The sale of the historic Andrew Johnson Building was closed on Monday. BNA purchased the building for $6 million with plans to open a boutique hotel called Hotel AMERICANA concepted around the building’s early roots in the music scene.
“The Andrew Johnson Building has a lot of history in this community, and BNA will now carry on that legacy for a whole new generation,” said Knox County Glenn Jacobs. “Transferring this unique property to the private sector will help boost our local economy, produce hotel/motel, mixed-drink, and local option sales taxes, and provide a number of jobs.”
Hotel AMERICANA will consist of 143 well-appointed guest rooms; multiple food and beverage venues; and a parlor room with billiards, board games, food pantry, fireplace, and living room style seating. There will also be two private function spaces for up to 150 people each.
Then-Mayor Tim Burchett announced his plans for the Andrew Johnson building in 2017 when the Knox County Purchasing Department released a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the sale and redevelopment of the property.
The Andrew Johnson Building opened in 1929 and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Knox County purchased the building in 1991 and Knox County Schools’ administrative offices operated there for decades. KCS was relocated to the TVA East Tower at the end of last year.