KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) – A nonprofit community center and bookstore in Knoxville has had to close its doors and relocate operations after an emergency shutdown due to sanitation problems.
Recent plumbing problems at The Bottom on Magnolia Avenue have had the water shut off and organizers have had to find temporary space for their community programs while they work on a costly repair.
More than a bookstore, The Bottom is named after a black neighborhood destroyed in the 1950s
This has already had an impact on the organization’s summer camps for children.
“The Bottom is a community space in East Knoxville,” said Ty Murray, director of arts and communications at The Bottom. “We are a justice and justice project. Our primary purpose is community, culture and creativity for Black Knoxville.”
The Bottom is open most days of the week. Inside is a bookstore that regularly hosts community events.
They were hosting several summer programs for youth last week when they noticed one of the toilets wasn’t flushing.
Professor creates The Bottom: a community space for Knoxville’s black community
“We called a plumber and the original estimate was $500 to clean the drain and put the lines back on line,” Murray explained. “They came back and told us that there was a very serious problem with our entire infrastructure and that it wasn’t just a matter of cleaning the drain, it actually required them to reroute and re-pipe a lot of our lines.”
Repair costs increased from $500 to $15,000. They asked the community for help, and the community came.
“We are so happy with our community for helping us reach our original goal of $15,000. However, that number is still rising,” Murray said. “Right now we’re looking at $19,000, but we’re still in limbo. We are still awaiting an answer as to what that sum will be and when the work will be completed.”
They want to get back into their building as soon as possible, but need more money to do so.
“It’s not something we expected, so it’s not something we have lying around,” she said. “So we’re really asking the community for their support and help.”
You can donate to The Bottom here.
The Bottom is currently using the Change Center building for its upcoming event, Sew It Sell It Pitch Day, taking place on Friday, July 21, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m
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