Is downtown Knoxville ready for a new 'Asylum' arts and entertainment district?

Partners Scott and Bernadette West, who helped revitalize Market Square, are hoping to rename an unused corner of downtown as they transform it into a new arts and entertainment district.

The Wests want to rename a site near the International property just west of downtown Knoxville as the "Asylum District," resurfacing the history of Asylum Avenue before the street was raised and renamed Western Avenue.

The "asylum" name came from the nearby Tennessee Deaf and Dumb Asylum, which is now home to Lincoln Memorial University's Duncan School of Law.

In her application to rename the area, Bernadette West included references by Knoxville historian Jack Neely, who has chronicled the history of Asylum Avenue over the years.

"Wall was briefly, before the Civil War, known as Market Street, when our Market Street was known as Prince Street," Neely wrote for the Knoxville Mercury in 2017. "It was later known as Asylum Avenue, named for the fact that it led, in a crooked fashion, to the Deaf & Dumb Asylum, and beyond toward Mechanicsville. But this segment never seemed a logical part of Asylum, and got its own name."

The city's Public Property Naming Committee will consider the Wests' request at its Jan. 8 meeting. The district would begin at the intersection of Blackstock Avenue and Western Avenue and would continue southeast to Ramsey Street.

International property near downtown Knoxville is full of history

The Wests are now working to reopen the International property on Blackstock Avenue as part of their LunaVerse development, an arts and entertainment district they expect to form over 10 years.

The International property is loaded with history itself. The main building has been home to many clubs over the years: The Valarium, the Electric Ballroom and, most recently, The International (associated with The Concourse next door).

The Concourse has since moved to North Broadway, but its website still references its historical origins. The building was constructed in 1908 as the regional headquarters for International Harvester tractors, according to the website, and later became home to the Great Atlantic Shoe Company between 1938 and 1967.

First phase of Knoxville arts and entertainment district is nearly ready

The first phase will see the ground floor of the International building become a club again. Scott West told Knox News he expects a certificate of occupancy within the next few weeks, which should allow him to open around St. Patrick's Day in March.

This building is roughly 10,000 of the property's 75,000 square feet of warehouse space that is being reimagined for entertainment and shopping experiences − both for the nightlife crowds and families.

Scott said the club room is roughly the size of The Mill & Mine and will host concerts, but DJs will keep the party going on the weekends.

That includes a Thursday "Asylum Night" with Huglife, formerly DJ Slink, known for providing music at the beloved − now, defunct − Sassy Ann's.

West said the 2018 closing of Sassy Ann's left a void in the local dance scene, which he hopes to grow along with quarterback-turned-DJ Sterl the Pearl on Friday nights and DJ Andres Tapia on Saturday nights. The latter would play international dance music, drawing on the building's historical name and the property's proximity to a diverse student population at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

LunaVerse district would be capped off with a Moonsphere

Over the next few years, the Wests plan to add more elements to their 3.5-acre district, including immersive "extraterrestrial" art and nontraditional activities like duckpin bowling.

In February 2022, Scott told Knox News he expected to invest $30 million over 10 years, culminating with a "Moonsphere" in the final year.

Described as a "geodesic dome" floating over the property and a sister to the Sunsphere, the Moonsphere would be unveiled in 2032, aligning with the 50-year anniversary of the 1982 World's Fair.

"I will be creating our own history," Scott said.

Ryan Wilusz is a downtown growth and development reporter. Phone 865-317-5138. Email ryan.wilusz@knoxnews.com. Instagram @knoxscruff.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Downtown Knoxville business owners want Asylum District at LunaVerse