Just under 3 years ago South High School was renovated and opened as the South High Senior Living Facility.

"The new facility models another project Dover lead, converting the old Knoxville High School into a senior living facility. Both facilities have gained nation attention by the Urban Land Institute.

“When you preserve a historic building, and it’s part of the community and it goes dark, it becomes kind of a black hole for a community in terms of its energy. And what it does for a neighborhood to then restore it suddenly, it revitalizes the surrounding area and that just ices the cake for me. I think it’s great,” said Dover."

Now, Dover is looking to sell the property to McNabb Center for a substance abuse center. Ha! "Smelcer [VP McNabb] said Dover Signature Properties reached out to McNabb about converting the facility after researching similar transitions that have been successful elsewhere."

All the senior citizens that have moved or will have to move have already sold their homes in order to have a new home at a senior living facility in South Knoxville. Where will they go now? Does anyone realize there are no other senior living facilities in South Knoxville? I know from experience that the administrators certainly pitched the facility as a long term place to live. Wow, two years?!?!?

Two years prior, 2018, Dover renovated and opened the Knoxville High Senior Living Facility. He can sell a project, he just can't follow through on the project. The Knox High Senior Living Facility is now Knoxville High Apartments. No more meals served. Cleaning service no longer included. They are now luxury apartments.

The lack of success in another Dover project gets South Knoxville a drug rehab facility. No luxury apartments for SoKno.

The property has to be rezoned to facilitate the sale. Maybe the community and the city can come together to stop this project.

Renaissance Terrace Assisted Living is announcing they will be shutting down April 15, 2022. "The facility opened with 50 resident rooms and community areas in 2008."

The facility gets $1,305 a month per resident from the TennCare Choices program. Most of us know that will not cover the necessary care for these residents. The facility has been losing $30,000 a month.

The "TennCare CHOICES program still has not released the $137,500,000 in new funds to home and community-based services (HCBS), such as Renaissance Terrace, from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)."

A small portion of those funds would keep this facility running for years. But, we know the kind of people running the Tennessee state government right now. Uncaring people.

It would be nice to contact someone who might support maintaining this facility, but I can only think of people from other states.

Update from KnoxTNToday, "Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, Tennessee Sen. Richard Briggs respond to Renaissance closure."