Background
Located between the Fort Sanders neighborhood and the Knoxville Museum of Art, Fort Kid Playground was built in 1991 by volunteers as part of the City of Knoxville’s Bicentennial Celebration. In 2018 visible deterioration of the wooden retaining wall that supports the playground prompted a structural assessment by an engineer. The photos at right show examples of the issues noted in 2018.
Project Description
Phase 1, managed by the Public Building Authority, will remove the retaining wall that supports the Fort Kid Playground along World’s Fair Park Drive and restore an open hillside slope. Engineering has determined that this work will necessitate removal of the playground equipment for both the safety of workers and the roadway/sidewalks below the wall.
The diagram below shows the new hillside and the flat area available for a potential new play structure. Phase 2, managed by the City of Knoxville and it’s partners is expected to build a new playground. See the Fort Kid website for more info.
Spatial analysis diagram By Hedstrom Design showing the usable space post-construction As Presented at the City Of Knoxville Public Mtg
Additional Background
While the wall was constructed with treated railroad ties, the structural engineering analysis in April 2018 determined that the timber wall had reached the end of its serviceable life with decay impacting major components of the wall. The recommendation by the engineer was to replace the wall.
With this assessment, a geotechnical engineering firm was contracted to assess possible options for replacement. In August of 2018 the geotechnical firm brought in a drill (photo left) to assess the soil conditions behind the retaining wall. Analysis showed the soils behind the wall to be inconsistent with “much of the existing…not suitable for re-use as structural fill due to its variability.”
Engineers then looked at options to replace the wall. Water, electric, stormwater, and sewer lines along the base of the wall as well as the adjacent roadway and sidewalk provided challenges and prohibited construction of a new wall in front of the existing. Given the instability of the soils behind the wall, the engineer also determined that OSHA regulations would require that the soils behind the wall to be removed for the safety of both workers and the roadway/sidewalks below.
Given this information, the geotechnical firm analyzed multiple options to replace the failing retaining wall including pouring a concrete wall, using pre-cast concrete blocks, and restoring a hillside. As the majority of the existing play equipment sits on the soils that need to be removed, all of these options necessitate removal of the current playground equipment.
The City of Knoxville has been working with its partners to look at replacement options for the current playground once the retaining wall has been removed. Futher information on that project including public input materials can be found on the City of Knoxville’s Fort Kid website.