Knox County Commission Approves Lease for Future Rugby Park

September 24, 2007 (Knoxville, TN) On Monday, the Knox County Commission unanimously approved a resolution providing for a long term lease with the Smoky Mountain Athletic Club of approximately 20 acres located on Oak Ridge Highway to be developed as a rugby park.

The 20 year lease calls for SMAC to build and maintain athletic fields (at SMAC's expense) for the purpose of playing rugby and will be available for other complimenting sports as assigned.  No tax payer funds have been requested for this project but rather all work and maintenance will be provided and funded by SMAC and private partners within the rugby community.

The Smoky Mountain Athletic Club has waited patiently for five years for the opportunity to develop a facility that could be used for rugby in Knox County and East Tennessee. Unlike most user agreements that currently exist in the county, SMAC will not only maintain the facility but also is solely and independently responsible for its creation (at its own expense).

A special thanks to Commissioner Lee Tramel, Commissioner Sharon Cawood, Commissioner Lumpy Lambert and all of Knox County Commission for their support in this initiative.

Related Information
Resolution for Rugby Park Passes Intergovernmental and Finance Committees
SMAC 2007 Annual Report
2007/2008 Knox County Five Year Capital Improvement Plan
MPC's The Future of our Parks
Existing City and County Facilities: Baseball - 89, Soccer - 59, Softball - 42, Fooball - 14, Rugby - 0, Lacrosse - 0