from the heart of Gay Street into the 100 block and the Old City. Connecting Gay Street is 'our little part' Born into slavery in 1844, the Black Knoxville native rose to prominence as a businessman and opened his Lone Tree Saloon in the 200 block. Some references in the Beck Cultural Exchange Center archives list 'Caldonia' as the full name of Cal Johnson, while other references call him Calvin. The development, currently coined Caldonia Pass, would include two large buildings that would span the entire lot - 180 feet along the west side of Gay Street and 150 feet along West Vine Avenue and West Summit Hill Drive property lines. Urban Living: R esidential worth almost $200 million could change downtown living Hill told Knox News the company is under contract with KCDC, but the project can't move forward as planned without tax-increment financing. It also needs final approvals from KCDC and Knoxville-Knox County Planning's design board. The company plans to go before local government this month to seek approval for tax-increment financing. The entire project, from land costs to construction, is expected to cost $26.5 million, according to Hatcher-Hill's request for financial assistance from the city. And that's the big game-changer right there.' 'We are effectively reconnecting downtown because it was bisected by Summit Hill Drive. 'KCDC tasked developers to provide (a proposal) that would motivate pedestrians to cross the great divide,' Hatcher-Hill co-founder Tim Hill told Knox News. Property owner Knoxville's Community Development Corporation, the city's redevelopment agency and public housing authority, has selected a proposal from seasoned developer Hatcher-Hill Properties. Long considered one of Gay Street's most notorious voids, a rare surface lot in downtown Knoxville on the 200 block could transform into a fresh vision of shopping, housing and dining.

Brianna Paciorka, Knoxville News Sentinel

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