The City of Maryville (population 31,907) has a rich history dating back to its original incorporation in 1795. From its founding over two centuries ago to present day, downtown Maryville continues to be the heart of the city representing its past, present, and future. The planning area for downtown encompasses approximately 210 acres bordered by US-321/Lamar Alexander Parkway, Washington Street and the northeast edge of the city limits with Alcoa. Situated on a ridge, Broadway Avenue serves as the core of downtown with a healthy inventory of extant buildings and confluence of infrastructure resulting in high volumes of vehicular traffic. Downtown is surrounded by an expansive greenway system, which includes Bicentennial Park. The greenway is part of the broader network which runs through Maryville and Alcoa.

Much like its counterparts in other cities, downtown experienced a decline beginning in the 1960s and the relocation of core commercial functions to outlying areas. The city responded in the 1970's with the "Now Town" urban renewal plan. This effort covered historic building facades, installed aluminum canopies, reworked pedestrian spaces, and rerouted the traffic network. With the benefit of hindsight, this effort is largely seen as an insidious failure from which the downtown has sought to recover.

The last major planning effort for downtown occurred in 1998. The resulting document established the current Zoning and Land Use standards for the area and identified a list of improvements. In the intervening twenty-five years, significant changes have occurred in downtown as well as the external environment in which the area exists. In the last five years, investment in downtown has escalated with several large-scale private projects in progress or planned. The city has also focused on downtown with improvements to the municipally owned parking garages, a planned streetscaping project on College Street, accessibility improvements, and repaving and restriping work. In collaboration with the Maryville Downtown Association, the city has also recently completed a branding effort for downtown which is in early process of implementation.

A Main Street America community, the downtown is assisted in its revitalization efforts by the Maryville Downtown Association (MDA), its membership, and its committees. The MDA administers the Main Street program.

Using a qualified consultant, the city seeks to develop a new master plan for downtown Maryville. Given the increased investment proposed for the area, perceived regulatory impediments, and to capitalize on the recent branding effort, a new master plan would identify a long-term vision for the downtown. The document would identify the necessary elements to obtain the city's desired outcomes for downtown including capital project and design features. The identified design components would then be translated to regulatory changes in the Zoning and Land Use Ordinance. The process would include public input and direction from City Council to provide long term assurances to developers and citizens as to the future of downtown. It would also provide assurances to the respective boards in developing regulatory amendments, defending regulatory positions, and evaluating proposals.

The full RFP can be accessed at: https://www.maryvillegov.com/bid-opportunities.html