Keenan Thomas
The University of Tennessee at Knoxville wants to move into one of the largest multitenant office buildings in town, with UT System representatives suggesting the board approve a master lease on the Sutherland Avenue complex to expand its flagship campus.
Cherokee Mills, a multitenant office complex in the Marble City neighborhood, could be UT's to rent upon the approval of a 10-year master lease valued at upwards of $41.4 million. The lease could be renewed twice, allowing UT Knoxville to reserve the facility for an estimated $194.1 million over 30 years, with an option for UT to purchase the Cherokee Mills property at 2200 Sutherland Ave. when it's all said and done.
By that time, some of the biggest development projects in UT Knoxville's pipeline should be up and running, from the Neyland Entertainment District to the pedestrian bridge connecting campus across the Tennessee River to the South Waterfront. In the short term, new dorms and campus buildings accommodating students studying nursing, business and chemistry will open, some by the upcoming fall semester.
The Cherokee Mills building has 192,117 square feet of rentable space across roughly 9.4 acres. The property is less than two miles from campus, according to Google Maps, and is either a six-minute drive or a 20-minute walk along Concord Street and Kingston Pike from the western edge of the Strip.
How would University of Tennessee at Knoxville use Cherokee Mills?
UT already occupies 53,285 square feet of Cherokee Mills, which is more than a fourth of the space. The facility is home to the Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research, Denbo Center for Humanities and the Arts and the UT Center for Excellence for Children in State Custody.
UT Knoxville would use additional space for a variety of purposes, from educational to operational to technological. Over time, the building could support administrative offices and a new child care center, according to a UT System Board of Trustees agenda.
The board will vote on the lease during its winter meeting Feb. 28. Additional approval from the Tennessee State School Bond Authority and the State Building Commission is required to begin renting the space later this year.
Along with Cherokee Health Systems, the building also is used by several businesses, including Golden Roast Coffee, Knoxville Infectious Disease Consultants, public accounting firm PYA and Realty Trust Group. Existing tenants wouldn't be required to move prior to leases expiring.
A Georgia-based affiliate of The University Financing Foundation, TUFF 2200 Sutherland Ave. LLC, purchased the property from Magnolia Cherokee Mills LP for $20.7 million in December 2024, according to property records.
If approved, UT Knoxville's master lease would be under TUFF's ownership.
Breaking down the price and another way UT could own Cherokee Mills
Without business leases in hand, Knox News is unable to determine when UT Knoxville will reach 100% occupancy, which is what the rent estimate is based on. The rate is calculated by combining the following factors:
As the university plans to gradually use more of Cherokee Mills over time, it could have the option to purchase early upon occupying 75% if UT:
The roof needs work at Cherokee Mills, and UT could help pay for it
This isn't UT Knoxville's first venture to this area of Sutherland Avenue. Also nearby, disconnected from the core of campus, is the Facilities Services Complex, the Concord Building and multiple intramural fields.
If TUFF receives an offer to purchase the property, the group would give UT a chance to match.
The building's roof needs work to extend its lifetime, including $621,000 in upgrades needed for the initial 10-year rental period. UT Knoxville estimates a full roof replacement would cost $3.3 million.
TUFF would pay for immediate roof repairs during the first five years of the lease. Beyond that, the cost of additional repairs would be classified in UT Knoxville's rent as operating costs.
The office complex was built as a textile mill in 1917 before operating as a potato chip factory, a department store and a call center. The building was converted to an office facility in 2007.
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