Volunteers are being sought to clean up Knoxville’s current parks, and add a new one which has gone from temporary to permanent status.

Spring Into Parks will be held on Sunday, April 28th from 1:00 p.m. to 5;00 p.m. Residents are asked to lend a hand in cleaning up the parks, and to help with construction of Panther Park on the site of the school district’s administrative offices.

THRIVE Knoxville is conducting this event, and has been the guiding force behind the new park; Tyler Pearson from THRIVE tells KNIA/KRLS News the original plan to make it a short-term location has evolved into something more permanent.

“When we first got the funding it was for a ‘parklet’ and we were going to have it be a temporary, seasonal thing. And we’ve changed the idea from that because a couple of the properties that we looked at ended up falling through for various reasons,” Pearson says.

“So we were able to get the school convinced to try it here, and this will be a more permanent park where we’re having concrete and things will be fastened down, and we’re just going to add to it through different phases in the future.”

Plans call for the addition of picnic tables, a raised flower bed and a fire pit; down the line, an old basketball court on the property would be upgraded, and more features will be added. A large open space on the north side of the building would be kept as green space.

Pearson says they have initial funding through a $5,000 grant from Wellmark, another $5,000 from the Knoxville Heritage Foundation and $500 from the Knoxville Rotary.

Anyone wishing to help out during Spring Into Parks is invited to sign up in advance on line; volunteers will gather at the Panther Park site, and then spread out across the city for clean-up and maintenance work.