Knox County Parks and Recreation said Hardin Valley Community Park at 12734 Hickory Creek Road would close to the public on Monday, September 28, 2026, and stay closed for the whole build of the new Hardin Valley Community Building. WVLT reported that the work should take about 13 months, with completion targeted for the winter of 2027.
The county's announcement sent residents to its general parks page and social media to find other parks, without naming any. So here they are. For the next year, the closest open ground to most of Hardin Valley belongs to a college. Everything else the old park offered is now split across parks on Schaad Road, Northshore Drive and Melton Hill Lake, and each one does a single job well.
What's Being Built on Hickory Creek Road
The project covers three things: a new community building, a new entrance with an expanded parking lot, and a dedicated walkway connecting to the park's existing inclusive playground. Johnson & Gaylon Construction was chosen to build it, and PBA Property Development is overseeing the work.
Knox County's 2024 call for architectural designs describes the building's insides: a community room, enclosed storage, a kitchen and restrooms. That would give Hardin Valley a county-run place to meet indoors, right beside the playground, which it has not had before.
Published budget figures don't match exactly. The county's adopted Parks and Recreation capital plan lists $600,000 for the Hardin Valley Community Building in fiscal year 2026. WBIR's budget coverage described a single $1 million line that combined this building with a fishing pier at Concord, without splitting the two. That pier comes up again below.
What closed for now is the ADA-accessible playground that Knox County lists for this park. It is the main thing families lose until the gates reopen.
The Nearest Open Ground Is the Pellissippi State Campus
For walking, the closest replacement is just up Hardin Valley Road. Pellissippi State's Hardin Valley campus at 10915 Hardin Valley Road has a walking trail and a disc golf course, and the college says both are open to the community.
The campus also anchors the Pellissippi Greenway, a one-mile path from the college south along Pellissippi Parkway to Carmichael Road. Knox County lists parking for it at the college entrance, at that same 10915 Hardin Valley Road address. One parking spot covers a campus trail loop, a round of disc golf and a straight greenway walk, so it can fill the before-dinner walk the old park used to.
It is still a college campus, though. The trail and disc golf course are open to the public, but it isn't a park built around young children. For a playground, you have to drive farther.
The Playground Takes the Longest Drive
The inclusive playground is the hardest thing to replace, and none of the nearby options is described in county listings as inclusive. Two parks have playgrounds and enough else to make the drive worth it.
Nicholas Ball Park, 7204 Schaad Road, has a playground, a pavilion, restrooms, basketball and tennis courts, soccer, a paved trail and a walking loop. Next door, Ball Camp Community Park at 7232 Schaad Road adds four youth softball fields and a pavilion, and the county says it connects to a greenway toward Victor Ashe Park. Together, the two Schaad Road parks come closest to a one-stop playground, restroom and walking-loop trip.
Carl Cowan Park, 10058 S. Northshore Drive, has playgrounds, sports fields, basketball and tennis courts, paved and natural trails, and paddling and fishing access on the Tennessee River. It fits best when the outing is meant to last the afternoon.
Families who need an accessible playground specifically should check equipment details with Knox County Parks and Recreation before driving. The listings for these parks say "playground" without describing accessibility features.
Each Remaining Need Has Its Own Park
Here is the rest of the old park's job, sorted by what you might go for:
| What you went for |
Where to go now |
Address |
What's there |
| Walking loop |
Pellissippi State Hardin Valley campus |
10915 Hardin Valley Rd |
Walking trail open to the community, plus the one-mile Pellissippi Greenway |
| Disc golf |
Pellissippi State Hardin Valley campus |
10915 Hardin Valley Rd |
Disc golf course open to the community |
| Playground |
Nicholas Ball Park |
7204 Schaad Rd |
Playground, restrooms, paved trail, walking loop |
| Playground plus water |
Carl Cowan Park |
10058 S. Northshore Dr |
Playgrounds, trails, river paddling and fishing access |
| Dog park |
Concord Dog Park |
10901 S. Northshore Dr |
Dog park within the larger Concord Park |
| Lakeside trails |
Melton Hill Park |
3230 Williams Bend Rd |
Half-mile paved greenway, 3+ miles of natural trails, fishing pier |
| River put-in |
Hickory Creek Park |
2120 Everett Rd |
River access for paddlers and anglers, soccer fields, pavilion |
Concord is the biggest of the group. The county lists Concord Park East and the Concord Dog Park at 10901 S. Northshore Drive. Concord Park East adds a paved walking trail, multi-use trails, soccer fields, a skatepark, tennis courts and junior golf. The county says Concord Park as a whole has almost two miles of paved greenway and 13.7 miles of singletrack trails. This is also where the other half of that combined budget line is going. Knox County's capital plan sets aside $440,000 for a Concord fishing pier in fiscal year 2027, and the county's bid request for pier work sets October 29, 2026 as the deadline for bids. The pier is still at the bidding stage, so treat it as a future project for now.
Melton Hill Park is the lake option. Knox County's park page lists a half-mile paved greenway, more than three miles of natural trails, two boat ramps, a fishing pier, a beach and swim area, volleyball, picnic areas and a pavilion, with hours from dawn to dusk. The county's March 2026 news release gives the address as 3230 Williams Bend Road. Its trails are the reason to go this time of year.
Hickory Creek Park, at 2120 Everett Road, is the smallest stop on the list. Its county page lists two soccer fields, a picnic area and pavilion, and river access for paddlers and anglers. It's for putting a kayak or fishing line in the water.
Indoor Gatherings Move to the Event Center
The new building on Hickory Creek Road is meant to give Hardin Valley a public place to gather indoors. Until it opens, the Hardin Valley Event Center at 2620 Willow Point Way is hosting the community markets on the local holiday calendar.
- Holiday Makers Market, Saturday, November 14, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Sip + Shop Merry Market, Sunday, November 29, advertising more than 50 vendors, food trucks, photos with Santa, hot chocolate, s'mores and children's activities.
Check times on the Event Center's site before you go, since vendor events can change their schedules.
Once construction wraps up, the new building on Hickory Creek Road is due to bring an indoor community room and the inclusive playground back together in one park.
When you're weighing how a neighborhood's parks, trails and gathering spaces fit your daily routine, I'm glad to help you look at it street by street. Liza Acheson offers the local knowledge and concierge coordination that make any move across Knoxville simpler. Request your free concierge consultation.
